Sign of Times
by Cratormaster
Summary: REWRITTEN as "Hell's Ambassador"! Parallel Universes. Death Forces. What is reality, and what truly exists? How can you find the purity of your heart in the torrents of dreams? Watch as Ash merges into Arceus's memory to pull reality from the ravine of the space-time distortion! *Shipping NEVER seen before *Xianxia
1. Prologue: Bubble

_**Prologue- Bubble:**_

 **A/N: Don't click away! You're destined to be here! This is the start of a new style: Pokémon Xianxia**

 **For my old readers, this has changed.**

* * *

The vastness was silent. It was not a mere universe, as seen by the lack of blinking stars in the distance. Distorted space in the form of spatial holes disappeared from one area, then flashed into the next, without any patterns.

Temporal condensation in the form of rainbow colored lights zoomed across the emptiness, fading in and out of reality.

This was the Continuum, the ultimate dimension that engulfed all parallel universes and infinity.

At the center of the Continuum was a closely clustered population of activities, as if attracted by a giant magnet of sorts.

A piercing white light streamed out of the middle. It has a profound aura that trumped all other existence. It was the pillar of all. The shadow of a Hall sat upon it, from which the Creator ruled everything.

The Continuum existed because of it- the ultimate domination. Around it flowed the River of Time, which had formed a perfect circle that contained nine White Holes.

For the past eons, the nine had spun consistently at the same pace, all being at the same cycle in the Center Sphere, influenced by the Pillar.

One day, two abrupt flow of blue and pink streamed out of one Hole and ripped through space, crashing directly onto the Pillar.

Immediately, chains of the two colors twirled up to the Hall. Upon contact, its shadow burst into pieces. The white light stopped glowing, and the image of a giant quadrupedal being floated out from within the Pillar.

He stopped at the surface though, as if held back by the chain. However, there was no anger or frustration in his eyes, but an eerie serenity.

He stared into the distance, past the River of Time, which had, in some way, changed to a less reflective flash.

After a while, he sunk back into the Pillar. The White Hole which had shot out the chains slowed dramatically, falling out of the same rate of turn as the other eight.

* * *

Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town stood within a bubble, surrounded by nothingness all around him. A mysterious white light shone on him, but there was no source.

He frowned, not quite sure what was happening. He had just returned home from Kalos, and was about to enter the door to be greeted by Delia's bone-crushing hug when everything faded to black.

His attention was caught by a sudden golden light that popped out from his right. It was another bubble that had materialized from nowhere, containing a blonde girl with her hair in tight curls. She had on a tight pink jacket with blue jeans, the trending style in Kanto.

She lied on the ground, unconscious. Her head was glowing a misty pink. The girl looked familiar, Ash thought, but her name couldn't come to his mind.

Instinctively, he wanted to head over to help her up. Upon the thought, his bubble shook and started to float in her direction. The two merged together to form an even bigger bubble.

Ash staggered. A strange gravity kept his feet attached to the bottom of the sphere, stopping him from kissing the bottom.

The boy knelt down beside her and held out a hand to rock her shoulders. As their bodies contacted, Ash's hand flared up in an abrupt blue, while the pink on her head flashed brightly.

Ash yelped slightly and extracted his hand. He recognized the blue… it was the scent of a power that he hadn't felt since the Tree of Beginning.

"Don't worry. She'll wake up soon after the transformation." A powerfulvoice rang out behind him. The blue on Ash's hand wavered with the ancient tune. As it rang, brighter lights fell around them like drapes.

The Pallet trainer snapped his head around. He knew the voice. There was a connection… a mysterious, bloodline connection that would never dissipate with time.

A lanky man appeared behind him in an enormous bubble hundreds of times bigger than his. His exterior was one of a normal adult male with neatly combed hair pushed back into his hat.

He was dressed in clothes of humble patterns of blue and black, with a simple pair of azure boots. However, there was a commanding air tracing him that demanded attention that no disgrace could stain.

In his hand was a handheld staff topped by a purple gem. He pointed at Ash's bubble. His flew into Ash's, and, all at once, the boy found himself standing in a suddenly opened room.

"Hello, my heir." He shot a look at the emerging blue on Ash's right hand. "Congratulations on awakening your powers of the Chosen."

Ash opened his mouth, but no words emerged. A thought popped into his head on a possible guess of who this man could possibly be.

"Let's hope you're not too late, Ash." The figure gave him a plain look and turned around. The bubble started to steered in the direction he was facing.

The boy blinked rapidly. Even with his numerous experiences of saving the world, his mind was still barely quick enough. He managed to choke out. "Are you… Sir…"

"Yes, I'm Aaron. Founder of the Rota Empire." A heavy sigh breathed out of the man. "It's all gone though."

"G… gone!?" Ash felt a rush of excitement and confusion pour through his veins. He couldn't believe he had finally met the legendary guardian that had fathered countless miracles in the lands.

* * *

Sir Aaron, in the modern records, was the great Chosen of the Imperial Age to finally unite all warring nations under the Empire of Rota after millenniums of fighting.

He conquered each power of the Home Islands, one by one, until the decisive victory of the Three Hills slammed an end to the opposition, unifying humanity for the first time since the collapse of Pokélantis.

Legend had it that Sir Aaron's troops were trapped in the ravine of the peaks for days, unable to break out. His general, the Great Lucario, was fatally wounded by a scheme on the enemy side, and the entire battle was at the border of a lost.

At the start of the week, the total Allied force had thousands for a number. By the end, merely a hundred remained.

At the brink of collapse, the records stated that a man marched into the battlefield alone, with only his staff and no one else. He would later be known as the first Emperor of Rota.

The general at the time had outraced his troops, having received news of the dire situation. Racing ten times faster than the fastest Rapidash, the Aura Guardian arrived on the Hills before any of his troops had a chance to catch up.

By himself, the great Knight rushed through the battle formations. Not a single man could withstand a single blow. Not a single Pokémon could stall for even a second.

From the foot of the first hill, he ascended to the peak, then back down, and onto the second hill, and the third, and back around.

The eighteen Elites of the Opposition cornered him on his seventh way through their massive army. Countless soldiers, by the thousands, had fallen under his feet.

They lasted a total of eighteen seconds. History remarked the fight as " _Swords flew in the air, controlled by an invisible hand. Each penetrated into the throats and hearts of the Elites, and the battle was over._ "

He arrived at dusk, and for three nights he fought, attracting the attention of the entire Opposition. By the third dawn, his army, which had finally arrived on horseback, fought the war to be over.

On the Three Hills, the Opposition soldiers and Pokémon knelt in submission, with the leaders in chains around him.

Sir Aaron sat on the highest peak, peering down at the world, with a bowl of beer in his left hand, and his staff in his right.

A decade later, the recollection of this scene by an expert Smeargle artist would be ranked as the greatest painting of all times and be maintained until the end of the Central Era.

* * *

Ash's thoughts paced rapidly. More questions seeped in before the previous was answered. Why was Sir Aaron here? Where… was this place? Why did he say "heir?"

His daydream was interrupted by a loud groaning behind him, sounding much like waking up to a uncontrolled hangover.

Ash's head turned to find the blonde girl sitting up, with one hand clutching her head, and the other against the bottom of the bubble, holding her body up.

The Pallet raced over to help her up. As his hand touched her arm, her body jerked, and she snatched her arm away, bouncing up like a rocket.

Ash backed up, startled by the dramatic reaction. An aggressive glow of warning and competition streamed out from her eyes.

"Ash Ketchum!" She cried. A second after her feet hit the ground, her knees buckled again from a sudden rush of blood to her head due to getting up too fast… and she fell back down.

This time, Ash grabbed her and pulled her up before the girl had a chance to react. She glared at him, blowing a strand of blonde curls away from her eyes.

"What did you do to me!?" She demanded feistily. Her fist tightened.

Ash's brow furrowed. Even with his kind nature, he was getting annoyed. "What are you talking about!? I don't even know you!"

"You don't KNOW ME!?" Her face bloomed into a deep red the same way a girl would have on after entering the bedroom of her cheating boyfriend. "You're the one who singlehandedly ruin my works of ten years! You DARE to say you don't know me?"

"Who ARE you!?" Ash threw his hands in the air. The back of his mind was itching the way it normally did after a thought was on the border of popping out. She did look familiar.

"DO-MI-NO!" She gritted her teeth. Reaching into her jacket, she ripped out an emblem in the shape of a… Rocket!?

His mind was suddenly overwhelmed by the memory of a Johto incident, making him step back forcefully.

Domino. 009. Black Tulip. The second Mewtwo accident on Mt. Quena. The leading officer in the Rocket mission to recapture Mewtwo, which nearly succeeded.

Realization struck him. That was why she accused him of ruining her life's work… and also why she was so antagonistic. He almost didn't recognize her in her disguise… just like the first time.

Raising his hand to his chest, Ash took on a defensive position and growled slightly. Domino took a look at his posture and sneered. "C'mon, boy. I don't even an entire hand to push you over."  
Ash's eyes narrowed. No male could ever accept his masculinity being challenged to such a degree…

"She's not wrong. I'll need to do some serious work with you." The voice of Sir Aaron sounded from the front of the bubble.

Ash dropped his stance and looked back, at the same time both relieved and hurt. Relieved that he needed not face this blonde calamity by himself, while hurt that even the greatest Knight of all times had just called him a… wuss.

Domino did a double take and moved into her own defensive posture. She had not noticed his presence until the moment he spoke… which was so insane for her.

As an Elite, she was long trained in the arts. When she was eight, not even a rat could hide in her sight among the confusing alleyways of Viridian… not to mention a living person in a plain sphere.

As she saw his face as Sir Aaron turned around, her jaw dropped. A rare sight, because she had been trained for a decade not to show emotions. Instantly, she also dropped her defense, because not even her could have a bare chance against this legend.

Her reflex was much quicker than Ash's. Sure, the first thought was that it was impossible, since _he_ was dead… but she was surrounded by empty darkness that had, in all sense, distorted the reality she had known.

Who knew what had actually happened!?

… Actually… "What the HELL had happened!?" She blurted out as a stream of panic rushed up. If this was really what her crazy thoughts had wandered to…

"Wait, and someone else will explain." Sir Aaron said patiently, turning back to face the darkness. "We will be there very soon."

Domino exchanged an involuntary glance with Ash, and snapped her head away with a _humph_. Ash crossed his eyes but refrained from saying anything.

What she had said just struck him. What HAD happened? Was this… like one of his former journeys of saving the world? If it was… why was _she_ here?

* * *

"We're here." Sir Aaron said. The bubble began to slow markedly.

Ash and Domino looked out and identified nothing, but a continuous black vastness that seemed to have stretched on like the past hour of silence.

Suddenly, over the horizon of black, a white glow soared up. It was not there before, as if blocked by a curved hill… or distorted by space-time.

It rose higher and higher. Pure lights shed off in in eighteen vibrant colors. Even for afar, the two humans could feel the cosmic power pouring out.

It was a… gargantuan bubble. Compared to it, Sir Aaron's sphere, which had once seemed enormous, was like a small fish of the ocean.

The two smashed together. Domino and Ash both tripped forward, like being braked at two hundred miles per hour. However, before they could hit the ground, a white glow shone from their bodies, lifting them up before either crashed.

When they were pulled back up, they saw alongside Sir Aaron a blinding white figure in the shape of a llama.

Both Ash and Domino felt their knees hung weak as a torrent of tremendous energy pressed down on their bodies. Even Ash, who had seen the Creator before, had never been exposed to the complete glory of the Original One.

Arceus, God of All.

"Yo, God." Sir Aaron leaned over and whispered. "Believe it or not, too much force."

" _Really?_ " The white glow dimmed significantly into an even gentler gaze. " _Better?_ "

Domino jumped up from the sudden release of pressure, while Ash collapsed from being already to his limit. The girl slammed back down onto his chest.

Both yelped loudly and rolled away like the other was the plague, scrambling up and dusting themselves off with a disgusted glare.

Arceus's eyes behind the magnificent white twitched. Sir Aaron, still by his ear, sighed. "Is this really your plan to save your universe?"

" _Was they like this on the way over?_ "

"Indeed."

" _This training week is going to be long…_ "

"Could you give them more time?"

" _Impossible._ " The glow shook. " _This is the Imaginary Realm. I couldn't have them stay for a week without losing their physical exterior to return._ "

Sir Aaron fell silent. "Then we better start explaining."

* * *

" _I'm Arceus, and I will skip the useless courtesy and jump straight to the point._ " The God clear his throat. " _In my years of slumber, a force plotting against the universe had been expanding beyond my knowledge. His name is Cyrus._ "

Ash and Domino gasped loudly at the same time. To both, the name was as much as an emphasis as being under a giant ringing bell.

" _Long story short, Palkia and Dialga had been enslaved by some means of his, which I did not know about, until I woke up to…_ "

Arceus's eyes turned red. The enormous bubble around them shook violently, on the brink of popping at any second.

" _The destruction of the entire world._ "

Sir Aaron gripped onto the two teenagers forcefully, preventing them from a tumultuous faceplant. The Creator closed his eyes and took a deep breath. The bubble's quaking began to die down.

" _Sorry about that._ " He took another breath. " _It's just… seeing the world I've worked on for so long…_ "

Ash's brain finally triggered back to consciousness, miraculously before the Rocket Elite's.

"Impossible! I've knocked him into the pocket universe in Sinnoh!"

Sir Aaron shook his head. "That was exactly what he wanted you to do. That pocket universe WAS his."

Cyrus was the leader of Team Galactic, the main antagonist on Ash's journey into the Sinnoh region. At their final encounter, Ash and the Sinnoh League disassembled the entire organization, with Cyrus disappearing into the distortion of space… never confirmed dead.

" _It was Cyrus's method to sneak away, to disappear from the eyes of the world._ " Arceus spoke up. " _He had collected what he needed, whatever it was to enslave the Creation Duo, and he needed a place to put the entire plan into action._ "

" _And into action he did…_ " Arceus continued. " _I woke up last month with the entire realm collapsing. Space fell apart like the shattering of a glass frame, and and time randomly connected the Beginning with the future._ "

" _I… couldn't do anything though!_ " The white glow magnified, and the bubble vibrated uncontrollably. " _I found my powers locked temporarily by Palkia and Dialga's spell, one that they had poured their entire life into just to stop me for a few minutes._ "

" _I couldn't move! If I break their chains, that would be like killing them! I can't kill my own sons!_ "

" _They had lost their mind! Something was controlling them, and he said his name was Cyrus…_ _and that he shall reform the universe into a better tomorrow!_ "

" _My few moments of hesitation was apparently enough for the entire world to slide into the ravine, forever gone._ "

" _And now, this…_ " Arceus sniffed and raised a hoof, motioning to the darkness around him. " _Is what is left of reality… a small figment of the correct timeline… trapped between my Memory that I am upholding and the Final End._ "

Ash and Domino was stunned into silence. No experiences could have prepared them for this.

The world was… destroyed? Actually, just… destroyed? Gone?

…

" _Gone._ "

* * *

Ash rubbed his head with force and stared at the backside of Domino, who was being led away by Arceus. Then he turned back to Sir Aaron. "So… Can you _please_ repeat the plan again?"

The Knight deadpanned. "Ash… this is the fourth time."

"I'm not good with time-space warpholes and stuff!" Ash looked at him seriously. "Do you really want me to screw up the entire plan?"

"Okay, here goes." Sir Aaron sighed. "Basically, Lord Arceus is sending you back eight years in time, to a time in his memory when the world has not collapsed."

"WAIT! STOP!" Ash shouted. "I'm confused!"

"Why are you confused?" Sir Aaron asked exasperatedly.

The Pallet teen scratched his head. "I thought I'm being sent back eight years in the past in reality?"

"Arceus's memory is reality, you fool!" The Aura Guardian cried. "He's the only one alive right now! His perception of the past is the real past, especially since he has the ability to create everything back if it wasn't for the time-space distortion that was put in place!"

"Distortion?" Ash groaned. "What's that?"

"How can your Queen be this much smarter than you!?" Sir Aaron facepalmed. "Better question: How can my heir to the Chosen position be this slow!?"

"HEY!" A hurt look flashed across Ash's face. "Well then why did you choose ME!?"

"Because Fate chose YOU!" Sir Aaron yelled back. Seeing the tilt of his head, the Knight sighed. "Can you not make me go into more abstract concepts and focus on this?"

Ash made a slight gesture. Sir Aaron continued. "Anyways, Arceus plans to send you back eight years in the past to stabilize the timeline all the way up to the distortion."

"During this time, you have to find the source of the problem- Cyrus- and terminate him."

"Wait! If Cyrus has Palkia and Dialga, and the entire timeline is destroyed, how can Arceus send me back?" Ash's thinking face was blaring.

"Because, like I said," His mentor said impatiently, "Arceus's Memory could forge space-time, even if space-time is ruined."

"If it makes things easier for you, think about it like Memory is an ultimate power that lingers above Space and Time. It could revert the damage backwards."

"Then why doesn't Arceus just revert everything?" Ash questioned. "Reach down into his memory and stop Cyrus before he has a chance to wreck the universe?"

"FINALLY! You're getting it! That's what he is trying to do." Sir Aaron smiled. "That's why he's sending you back to his memory- to stop Cyrus."

"However, the problem is, memory is still not truly reality. The only way to turn memory into reality is to merge the last fragment of reality…" Sir Aaron motioned at the bubble around them, which was the last strand, "Into his memory using powers that only a God like him could comprehend."

Ash fell silent. Sir Aaron raised an eyebrow. "Any other questions?"

"Yes… just one." Ash stared into his eyes. "Why doesn't Arceus just do it himself? It's his memory. It should be easy enough to wipe out Cyrus."

Sir Aaron shook his head. "Ash… have you ever try to focus something… something of absolute importance, willingly? For example, can you ever forget your mother, Delia?"

"No… that's insane." Ash blinked. "How can I ever forget Mom?"

"That's why Arceus can't forget Cyrus." Sir Aaron concluded. "Even if he had powers to do so, he couldn't, because he is trying to maintain this last figment of reality."

"If he spread his powers too thin, the entire bubble will collapse, ending the world as we know it."

"And… that's where you come in, Ashura Ketchum." Sir Aaron's eyes softened and patted his shoulder. "We are sending you back with Domino, into Arceus's memory to wipe out Cyrus. When you succeed, Arceus will combine both and return a new universe."

Ash spoke up after a silence much longer than the last. Sir Aaron quieted himself to let the current Chosen think.

"Just one last thing?" Ash's mouth twisted in a weird shape. "Why the hell do I have to work with DOMINO OF TEAM ROCKET!?"

* * *

"Any questions?" Arceus stomped the ground. A mansion in pure white formed behind him.

"I understand all of the time-space and memory thing…" Domino coughed. She was still shocked to the core that she was… talking to the God of All. Her brain spun, trying desperately to figure out how to even speak to him.

"Ummm… why did you, well…" She hesitated. "You know… choose ME as the one to save the world with… _him_?"

" _Because my Memory Orb is telling me that you two resonate very well._ " Arceus drifted off. " _ANYWAYS! Any other questions?_ "

"But still!" Domino persisted, her tone softening a little as she recalled the identity of the being in front of her. "I'm a Rocket girl! I do nothing but evil! Ash is the opposite! How can we… match?"

" _There's no such thing as evil, besides those who try to disrupt the order of the universe._ " Arceus spoke solemnly. " _Whatever happens within is only part of the cycle of life._ "

" _Just like a Sharpedo eating a Magikarp doesn't make the Sharpedo evil, Team Rocket trying to destabilize the planet is only a way of evolution in my eyes._ " The Creator recognized the glint of realization and the unconscious removal of a very deep guilt. " _It's only Ying and Yang._ "

" _You're different from Cyrus. He plotted to eradicate balance, to annihilate Ying-Yang._ " Arceus turned around toward the mansion.

" _I think I now know why my prediction had landed on you._ "

* * *

"Close your eyes." Sir Aaron stated.

Ash sat on a futon crossed-legged, like a Buddhist monk, and closed his eyes. His left pointer finger was pointing down, and the rest of the fingers closed into a fist. His right hand was open-palmed, facing skywards.

"Now, go!"

A mist of blue started to pulse out mysteriously from his body. His clothes dissipated upon contact, leaving him in his birthday suit.

However, no one seeing this sight would feel any emotions of shame, but instead a tranquility and even holiness.

A bright blue gathered on his left pointer finger and the center of his right palm. Sir Aaron's took a breath and asked in a baritone. "What do you see?"

"I see…" Ash's voice was hollow. "A… drop… of water… wait! Now a… pond? No! The ponds are… connecting..."

His eyelids trembled. Unbeknownst to him, Sir Aaron, staring at his every move intently, roared. "DO NOT OPEN YOUR EYES!"

Ash's body shook, and the blue wavered, flashing away.

"NIUOU!" Sir Aaron's cry was like a burst of thunder, with a magical effect. Instantly, the blue hue settled back down to tranquility and returned to its slow revolution.

"I SEE IT!" Ash cried. "It's a River!"

Hearing Ash's words took the breath out of the ancient Knight. He stumbled back unknowingly. His hands shook, but his voice was steady. "Do you see anything else?"

"I… don't… no." Ash finished. "The River flowed away, and now everything's black."

"Okay. Use the finishing method to conclude." Sir Aaron commanded strongly. The blue on Ash's extremities started to seep back up.

The Guardian suddenly knelt down toward Ash and buried his head to the ground. In a decibel only he could hear, he mumbled. "Eighteen Chosen, all-hail the King."

Seconds later, he was back on his feet. When Ash opened his eyes, Sir Aaron was standing tall before him, just like he was standing before he started the meditation.

"Okay… so a River?" Sir Aaron nodded. "That means that your Aura affinity is… so-so. You better work hard if you want to become a Guardian."

"Yes sir." Ash lowered his head, a bit embarrassed. "What did you see, sir, when you first looked?"

Aaron's face darkened. "None of your business!"

Ash snapped his head back down. Sir Aaron continued like nothing had happened. "I will teach you all the methods to train, but only actually train you a little. Arceus cannot keep the separation up for long, so we need to work with maximum efficiency."

"You shall practice diligently once you return to reality, do you understand?"

Ash nodded vigorously.

"Good. We shall begin with Force…"

* * *

" _How much potential does he have?_ " Arceus looked at Sir Aaron.

"He not only has the best affinity with Aura in all of the Guardian I know…" Sir Aaron took a long breath, his eyes shining with a proud glint. "He even trumped my beginning!"

"You know what he saw in his First Sight?" Sir Aaron rapped on. "A River!"

"What did I see at mine? A pond!"

Arceus did a small double take. " _Even the first Lucario from the Beginning did not see more than a lake!_ "

"EXACTLY!" Sir Aaron peered into the distant darkness, as if he could see the rising of a shining star breaking through the night. "I could not have picked a better successor."

" _Well then, I'm glad I didn't pick one of the other ones I had seen._ "

"How's Domino? How much of her psychic did you cultivate yet?"

" _Absolutely terrific. Remember the Spoon Methods that I spent months teaching the Mew sisters?_ "

"Yep. You said between the both of them they learned six of the Seven."

" _Yes. Domino grasped the last six in a week's time, and part of the first as well._ " Arceus glowed in an excited white. " _I'm sure with her intellect, she will understand the most powerful in no time._ "

"So are they ready?" The knight asked solemnly.

" _My psychic is. How's your Aura adept?_ "

"He has learned everything he needed. I can only lead him so far. The rest, he has to explore on his own."

" _A week really is too short._ "

"Indeed it is." Sir Aaron paused. "Now what?"

" _Now, I have to hatch Dialga 2 and Palkia 2._ " Arceus reached into the air and pulled out a giant magenta egg and a giant blue egg. " _They can open my memory for me and create an illusional frame for the past. My hands are really tied right now._ "

"Can they enter?"

" _No. They're in a sense, real. I gathered them from the remains of the real Palkia and Dialga._ " Arceus said with a deep frown. " _If they enter, the illusion will collapse._ "

"Okay…" Sir Aaron looked longingly at the temple and the mansion. "Time to rally the troops."

* * *

"Do we understand everything?" Sir Aaron asked for the last time. "Speak up or forever hold your peace."

Domino looked at Ash, who met her eyes. She ripped her head away with a light grunt. Deep within her eyes was a flash of pink.

Arceus had turned into a giant block of white. On his left and right were two gigantic Legends, one a pink bipedal and one an azure quadrupedal.

"Good." Sir Aaron nodded one last time and waved his hand toward the two.

Both Creation legendary roared at the same time. Spatial and Temporal forces clashed. A black hole was ripped out of the white block of light.

A distant agonizing scream traumatized the Bubble, shaking it precariously, barely from the verge of destabilization.

Sir Aaron's face changed rapidly. "HURRY! Get in before Arceus lose control!"

Ash's eyes twitched and grabbed onto Domino's hand instinctively. She forgot to struggle as a whirl of gravity pushed them into the construct, disappearing from the Bubble.

"STOP!" Sir Aaron cried. Palkia and Dialga stopped pulsing out different energies and stepped back.

The black hole closed, filled back up by streaming white light that condensed into Arceus's form. Visible sweat dripped down his lengthy, llama figure.

He panted. Sir Aaron didn't bother asking him if he was fine. No one who just had his memory ripped open is fine. If the roles had switched, by no means could Sir Aaron promise standing up to the pain while also maintaining the last of reality.

The three legendaries and Aaron waited.

Nothing.

"Uhhh, Boss?"

" _Yes?"_

"What now?"

" _I don't know. Kinda figure it would change the world instantly._ "

"Please tell me we don't have to actually wait eight years."

" _We don't have to actually wait eight years."_

"Now say it like you mean it."

" _I can't. But what I can say is that you will babysit Dialga and Palkia to keep them intact until they learn to use their powers._ " Arceus gave the pair a look. " _You two almost tore my freaking soul apart._ "

Aaron looked up at the two towering legendaries, "I can't believe this is actually happening."

" _They're a few hours old. Try to stop them from wreaking havoc while I'm gone, or at least do TOO much damage. I'm planning to building the Hall of Origins here."_

* * *

 **A/N: Enjoy everyone, and be sure to review. I would appreciate it a lot.**


	2. Cha 1: Kanto 1

Ash woke up in his bed from what seemed like a very, very long dream. In this dream, he already went on a Pokémon journey, full of crazy adventures, in some of which he had to save the world. He met dozens of rare legendaries and his adventure finished with seeing Arceus and his idol, Sir Aaron.

He jumped up from his bed, recalling that today was the day that he would be getting his first Pokémon. He pumped his fist in the air and jumped down from his bunk, and tripped on something and went crashing to the ground.

"Oww." He groaned and looked beside him, to find a staff that was seperated into two pieces that could be assembled to become almost as long as himself. On top of it had a small purple gem that was shooting out some mysterious purple light. He thought for a while, and a crazy idea went to his mind.

"Was all of that actually real?"

He focused, and then toss his hand out, and a ball of blue hue light up his hand.

Ash stared in amazement of the little ball of aura, "Holy crap, my life really IS that crazy. I thought it was just that weird anime I watch last night."

A voice from downstairs called, "Ash! Get up or you'll be late for Professor Oak!"

Ash shrugged, knowing that Pikachu would be there either way. _Sammy_ , after seeing him with Ash in the time travel, would never give the mouse away to anyone else. But of course, there was always the off-chance that the distortion messed everything up…

Actually with his luck, that's probably what was going to happen. Upon thinking THAT, Ash got up immediately, snatched the staff up and rushed out the door.

Delia called after him, "Did you change into clean underwear?"

Ash smiled at that. After Sinnoh, Delia had stopped to pester him about it. It brought back nostalgic moments, which were soon swatted away as he raced down the path to the Oak Lab.

A familiar scene entered his eyes. A crowd of people already gathered there, and a flashy red car containing his frenemy for ten years, as well as Oak's grandson, Gary, along with his many cheerleaders. Seeing Ash running up, he smirked cockily, "Well, well, look at who decided to come after all! I thought you backed out of the challenge, Ashy boy!"

Ash muttered, "I like you better when you're not arrogant."

"What?" Gary asked, didn't catch what he said.

"Oh, just that if I lived in the Lab too, I wouldn't be LATE."

Gary chuckled, "Well, that's why you better hurry. Grandpa had given away all three of the starters to us already, so you better pray that he's got a backup."

"Oh I know he does," Ash said to himself.

"Hey, remember to make it to Leagues for me to crush you."

"You got yourself a deal Gary."

"Well, see you later Ashy boy!"

"Wait, Gary hold on," Ash called out after him before he can start the car, "There's something we need to talk about."

Gary raised an eyebrow. "Go ahead."

Ash coughed, "In private."

He huffed and hopped out of his car, "Fine. What do you need?"

Ash dragged him behind a tree away from everyone's sight. Spinning up an orb of aura, he touched Gary's shoulder.

For a second, Gary stood there, motionless, worrying Ash that the memory lift created by Arceus had malfunctioned. Then, everything came at once.

"Wow! So the world ended again!? But I was having so much success with my mega evolution research!"

"Now I have to be back in my ten year-old body, without any Pokémon? Come on man!"

"At least you still got fan girls," Ash pointed to his crowd waiting in the car, "Also, your Pokémon would be at the exact same place as last time. But here's the catch."

"Arceus told me that this world is going to be a lot tougher in terms of fortune and all that intangible stuff," Ash said nonchalantly, as if it was normal to randomly meet the Alpha Pokémon.

"Well then, I better get started. Good luck on your journey too Ashy. By the way, cool staff. How did you already got a keystone?"

"A keystone? What's that?" Ash looked at him, confused.

Now it was Gary's turn to be befuddled. He pointed at the purple gem on the staff, "That stone that is emitting purple light. That's a keystone. You can use it with specific stones designated to each specific Pokémon to mega evolve them. Wait, you didn't know that?"

Ash shook his head, "Nope, Sir Aaron just gave it to me as part of his staff."

By this time, Gary had gotten used to Ash's random outburst of crazy staff, so he just nodded.

"That's right. In the future, it was just discovered when you finished the Kalos League, so you might have never heard of it. A keystone can link to a mega stone, which can be used to mega evolve some Pokémon. Each Pokémon who can mega evolve has its own specific mega stone. This reminds me, I need to go look for some stones. See you Ash."

"Seriously, good luck, you're gonna need it if you're going to be saving the world many times again. Don't forget to call me if you need help!"

With that said, Gary hopped back into his red sports car and zoomed away into the distance, with the faint cheering of his cheerleaders still echoing back.

Ash shook his head, "That boy!"

Even with his memories back, Gary still refused to give up the car.

* * *

"Hi Prof!" Ash walked into the lab, "Sorry I'm late, too busy dreaming about my Pokémon adventure."

Oak stared at him, "I would have thought you would be more excited."

"Oh yeah, about that," Ash held up a blue orb of aura, "Prof, let me show you something."

Ash quickly reached over and touch the old professor before he could start freaking out about why one of his trainers could spin up a ball of aura.

Like Gary, Oak was motionless as years of memory flooded back into him.

"Wow, the world ended again?"

Ash remarked, "You are so like your grandson."

Professor Oak laughed, "You mean the opposite! So I guess you need to save the world again and fix the distortion?"

"Wait, you knew about it?"

"I was doing some research on space-time at the time, and found that the energies are over-excited to the point to intermixing. It all makes sense now." He looked over at a confused Ash, "So anyways, you have come for Pikachu?"

"Yep! And Dexter."

"Oh that's right, your Pokédex. Here you go," Oak handed over a red Pokédex with the name _Ash_ labeled on top and six pokéballs.

"Hold on to those first. I'll go retrieve some more pokéballs, pretty sure you'll need it, along with Pikachu." He put the Pokédex and pokéballs on the desk

"Thanks Prof."

The professor hurried out of the room, leaving Ash to stare at the room, bored. He spun a ball of aura in one hand, and another one in the other. Focusing, he threw one up and formed another one before that one came down, and started to juggle the balls of aura.

It went great for a while, until one of the balls slipped and crashed into the pile of stuff Oak had just given him.

"Crap!" Ash muttered and bent down to pick everything up. Suddenly, Dexter glowed, with the same light as an evolution. The Pokédex started to stretch itself out, and into a duck-like Pokémon with red and blue vector sides.

Ash stared at the Pokédex, "What?"

"Ash, I'm back, sorry for the wait, here's Pika… Woah!" Oak walked back into the room to find the newly-formed Pokémon sitting on its desk.

"Uhhh, Prof, I thought you gave me a Pokédex? What is this?"

"I am Dexter, a Porygon, which is a Pokémon that is formed when a technology gain a conscience from an overload amount of information."

Oak snapped his fingers, "That's right! In the future, I was trying to use the information you all sent me throughout the years to create a Porygon. I guess it worked."

"But how? This dex doesn't have anything in it?"

"Ash, your ability to establish a mental chain and revert certain effects of the distortion of time had awakened my cache from the previous timeline. With the link of two timelines, I was able to create a small time sphere, which can power my presence as a Porygon."

Ash whispered to Oak, "Am I supposed to understand this?"

"So basically, I was converted into a Pokémon, and I now obtain all traits of a normal Pokémon, like abilities, type, emotions, thoughts. You can think of me as a Deoxys in a sense."

"Wait, so do you go into a pokéball?"

"No, I can convert back to Pokédex form and you can carry me that way."

"In that case, please do."

"My pleasure. It takes less energy that way."

"Professor, so I think what basically happened was that I accidentally dropped a ball of aura onto Dexter, and the ball contained some of the memory lift Arceus made me, which was able to awakened Dexter's collection of information from the last timeline."

Professor Oak looked as if he had so much shocking news already, he didn't care for one more. "Okay Ash. Can you hook Dexter up to my PC? I want to make a copy of all that info and do some analyzation."

"Can you do that Dexter?" Ash turned to the small red machine.

"Indeed." Dexter floated to the PC drive and hooked himself up.

"Now while that download, I'm guessing you're dying to see Pikachu?" Oak held up a ball with a lightning symbol, "I found him last week eating my electricity cable that powers my lights."

Ash could hardly keep a straight face, "So THAT's why he never talks about how he was caught."

"Well anyway, here you go," Oak threw the ball into the air, and a second later, a yellow mouse landed agilely on the table.

In front of Pikachu was the man who caught him and whom he deeply antagonized. There was also another boy, and the mouse felt a deep attraction to him. The boy was looking at him with such gentleness and… care that he didn't understand.

Pikachu stepped forward a bit. " _Are you my new trainer?_ "

Ash chuckled, "I wouldn't say new, Pikachu."

After he said it, both humans and the Pokémon gasped.

"You can understand him?"

" _You can understand me?_ "

Ash shrugged, "Probably it's an aura thing that Sir Aaron and Arceus gave me."

Pikachu stared, " _Sir Aaron? Arceus!? Who are you?_ "

Ash smiled and spun up a blue ball of aura. Pikachu sprang back on reflex at the sudden light. He could feel that the ball contain quite a bit of energy, and also an attraction he couldn't put his paws on.

Trotting forward slowly, he bent down and nudged the blue ball that Ash held in front of him.

The next second, electricity shot out and zapped the two humans in the lab.

" _THAT'S FOR LEAVING ME AND SEEING SIR AARON AND ARCEUS WITHOUT ME, ASH KETCHUM!"_

" _AND THIS IS FOR NOT LETTING ME EAT YOUR ELECTRICITY CABLES!"_

* * *

"Here you go, Professor Oak. All done. Don't stay up too late!"

Dexter turned around to find the two lying on their back groaning, with Pikachu standing triumphantly on the table, with sparks flying off his cheek.

"Hello Pikachu, I see you are reminded."

" _You can talk now?_ "

"Yeah. Time travel did a lot for me."

" _We time traveled plenty of times before._ "

"This one is special. It involved a rendition of space and time. It's complicated."

Ash picked himself off the floor and groaned, "Now that you have completed the tradition by shocking me, you want to start the journey?"

" _Hell yeah!"_

"Let's see what's different between this time and last time."

Ash strode out of Professor Oak's lab.

Pikachu hopped on Ash's backpack, " _What happened this time, Ash?_ "

"Long story short, Cyrus somehow got back and distorted space-time to the point that even Palkia and Dialga crumbled beneath that strength, and Arceus summoned me to this bubble thing and teleported me back eight years, to now, because there is a distortion of the future eight years."

"And also, we can't do anything to stop Cyrus until the eight years had past because something Arceus called the rules of Fanfiction, whatever the heck that is."

Dexter interrupted, "Fanfiction is a site where people write stories about TV shows, movies, anime, games, etc."

"Anyways, Arceus told me to go on my journey like last time, and get all the Pokémon I had to get ready for Cyrus."

" _Wait, does that mean we have to save the world again?"_

"Yes, repeatedly."

* * *

"Aww, that was a good dream…" Domino stretched in her sleeping bag. She had just finished a mission from Giovanni, and had spent the night in the Viridian Forest.

"Yeah right, I'm a psychic," She swung at the tent door and yelled, "Open!"

To her amazement and shock, the tent door opened by itself and stayed open.

"Woah. Okay, this is surreal." She climbed out of the tent, "Yeah, it's probably the wind or something."

" _HI! I can't believe the world's best psychic is such a pretty girl. I imagined a man with bulging muscles and…"_ The mental voice was gentle and playful, but startled Domino nonetheless.

Domino span around on the balls of her face and came face-to-face with a pink creature. She stepped back to get a better view, and said creature revealed itself to be a Mew.

The Mew waved at her, " _HIII!_ " and flipped herself upside down, " _I sensed your psychic energy from as far as the Tree of Beginning. It was so weird. One second, nothing. The next, you just poofed out of nowhere, as if Arceus himself had just awakened some massive power within you."_

Domino stared at the pink legendary, not because she was a legendary but because she just realized that the dream was actually true. She sat down hard on a rock, "Wow, things are really going crazy now!"

Mew bounced excitedly around her, " _I have never seen a human psychic with as much potential as you! Look at you! After you train, you could be as powerful as me._ "

An idea entered Mew's head, " _Oooo! Can I train you? That'll be so much fun!"_

Domino stared wide-eyed at the Mew, "You, a legendary Pokémon, want to train me!? What has this world become?"

" _So is that a yes?"_ Mew flipped right-side-up again and came to eye level with the blonde girl.

She began weakly, "I don't get a choice now, do I?"

" _Nope! Now, what are you waiting for? Capture me!"_

"Wait, WHAT!?"

" _Isn't that how humans do stuff? If I want to follow you, you have to capture me."_

Domino's mouth opened to say something, then closed it, then opened it again. She clutched her head, _a legendary Pokémon had asked me to capture her. What is GOING ON?_

Seeing that the girl had gone into overdrive, the pink legendary helpfully pulled out a pokéball from her belt and pressed a button, which sent out a white beam and pulled her in.

A few seconds later, a _dink_ was heard, registering the capture. Domino picked it up and released Mew again, who floated around wildly. " _Yay! Now we can be best friends! I have been trapped in that darn piece of rock tree for way too long. You will not believe how stubborn those three machines are!"_

"Machines?"

" _Oh, I think their names are Regirock, Regice and Registeel._ "

"..."

* * *

Ash walked out of Pallet Town, for the countless amount of time. A familiar scent of the forests entered his nose, and Pikachu sparked as a demonstration of his excitement.

Dexter dutifully told Ash, "We're now entering the Viridian Forest. Proceed North to go to the Viridian Pokémon Center."

"I'm guessing this way is north," Ash pointed in a direction while looking at the sun.

"Negative. North is that way," Dexter flashed a light into the opposite direction, "I am so glad I am point out stuff this time."

Pikachu looked at Ash, " _Why didn't we use Dexter as a map last time?_ "

"Well…"

Pikachu facepalmed.

* * *

" _So the first step to projecting psychic is to be calm…"_ Mew started, while sitting cross legged in midair.

Domino interrupted, "Yeah, Arceus had already gone through that, and he taught me the Spoon Method."  
" _Which one?_ " Mew asked.

"What do you mean?"

" _I mean which one of the Spoon Method did daddy teach you_." Domino stared at her legendary, " _What? The Creation Trio used to call him that as well, until Giratina declared that he needs more dignity."_

Domino shook her head, "For some reason, I'm not surprised. I can see why Ash isn't too shocked at seeing them. He's probably numb by now."

Looking around, she wondered aloud, "Speaking of him, where is he? At where did the three idiots said they first met him?"

"Hey Mew, let's go to the Viridian Pokémon Center really quick. We can chat on the way."

" _Go?"_ Mew confirmed, " _Teleport is way more fun._ _Let's go!"_ With that, Mew disappeared.

An animated sweatdrop dripped down Domino forehead. "But… but I don't know how to teleport…"

After ten seconds, Mew was back. " _Hey, what's wrong?"_

"How do you teleport?"

It was Mew's turn to be shocked, " _Which one of the Spoon Methods did he teach you? How could he not cover teleportation!?_ "

"Uhhh, he taught me seven," Domino looked down, embarrassed.

Mew's jaw dropped, " _HE TAUGHT YOU ALL SEVEN!? HE ONLY TAUGHT ME FOUR!"_

Mew flickered to her shoulder and pressed her tail against Domino's head, " _Holy crap! How can you have so much potential but so little actual psychic power?_ "

"Heheh, long story, he basically taught me all of the training methods, but didn't actually train me."

" _And you didn't train since?"_ Mew's eyes narrowed.

"Well, strictly speaking, he only taught me last night."

" _..._ "

* * *

"So the blue thing I used to remind you is called Aura. Dexter, can you pull up a definition of aura please?"

"Sure. Aura, a type of natural living energy that can be found in all living things, including Pokémon, humans and plants."

"So basically, aura can be used to power Pokémon moves, heal, and blow things up, and even alter physics. And technically, all Pokémon can learn aura if they want. I'm not too sure about Porygon though."

"No, we cannot not, since we do not have a life force. We are artificial intelligence."

" _So I can learn to use aura?"_

"Yes, and that is exactly what we are going to work on. Brock is going to be hard to beat with your electric moves."

" _I know Iron Tail._ "

"Rock polish."

" _..._ "

" _Okay, so aura. Tell me about it._ "

"Here. First, bring out some electricity."

Pikachu's ears glowed, and a ball of lightning formed in between.

"Now, think about the lightning this way. It's a mix of energy and life force. Suck in the electricity. Don't look at it, just do it."

Pikachu did as said. After a while, he felt that he couldn't extract anymore from the lightning.

Ash spoke up, "Now you can look and don't drop it."

Pikachu looked up and saw a ball of blue half the size of his head on top of him. He yelped and the fragile connection between him and the aura ball broke, and the ball dropped down like a stone.

Pikachu was hammered into the ground, and dust flew out from all under him.

He coughed and dragged his body out of the mess, with some fur missing from the top of his head. " _What the crap happened!? I feel like I just got hit by a car_."

"Well, that was the aura exploding when it hit you. It's actually a sloppy version of Force Palm. In battle, you need to extract the electric energy from a ball of lightning, channel the aura ball into your paw, and punch out. That's basically Force Palm."

Pikachu stared at his trainer who pet him. "We'll practice together buddy."

" _Okay, but a Force Palm is NOT that strong. I have been hit by plenty of Force Palm before."_

"Well, unlike most Pokémon, you probably have a lot of aura in you. That can explain why you can electrocute Rock types."

" _Really?"_

"Yeah." Ash's eyes were coated with a layer of blue, "I'm currently using Aura sight, which is another basic technique with aura, and I can see that your amount of aura is at least ten times bigger than say… that Beedrill in the distance."

" _How do you know it's a Beedrill?"_

"Its general shape and type energy. There's not a lot of bug and poison type around here that have a distinct stinger."

" _What else is in the forest?"_

"Well, let's see, all of the aura here is pretty sma… Holy crap!"

" _What? What did you see?_ "

"There is a shining ball of pink in that direction," Ash pointed, "Pink means psychic, and a pink that bright means that it is probably as powerful as…" Ash struggled to find a comparison.

"We better go check it out."

* * *

" _So you remember everything I said?"_ A very enthusiastic Mew asked.

"Yep," Domino, on the other hand, looked doubtful, "Coat myself with psychic energy, establish a mental link with the place I want to teleport to, and break through space with the second Spoon Method."

" _Yes. Too bad I don't know the third Method, or else I can break through time. You better teach me. Then I could be Celebi!_ " Mew lamented, _"Now what are you waiting for, let's give it a try!"_

Domino concentrated for a while, and a pink color flowed through her. Then, she disappeared, and then reappeared a second later next to a tree stump fifty feet from her.

She pumped her fist in the air, "YES! I did it."

" _How are you feeling? Teleportation can take up a lot of energy. That's why a lot of psychic, including humans, don't teleport._ "

"Nope, I feel great. Now I get why you love this. This is AWESOME! Wait till Ash sees this. He's stuck with juggling blue orbs when I can teleport."

" _Don't get too cocky. The next step is a lot harder, teleporting to distances that you can't see with your eyes. When you look at something, you already set up a mental link just by seeing. However, if you want to teleport long distance, you have to set up a mental link by breaking through space with your brain waves and coat yourself with enough energy to endure the travel and not fall out of space midway._ "

"So an additional step? I'm up for it."

" _Wait. Someone's coming._ " Mew looked around, " _I can detect his brain waves._ _He should be just a hundred something feet to the right of the clearing."_

"Here, come in the pokéball. I don't want someone to see you."

" _Eh, no worries. No one can capture me. They've been trying for a thousand years. Palkia tried to prank me once by creating a cage with an altered Spacial Rend, and I still broke through._ "

The leaves shuffled more, and a boy wearing a red hat with a picture of a pokéball on top popped out, as well as a Pikachu on his shoulder.

The blonde girl stared at him, and Ash stared back. A pink energy coated Domino, who reappeared moments later behind Ash, tackled him and pinning him to the ground. Pikachu jumping off in the nick of time.

"Look what I can do!" Domino bragged as she straddle him.

Ash narrowed his eyes, "Get off me!" and his hand, turning blue, lashed out.

Domino cried and teleported off of him and stood in front of him. Ash got up and dusted himself.

Pikachu looked at the familiar blonde girl, and he recalled who she was as the memory triggered.

" _DOMINO!?"_

Ash patted his loyal starter, "Tadah! The second surprise."

* * *

 **A/N: Ash started his journey and trained along the way. Domino made a new friend and learned some cool tricks. As of now, she technically own no Pokémon except for Mew because the Pokémon she used was part of Team Rocket. Please review. It's much appreciated.  
**


	3. Cha 2: Kanto 2

**A/N: Here we go, chapter 2. Are you guys excited? Tell me you're excited. Plz?**

* * *

" _How does she fit into the time travel?"_ Pikachu narrowed his eyes.

"Chill out Pikachu. Arceus recruited me to become his partner in saving the world. Now, before you say that it is the opposite of what I do, I don't want this job either. And plus technically, the things that I did occur in the future, so I didn't do them."

Pikachu thought for a while, and tilted his head at Ash, " _Do you trust her?_ "

Ash nodded. " _Then I will learn to do so too._ " Pikachu sat down on a stump and finished comprehending the situation.

"Oh by the way, cool trick with the teleporting thing," Ash said to Domino.

Domino beamed, being really proud of the ability and for some reason really happy that he complimented her, probably because he was, unlike the Rocket grunts, an elite trainer. "Thanks! But I could I never done it without my teacher."

She motioned to the top of a tree, "Come down Mew."

A pink fluffy ball bounced down from the treetop, did a mid-air dive and levitated in front of Ash and Pikachu.

Ash looked at it nonchalantly, "Hey Mew."

Pikachu asked, " _Are you the Tree of Beginning one or the other one_?"

Mew pouted, evidently disappointed by their lack of shock, " _I'm from the big lump of rock that you call a Tree._ "

"How did you meet Mew?"

"She just came after sensing my psychic powers."

Ash looked at Domino and remarked sternly, "Giovanni wanted to get a legendary for so long. Don't let him know about her."

She looked him in the eye, "I know. Mew is my friend. I'm not going to let him capture and manipulate her."

"Good," Ash finished and sat down on a rock. "Pikachu, let's get back to training."

Pikachu eyed Domino suspiciously and proceeded to sit down next to Ash. A ball of lightning appeared between his ears again.

"Now this time, extract the lightning slowly and steady the aura. Remain calm and don't let the ball of energy disturb you.

Mew giggled, " _Even though it had the force to send you flying._ "

" _Not helping!_ "

The ball of aura turned blue as the lightning was extracted, and it precariously balanced on Pikachu's head.

Domino whispered to Ash, "Why does he put the aura on his head?"

Ash shrugged, "Personal preference I guess."

He cleared his throat, "Now, send the energy into your paws by directing it through how you would usually direct electricity."

" _How do you know all of this?_ " Mew asked on the sidelines.

"That's how I do it."

" _But you don't have electricity._ "

"Yeah, that part was a guess."

The blue ball gently disappeared, and his paws started glowing blue. Ash jumped up in the air, "Yes! It worked. Now punch a rock."

Pikachu jumped down from the stump he was sitting on and hopped next to a rock, punching it.

His paws exploded, blowing the rock apart and sending Pikachu gliding through the air and landing into a bush. The three viewers winced.

"We need to work on the recoil," Ash concluded, "You have to let out the aura gently, and don't try to use too much at once, since you are relatively light."

Pikachu emerged from the bush and glared at his trainer, " _You didn't say THAT!"_

POKE-POKE-POKE-POKE-POKE-POKE-POKE-POKE-POKE-POKE-POKE-POKE-

Domino and Mew was teleporting around the clearing like there was no tomorrow. Teleporting dozens of times, which would have drained normal psychics a long time ago, didn't seem to affect the pair at all.

After quite a while, Mew calmed down and stopped Domino. " _So what else do you not know?_ "

"What kind of a question is that?"

Mew thought for a while. " _How about this?_ " She brought up a Light Screen in front of her.

"Nope!" Domino said, popping the "p".

" _Okay, so a Light Screen is probably the most common way for a psychic to defend. It is actually one of the easiest things to do, but require quite a bit of energy, which should be no problem to you._ "

Domino listened carefully to her teacher as Mew waved her hands in the air.

" _So use Spoon Method 7_. _That covers almost everything with constructing real fragments using psychic energy. Basically, everything is easy once you get past projecting your psychic part._ "

Domino concentrated, and a pink ball appeared in front of her. It then stretched into a flat rectangle that floated in front of her.

" _Cool! Teaching you was way easier than teaching another human that I met a few years back._ "

"Who?" Domino asked absently.

" _I think her name is Sabrina._ "

"SABRINA? As in Sabrina, the best psychic in all of Kanto and Johto? Sabrina the psychic that went insane?"

Mew shook her head. " _No. The best psychic in the area is now you._ "

Domino stared at the pink Pokémon, "You do realize she can turn me into a doll in the blink of an eye, right?"

Mew flipped upside down. " _So? Like I said, the best psychic isn't the most powerful, even though you will be. And plus, for one, you can project a Light Screen. She can't do that, or at least before when I last saw her. It took her several weeks to get down the teleporting._ "

" _Now, let's see. I have taught you movements and defense. We shall continue onto offense."_

" _The best way to learn offense is by being attacked._ "

Domino blinked, "What?" A Psybeam came directly at her and shattered the Light Screen in front of her. She yelped and rolled across the clearing, dodging a second attack. She kneeled and threw her hands out, forming another Light Screen which successfully blocked the third attack.

" _It's also the best way to learn defense as well._ "

The fourth attack, a Psycho Cut, hit critically and broke through the screen. Domino squealed and teleported. Forming her own amateur version of a Psybeam, basically energy formed together into a ball, shee threw it at Mew, who countered with a Psystrike.

" _Form your attack with more condensed energy and lock onto the target with a mental link, which guide the energy forward. Don't use your body, use your head. Like this._ "

Domino formed a Light Screen in the nick of time and deflected it off.

" _Good! If your Light Screen can't completed absorb the entire attack, bounce it off somewhere else._ "

The "somewhere else" lit up a shaky blue Protect, which barely held under Mew's Psystrike. "Hey! Watch where you're shooting those missiles."

" _Sorry. Nice Protect though._ "

"Thanks. Just worked it out. Pikachu said punching rocks aren't satisfying enough."

" _Yep!"_ Pikachu agreed. He flipped into the air with Agility and came down with a blue paw, aiming for Ash, who brought out another Protect and deflected his starter. The yellow mouse flipped through the air, while Ash tried to swipe at him with his own Force Palm. Pikachu switched to Quick Attack to evade it and landed onto his feet graciously.

"Okay, we got the control, the recoil and transition between lightning and aura down. But here's a problem with Force Palm. You have to get close to your target and punch it. So the next step is to let out your aura so that it can…"

Ash looked down to see Pikachu curling himself up on his tree stump and snoring. He chuckled, "Or we can take a break."

"Ash, you want to spar with ME?" Domino rolled over from Mew's last attack and stood up facing Ash.

Ash raised an eyebrow, look at her, then teased, "Nah. I don't want to make a GIRL cry."

Domino's face was emotionless for a second, and then she said through gritted teeth, "You shall pay!" and teleported off.

An extreme discomfort overcame Ash, who brought out a Protect just in case. Just when he finished, a Psybeam came racing across the clearing and struck Ash's blue shield. Another came behind him, and Ash had to flung himself onto the ground to evade it.

Domino teleported in and pinned him down triumphantly. "Wow you're weak, Ketchum."

Ash smiled a bit. "You know, you just made a huge mistake."

"What?"

"You decided to come into close quarters with me, an aura user." With that said, a blue glow surrounded his body and flipped her off. His hand turning blue, he sent a Force Palm her way.

Domino jumped back and brought out a Light Screen, but the impulse still sent her back and restrained her from focusing enough to teleport away.

Another came her way, and another. Ash remarked, "Don't you just hate when there are Light Screens in your way when you're attacking? Pikachu and I worked out something in the future that counters shields specifically. Check it out."

Ash stuck out his finger and jabbed the Light Screen, which broke apart on contact. Domino leapt back, and shrieked when she tripped on a branch which sent her tumbling down. Ash jumped on the opportunity to hold her to the ground.

He grabbed her hand, "Don't even try to teleport, or I'll be with you anyways."

Domino growled, "How did you break through my Light Screen so easily?"

"Shields are basically a bunch of refined energy that is spread through a wide area. So if you take the same amount of energy and jab it into one point on the shield, there is no way the shield will hold up." Ash explained, "So I basically just confined the surface area of my attack so that only one point would be affected. Once that point breaks through, the shield breaks."

"Of course, there are also counters to my technique. There could be intricate patterns that could be set up in the shield so that any one point would be connected to other strands or energy, so attacking any surface of the shield would trigger a reaction throughout the shield to make sure the entire thing is effective in defending. However, there are very people who can actually do that."

"Mew, is there a way we can do that?" Domino turned her head to the legendary.

" _I think so. I remember a few decades back when I tried to wake Regigigas up so he can reprogram Regice to be my personal ice cream maker. His shield was so strong it even withstood my Genesis Supernova."_

" _Let me think. I'm gonna go pay my fellow Mew a visit._ " With that said, Mew blinked away, leaving Domino and Ash in thought.

"Actually, I don't think it's as hard as you guys make it out to be," Domino thought for a while, "Giovanni tried to make a shield covering his main headquarters that can withstand a V-create after hearing about how Victini wiped out Hiroshima and Nagasaki in the last World War. To scale, a V-create on an underground building of such size is around your finger on my Light Screen."

Domino thought for a while, "I think the structure is like this…"

A pink ball popped up in front of her and trembled in place for a while, then stretched out to become a new Light Screen.

"Here, try your counter." She offered.

Ash raised his finger coated with aura and stabbed the shield, puncturing it and shattering it.

Domino frowned. "I don't see what went wrong."

"We can keep trying it, it's hard, and so you don't need to work it all out today."

Domino, lost in thought, didn't hear what he said. Seeing this, Ash opened up Dexter, who turned into a Porygon. "Have Dexter help you. He's a computer, so that probably means that he's really smart."

Ash left and started gathering some wood for a campfire.

* * *

Ash threw some kindling onto a small grassless area encircled by stones and was about to light it when he got an idea. He palms lit up with a blue glow, and he began to rub them against each other extremely fast.

After a few seconds, the top of the aura turned slightly orange. Seeing this, Ash carefully fed it some regular aura, which made the glow fully red.

He swung his hand, and a fireball shot off and into the pile of wood, lighting it instantaneously. He smiled smugly, wondering why such a cool thing didn't happen last time.

* * *

Ash opened the pot and brought out the ramen noodles he boiled. Mew still hadn't returned and Pikachu continued to nap. Domino stared at the ground and her hands shook, like they had for the past hour. Dexter was sitting next to her portraying a hologram into the air.

He was about to go over and ask the fellow blonde whether she was having a seizure when she suddenly jumped up from her seat and her hands burst into movements. A Light Screen pulsed out, and she excitedly yelled, "Ash! Get over here and poke me!"

Ash trotted over and saw her motion to the Light Screen. He took aim, and stabbed.

Domino facepalmed. "With AURA, you idiot!"

A rare blush formed on Ash's face as he made a noise of realization. His finger was immediately coated, obviously used to the action, and stabbed the shield again.

The Light Screen shook as it absorbed the shock, and a small hole the size of his finger formed in the center, which was sewn up within seconds by a rush of psychic energy.

"Woah! How did you do it?" Ash asked curiously.

"The key wasn't to absorb all the shock from the attack, but to direct it toward something less important."

"Well, I thought back to how Boss did it," Domino began her explanation, "And remembered that all the energy wasn't absorbed into the shield he was making, but was instead directed out of headquarters into places he deemed dispensable."

"With my shield, I set up an interlocking system to direct the energy into the center of balance that Dexter worked out, while getting rid of the drawback of everything being supported by said center."

"Why the center?"

"It's the most stable part of shield, and only part that will work."

Ash stared at his Pokédex, confused, "What?"

"You'll understand when you grow up." The girl teased while reaching out to squeeze his cheeks.

"Hey!" Ash slapped her hands away, "I resent that! You're the same age as me!"

"Anyways, since you technically only stabbed one place, even though very deeply, there is only going to be a small hole. So in the center to where the energy is directed, there is only a tiny crack, and the deepness doesn't matter because of my system within the shield can hold up the Light Screen even without the stable center." Dexter continued the speech, and Ash's mind wandered off to think out how good ramen noodles are.

"After we figured this part out, the rest was easy. I just needed to find a way in the Spoon Method to connect my psychic wiring. It's surprising how much stuff are in the Spoon Method that Arceus made me memorize. You'll think that you knew everything after memorizing it. And then you look deeper, and there's always more stuff."

Ash helpfully supplied, "So it's like learning math."

Domino looked thoughtful, "Or Late Show with Stephen Colbert."

( **A/N: Love Stephen Colbert. Watched him for years, from the Colbert Report to the CBS Late Show.** )

"Anyways, you want some dinner?"

"Gladly, I'm starving." Domino followed Ash to the campfire after he withdrew Dexter, who turned back into a Pokédex. "Oh by the way, Mew just told me through a mental link that she won't come back tonight. She had to go check up on the Tree as her task and would be back tomorrow.

"Sounds good." Ash turned to Pikachu poked his starter. Pikachu slurred, and refused to open his eyelids. Ash rolled his eyes. "Okay, in that case, I guess I can take back the ketchup bottle…"

With that said, Pikachu bounced up excitedly, "KETCHUP? Where?"

Domino asked, "Pikachu likes ketchup?"

Both the Pokémon and his trainer shook their heads violently.

"Pikachu LOVES ketchup. I'm pretty sure if somehow a bottle of ketchup would have humanized, he would choose it as a trainer."

Pikachu shot down that idea, " _That wouldn't work. I'll eat it all_."

"I don't disagree. Pikachu is very harsh to trainers. The first time around when he met me, he shocked me next to forty times."

" _Then I save your butt from spearows. If you would have given me ketchup at the start, our relationship would have started out a lot more smoother._ "

"You still shock me after I started feeding you ketchup."

" _You only give me ONE packet, and then you take them away. It's like taking candy from a baby._ "

"Well excuse me for worrying about your going into a battle with some crazy opponent, like Darkrai, when you're dragging around a stomach twice your size!"

Pikachu huffed, " _I can easily electrocute Darkrai._ "

"You better, because the world is probably going to throw that at us."

Domino watched the bickering duo, and a light smile found its way onto her face. The amount of times she smiled or laughed in the past day with Ash had trumped her last five years with Team Rocket. Feeling a sudden warmth she hadn't felt in too long of a time, she sat down next to the fire and picked up her bowl of dinner and began chewing.

She picked up the bottle of ketchup and dumped a giant blob onto Pikachu's Pokéchow. She pat the ground next to her and placed down the bowl, summoning Pikachu over.

Pikachu stopped arguing with Ash at the scent of the delicious red relish, and hurried over. Ash did a double take at the amount of ketchup on his starter's plate. "Pikachu! You better not eat all of that."

Domino chuckled lightly and pulled the boy next to her. "Oh stop it. Let him have some. As a celebration of the start of our journey."

Pikachu looked at her and remarked, " _You know what, Dom? You're not that bad at all. I could definitely get used to you._ "

"You should, because you'll be seeing me a lot." She laughed while petting the yellow mouse for the first time.

Ash looked at her weirdly. "When did YOU get so optimistic?"

Her mouth lifted up slightly and stared into the fire, "Today's been a good day. We both got our first Pokémon. I got my first ever starter, and so did you."

"Mew agreed to be your Pokémon?"

"Actually, she kind of required me to capture her,"

The two ate their dinner, and Pikachu happily licking his pile of ketchup as dessert after finishing his Pokéchow.

Ash got up to pack everything away after they finished, and Pikachu curled back up on his tree stump and went to bed. Domino got up to drape a small blanket on the electric Pokémon, and Pikachu used its tail to adjust the piece of silk.

The blonde girl sat down next to the fire again, thinking about this sudden sharp turn of events in her life. She was soon joined by Ash, and the pair sat in a comfortable silence. Slightly dozing off while staring at the pit of flames, she absentmindedly tipped her head to the side and allowed it to rest on Ash's shoulder.

Ash looked to the side and smirked a bit. He placed his arm around the girl, who didn't struggle against the grasp.

Toward the boy next to her, she didn't feel a single bit of antagonism. In fact, she had gotten used to the boy, even though it had only been a day in real life. For some reason, she felt relaxed around him, which was a scarce thing for the Rocket elite. And the feeling of not being under constant pressure and worrying for her safety was satisfying and even addicting.

Which was why when Ash pulled her closer, she didn't resist the display of friendship by her "greatest enemy". Well, either that or the lack of sleep.

The fire gradually burnt out, and the pair got up to go to their sleeping bags. Domino laid down and stared at the night sky, and for the first time, noticed the amount of shining jewels that was before her eyes.

She felt an extremely rare serenity, staring at the sky, sensing the boy next to her and the yellow mouse on the stump by her feet.

Ash spoke up, "You haven't looked at the stars a lot, have you?"

Domino shook her head slightly. "It's truly amazing, all of this."

He smiled at seeing another side of her, a calm side that added to her beauty. He pointed, "Check out that constellation. It's still unnamed, but there's a story behind it."

He paused for effect, and Domino listened closely.

"Once upon a time, there was a Zangoose. The Zangoose wandered the land with his herd, happy, until he met an enemy herd of Seviper. As you know, Zangoose and Seviper hated each other. But this Zangoose fell in love with a Seviper from the opposite herd, who returned his feelings."

"But being on different battlefields, they weren't allowed to be together. They sneaked out each night to see the other in secrecy, but they were never official."

"Later, a battle broke out between the two rivaling herds. The Zangoose was killed by the Seviper leader. The female Seviper was so sad that she wandered each night to the cliff they used to meet at."

"One night, she wasn't paying attention to her surroundings, being too distracted by the death of her lover, and she fell off the cliff to her death."

"Arceus, sensing the undying bond between the two, put their images up in the night sky to commemorate such devoted love."

Domino was silent after hearing the story. After a while, Ash pointed again, "Ooh look! A shooting star. Go make a wish."

She looked at the star, and her purple eyes glimmered with such an intensity that it hadn't in such a long time, counting the last timeline as well. She said to herself,

"I wish I could be that Seviper."

* * *

 **A/N: So yeah, there you go. Some training was done, and a bit fluffy stuff at the end. The action will come soon, I promise. The ending at the end was emotional and not full-on Pokémon, but remember that this was also supposed to be a mixture of BOTH adventure and romance. Please review, I would appreciate it a lot.**


	4. Cha 3: Kanto 3

The way Ash woke up was not how he preferred. At all. He felt a presence jump onto his face, then an electric shock down his entire body. Of course, he had gotten quite immune to that, so normally, it wouldn't piss him off as much.

After the dose of daily shocking, he was punched in the gut by a Force Palm, which fully brought his eyes open. Oh, and also mouth open to let out the pain.

Ash felt his body flying from the impulse, then a psychic energy surrounded him and kept him in mid-air.

Before he could say thanks to Domino, she turned him upside-down and dunking him face-first into a bucket of water.

That, in turn, created a second shockwave of sparks through him by the natural conduction of electricity.

So yeah, the start was great.

* * *

Domino apparently felt bad about scheming with Pikachu to wake Ash up, because she already made a breakfast as Ash dried his hair and lamenting the violence of his travelmates.

Ash took a bite of the jelly sandwich. "Wow this is pretty good. What berries did you use?"

"A mix of Oran, Pecha, Mago and Aspear."

"The jam is surprisingly good. Really sweet mixed with some sourness."

"Do I look like the kind of spoiled girl that just sit around all day?" Domino faked hurt, to which Ash laughed.

He abruptly stopped laughing when he caught sight of Pikachu next to him.

"PIKACHU! PUT THAT DOWN!" The yellow mouse was licking the ketchup bottle, and by the amount gone, he had been doing this for quite a while.

Pikachu looked at his trainer with puppy dog eyes, but Ash didn't seem to be deterred. The electric mouse then ran to Domino, climbed into her arms and pouted, staring at her with eyes wide open.

Domino, as if suddenly her sympathy that had been restrained for many years was released after meeting them, reached out to slap away Ash's hand grabbing for the bottle.

"Come on Ash, let Pikachu have some more. It won't hurt."

Ash shook his head. "No! The last time he binged ketchup, he gained five kilograms in a week. And that is a lot for a mouse that normally weighs thirty kilogram."

"He ended up losing a battle against a Rattata!"

Pikachu muttered while continued to eat the relish, " _That was an accident and you KNOW IT!_ "

"So the Pidgey beating you the next day was also an accident?"

" _How do you still remember stuff from seven years ago!?"_

"Actually, it's a year in the future. Now, give me the bottle." Ash said firmly, showing that he would not have a repeat of the disastrous battle.

Domino pet the mouse and handed the bottle over the Ash. "Sorry Pikachu. I did my best."

Pikachu narrowed his eyes at his trainer, " _I already like her better than you._ "

"Tough luck, too bad you're not her starter." Ash sneered back.

A mental projection entered their minds, " _That's because I am!_ "

They look up to find Mew floating down from the trees and landed five feet above the ground next to Domino, with an egg in her hands.

" _So you said you worked out the shield technique last night?_ "

Ash looked confused. "You didn't come back last night, did you?"

" _Nah. She told me through a mental link. Psychic is way better and cooler than aura._ "

* * *

" _So Mew always think that psychic is better than aura."_ Arceus said as he placed down his knight, " _Oh checkmate. You're done._ "

Sir Aaron placed his Ponyta in front of the knight, "Not so fast. Mew is just salty because she lost to me in a battle a few hundred years ago."

* * *

"What's with the egg?" Domino asked her first Pokémon.

Mew's tail started flailing around to help with her description. " _So I was visiting my sister, who somehow had this egg. She said that it was abandoned a few miles away from her house and she gave it to me as a present._ "

" _But of course, I have no use for an egg, so this is my present to you. Surprise!"_

Domino took the levitating egg over, "Thanks Mew, what's in it?"

" _I don't know. For some reason, I couldn't scan it with my normal psychic powers, so I'm assuming a Dark type?"_

"Anyways, let's get back to training. I want to show you what I can do." Putting the egg down, Domino and Mew teleported themselves fifty feet away and started sparring.

Ash muttered to Pikachu, "Gotta say, psychic does look fun, too bad they can't alter material like aura."

"I'm gonna go clean up the camp. Go practice your Force Palm. Work on your speed of transition between lightning and aura."

" _Okay._ " Pikachu hopped away to do so, and Ash went to the river with the bucket to retrieve some water to extinguish the fire.

Arriving at the river, he saw a girl with orange hair and a fishing rod that was in the water, trying to hook up a Magikarp. By now, he was not even phased slightly by weird coincidences.

Ash waved and called out, "Misty!"

The young gym leader looked up, confused. "Hello. Do I know you?"

Ash jumped beside her, smiling, and touched her shoulder with a blue hand. "Now you do."

A wave of memories rushed through Misty. She stared at him, eyes twinkling with mixed emotions.

"ASH! You haven't visited me in so long! I bet if the world didn't end, you wouldn't even come back to Kanto!"

Ash chuckled lightly. "Let's head back to camp. I'll explain along the way."

* * *

"So that's what happened! People can rarely say that they are on an actual mission assigned by Arceus himself." Misty started to come to realization with the situation. "So everything restarted?"

"Pretty much."

"Good. This time, you better not blow up my bike or else I'm making you pay double." Misty gave Ash a glare.

The boy put his hands up in defeat. "Fine. I promise."

"You're still paying back the last bike right?"

"What!? I haven't blown up anything yet!"

"Well, you have to pay me back for the mental damage from last time."

"Yeah sure, Misty. I'll pay you back right after I save the world."

"So when are you going after Cyrus?"

"Arceus said we have to wait eight years to stop him. In the meantime, I'm going to travel around the regions again and get my Pokémon back. And also challenge leagues."

Misty smirked, "I'm assuming there's still an opening in the slots?"

"Of course, you're welcome to join us anytime."

"Us?" Misty looked confused. "You already found Brock before me?" The two stepped into the clearing where Ash was cleaning up.

Right when she said that, a stray Psybeam was deflected at them, and Ash rolled in front of Misty and raised a Protect shield.

Misty's jaw dropped at seeing the aura flying off his hand, and the blonde girl who was currently fighting a Mew.

"Hey! Watch it you guys!" Ash put down his Protect shield.

* * *

After Ash told Misty fully everything and had given a proper introduction to Domino, to whom Misty had not taken a liking, the trio sat down to discuss the route to Viridian.

"So Ash, you're now all magical and stuff?" Misty asked the boy.

"Sure, you can say that." A small ball of blue flickered out on his hand, and Pikachu joined his trainer as a ball lit up in between his ears as well.

The gym leader shook her head. "Pikachu can already beat legendaries. Now he got superpowers too? What's next, you two beating up a Mewtwo?"

"You remember the Mewtwo thing as well?"

"Yeah, the memory lift canceled out the Mewtwo's wipe. Speaking of which, is Giovanni still working on that?" She turned to Domino, who shook her head.

"Probably, but I haven't went back to the base in a long time. I am an elite, so I have unlimited freedom unless in dire emergencies."

Misty looked at the girl suspiciously and whispered to Ash, "You sure she's not here to spy on you?"

"No worries, we were assigned together by Arceus."

He pulled out Dexter, "Can you find us a route that avoids the psychotic sparrows?"

The Pokédex dinged, "Indeed. Loading map…"

"Now Dexter can talk too? How much has changed!?"

"Oh you'll see. By the way, I can understand Pikachu now too."

Domino interrupted Dexter's loading. "You know Mew and I can just teleport us all to the Viridian Pokémon Center right? We were practicing yesterday."

Ash failed to look surprised. "Okay, thanks. That thunderstorm's going to drench us if we do decide to walk, even though it's safe with Pikachu's Lightningrod.

"Nah. I have my Light Screen, you have Protect. We won't get rained on anyways. Mew you wanna take Misty?" Domino turned to the pink cat.

" _Sure. You just want to hold onto Ash_." Mew grabbed onto Misty and left before her trainer could start her threats and glares.

Domino took Ash's hand and growled, "I'm only doing this so we don't get drenched." and disappeared as well.

* * *

The two got a little strayed from Mew and Misty and were still on the outskirts of the forest. Afterall, Domino was still a beginner, however strongly potential Mew and Arceus made her out to be. She held onto Ash's hand for a second longer than necessary, before reluctantly letting go.

Of course, she denied to herself about the "reluctantly" part.

The two walked together towards the city, chatting about random stuff, when Domino's egg suddenly lit up. A white light poured out of it, and cracks formed, signaling that it was about to hatch.

Domino placed it down excitedly. "I can't wait to see what's in here. Aren't Dark types extremely rare in Kanto?"

Ash nodded and backed away from the egg. "Here, go stand closer to it. New-born Pokémon would recognize the first face they see as their trainer/parent."

Domino watched as the egg slowly cracked open, revealing a baby Zorua in the place of the egg. Even though it was just born, it was almost as big as a normal Zorua. She picked up the newborn and cooed to her. "Aww… Look at her, Ash. How cute!"

The fox rubbed her head against Domino's face and licked her, and Domino chuckled at its antics. Ash came over and pet it softly, resulting in a happy purr. Domino said to it with a mental voice, "Hey girl. I'm Domino."

The fox looked at her with the same expression as before. Ash touched her shoulder and reminded her, "She's a Dark type. She's immune to psychic."

Zorua looked at her trainer, " _You're a psychic?_ "

Domino looked to Ash for a translation, who repeated the question.

Zorua looked shocked, " _You can understand me?_ "

Ash laughed, "Yes. I am trained in aura, so I can understand you. Domino's a psychic, so she can understand all Pokémon except Dark types. Speaking of which, we have to ask Mew to teach you Miracle Eye so your mental projection can break through the Dark type's natural defenses."

Domino held out a red and white ball to the little fox, "This is called a Pokéball. It is used to capture Pokémon to make them easier to carry around. Do you want to give it a try?"

Zorua nodded and Domino put the ball in front of her, who stepped forward and pressed her nose against it. A light sucked the red and black Pokémon in. Within seconds, a _Ding_ was heard to signal the capture.

* * *

The two walked to the Pokémon center seconds before the rain started pouring. Mew and Misty was already there, talking about some stuff.

Ash and Domino sat down next to them. Dexter spoke up, "Attack in ten minutes."

Mew and Domino was confused. " _Attack? What attack?_ "

"He's talking about the Rocket attack by James and Jessie. This is when we first meet them."

"And Meowth," Misty supplied.

Domino rolled her eyes, "Those three idiots. Only they can fail at stealing a place full of nothing but sick Pokémon."

Ash coughed, reminding her that she shouldn't talk in such a way. Domino punched him. "Don't tell me what to do!"

Ash looked at her innocently. "I didn't say anything."

"Shut up doughnut. It's clear what you're inferring."

"Nope, I implied it. You then inferred it."

" _Hey guys… one quick question. Who're James and Jessie… and Meowth?_ " Mew interrupted the bickering pair.

* * *

A loud bang was heard, then the dome of the Pokémon Center exploded into pieces, and the entire center lit up on fire. Ash and Misty winced. "This is worse than last time!"

Domino showed her immediate reflex and leadership training from Team Rocket. "I'll go get the sick Pokémon out with psychic. Mew follow me. Misty, try to control the fire with your water Pokémon. Ash, take out the three idiots on the roof," She ordered and made a dash for the healing center, Mew following close behind.

Misty sent out Staryu and Starmie, who both started using Water Gun, which held the fire at stalemate on their side of the building with only a slow progression.

Nurse Joy cried out and rushed for the healing center, but Ash grabbed her and held her back. "Nurse Joy, it's too dangerous. Trust me, Domino will get the Pokémon out no problem. She's a psychic."

The smoke from the dome cleared, and two images along with a smaller one appeared.

"Prepare for trouble!"

"And make it double!"

Ash rolled his eyes and fired an Aura Sphere toward them. He just worked it out this morning, knowing that it would come in handy soon. What he didn't know was this soon.

The Rocket trio ducked as the blue ball fly past their heads.

"The twerp dares to interrupt our intro!" Jessie said, hurt.

"Yeah, we better show him who the real boss is around here. Go Koffing!" James threw out his Pokémon, as Jessie joined him with her Ekans.

The two poison type landed in front of the boy.

"Koffing, Sludge Bomb, fog up the area."

"Ekans, Poison Fang."

Ash winced as he was blinded, and managed to put up a Protect shield, which was shattered by Ekans, for that Poison does have an advantage against Normal. Afterall, Ash was still a beginner. He wondered to himself when they actually got so good.

" _How dare they use moves on a human!_ "

Pikachu snarled and decided to take over the battle and released a Shockwave into the fog. Pikachu had close to forty different variants of Shockwave due to a very boring journey most of the time trotting through the woods in the last timeline.

The electric net hit something, who released a grunt of agony. Seeing this, Ash had an idea.

"Pikachu, use the opposite charge of electricity of the Shockwave you just released. That will attract to the last one automatically."

Pikachu nodded and fired out a series of thunderbolts, which brought a series of screams and grunts.

* * *

On the other hand, Domino stumbled into the healing room with Mew. Seeing that there were about only a dozen of injured Pokémon, she allowed herself a breath of relief.

"Mew, you take nine. I'll take the other three."

Mew comply and a pink energy surrounded nine of them, and teleported out. Domino, being less skillful than the pink legendary, went over and manually grabbed the last three. Two were struggling to move, while the other one was unconscious. The two were a Rattata and a Paras. The unconscious one was a Pokémon she had never seen before.

A wave of heat hit her, reminding her that this is not the time to think about logistics. She held onto the three, and teleported out, just before the roof fell from the fire.

Falling onto the grass outside the Pokémon center, she was about to rush back in when Mew stopped her.

" _I'll go. You take care of the injured Pokémon._ " Mew said with a rare seriousness.

Domino stayed as told, and spoke up using a calm mental voice, clearly communicating to each and every Pokémon since there is no Dark type in this group.

"Everyone, I know you're scared. This is the situation. There're some bad people in there who are trying to steal you. We are going to transport you to safety as soon as we are finished with them."

A Charmander spoke up, " _Was that a Mew that you were with?_ "

Domino chuckled, "Yes, she's a Mew."

The Paras she just rescued spoke up, " _Can you check up on Ralts? Is she okay?_ " He motioned to the unconscious Pokémon. Domino silently repeatedly the name Ralts as she touched her silently with psychic energy.

As soon as she touched her, she felt her energy being absorbed, and a slight bond of some sort formed. In fact, somehow she felt her psychic resonating with the green and white Pokémon in the Ralts' body. She stirred a bit. Seeing that her action has an effect, she slowly fed her with more psychic energy.

The resonating feeling grew stronger, and all of a sudden, Domino felt her mind being pulled into somewhere else, and she arrived at a grassland. In front of her stood a Ralts, looking at her.

* * *

Mew came into the scene, and saw that Misty and her Pokémon were fighting a losing battle against the fire, holding it long enough for Ash to finish the battle. Ash was throwing random Aura Spheres into the fog, and Pikachu swinging Shockwaves everywhere.

She used her well-trained psychic energy to materialize a pink mop in the air, and swung it across the fog, clearing it in an instant.

Seeing Ash, Pikachu and Misty's amazed look, she shrugged, " _Sorry I'm late._ "

The smoke disappeared to reveal Jessie, James and Meowth, with a paralyzed Ekans and a Koffing who was glowing blue from the amount of Aura Spheres he had took on.

"Look James, it's a MEW!" Jessie screeched and held onto her partner.

"Oh my! Let's capture it."

"Dat's a great idea!" Meowth agreed with the male Rocket member.

Jessie gave them both a punch on the head. "Do you not see them just take out our entire team!"

The three felt a hand touching their shoulders, and Meowth being his head. Ash had sneaked up on the trio during their bickering and reminded them.

The three, like all others, were motionless for a few second, during which, Ash also touched Ekans and Koffing. The two Poison Pokémon began glowing as they started their evolution into Arbok and Weezing.

"Huh! So the reminder thing also restore them to the state they were in before the time jump."

The Rocket trio came to their senses after taking in what's going on. James and Jessie retrieved their respective Pokémon and turned to Ash. "What did you twerps do this time? We were enjoying a nice vacation in the Orange Islands before you sent us all back to doing this tiring job again!"

Pikachu sat on Ash's shoulder and shrugged, " _Guess that's payback for chasing us around and battling with us three or four times a week for years."_

Ash laughed along with Pikachu. Jessie stared at the pair. "You can understand him now?"

Ash nodded, "Yeah. A lot of stuff changed, one being that we were sent back to save the world. You remember the pact that we agreed on in Sinnoh?"

"That we won't bother you if there's a world threatening crisis?"

"Yes. I am officially declaring the pact in action. There must be no more Rocket attacks until I can finish handling Cyrus, who is the head culprit of this crap."

The three looked at each other. Meowth spoke up for all of them. "Sure thing, twerps. We didn't attack you dat much in Kalos anyways."

Jessie continued. "In fact, we helped you save the world plenty of times. Remember Altomare?"

"Well, I am glad for the help, and I am going to need it again, because all of the world crisis that happened before will happen again. And also just to prepare you, according to Arceus, the stuff this time will a lot worse than last time."

James wondered aloud, "If we can't bother you twerps, what CAN we do?"

"Look on da bright side James! At least now we don't gotta spend money on giant robots!" Meowth piped up.

Jessie asked the boy, "What was the thing you were doing on your journey when we were bothering you?"

Ash was confused for a second, before Misty answered the question for him. "You mean the League challenge?"

"Yah! Dat's right. Maybe we can train up a team for Leagues!" Meowth dragged the two humans out of the burning Center. "Dat will be fun! I wanna ride a Fearow!"

Ash called after them, "Go to the east side of the Viridian Forest. You'll find a Spearow pack. Be careful though."

Pikachu giggled to himself, " _I'll love to see how that'll work out. It didn't for us last time, that was for sure._ "

* * *

The Ralts spoke up, " _So you saved me from running out of energy?"_

Domino kneeled in front of her, "Yes. I'm Domino. Hi, I heard your name is Ralts?"

Ralts nodded in confirmation. " _I never knew a human could be this strong in the psychic field. You're almost as strong as me when I am at my best condition! You even resonated with me._ "

"Resonated? Was that the feeling before?"

" _Yes, I felt the same way, so I pulled you in. I have never resonated with anyone before. I heard that it is extremely rare. In Hoenn, the only resonating trainers and Pokémon were Tate and Liza from Mossdeep and their Gallade and Gardevoir._ "

"You're from Hoenn? Wow, you've traveled such a long way."

" _It wasn't intentional. My trainer abandoned me because he thinks I'm weak, but he just doesn't get how to use psychic moves._ " At this point, the little Pokémon lowered her head sadly, " _I was trapped in a storm, which took me here. I spent all my energy protecting myself from the storm. The last thing I knew was passing out by a tree._ "

Domino's eyes opened wide in shock as she heard the glum story. Then her hands clutched together in anger, wondering what kind of sick trainer had the nerves to abandon a Pokémon like her and leave her to die.

She took a long breath and approach the crying Ralts. "Don't worry, you're here now, and you're safe."

Ralts looked at her, " _Thanks Domino. You're the first human I have trusted in a long time. I sensed your psychic, and I know you're pure. If you really care about me, I have one request."_

"Anything, Ralts."

" _Capture me._ " The Feeling Pokemon looked up at her with determination, " _I want to be trained to be strong, and so I'll never be so close to death again. I want to be with a trainer who cares about me and can even resonate with me. Please Domino?"_

Domino looked at the unwavering Pokémon. "Sure, consider it done, if that's what you really want."

With that, she felt herself return to her own body, and she opened her eyes to find the Ralts already conscious. She silently unclipped an empty pokéball, and placed it in front of the psychic Pokémon, who touched it with her red half-circle horn. The Pokémon was consumed by the Pokéball, which indicated the capture with a noise.

"Congrats Domino. You got another Pokémon." She turned around to find Ash walking at her, along with the Rocket crew, whose jaws dropped open as they saw her face.

"DOMINO!?" They said in synchrony and shock.

She shrugged. "What are you three idiots doing here? Am I seeing another failure at stealing Pokémon?"

Meowth responded on reflex, "That's not our job anymore. We're going to train Pokémon to battle at Leagues now."

Domino rolled her eyes, "Good luck getting that through with Boss. I guess Ash and I will be seeing you at Leagues."

James gaped. "'Ash and I'? How are you two friends!?"

"Friends? Yeah right? With this doughnut?" Domino took a black tulip out of nowhere and flung it at him, "I was assigned by Arceus to aid him in saving this world. I was forced into this job. Deal closed."

With that she walked off with Mew, Zorua and Ralts to introduce them to each other.

Ash and Misty waved at the Rockets, "I guess we'll be seeing you guys later."

"Hold up," Jessie stopped them, and took out a paper to scribble down something. "This is our number if you need us. Also, be careful with Domino. She's got a reputation at base to be a little… well… violent."

Ash looked at her as if she just said the sky was blue, "Yes, I have noticed."

"I HEARD THAT!" A pink beam shot out behind the tree Domino just walked around. Ash raised a Protect shield, which shattered and in the process, absorbing the beam.

She swung her fist in the air. "Consider that a warning Ketchum."

* * *

 **A/N: And Tadah! Domino got more Pokémon and the team met the Rockets. I am NOT going to do Rocket battles every freaking chapter, so I am going to cut it at that. There will be battles with the Rocket trio, and they will be epic, not one-sided fights. A little Skillshipping throughout and at the end, with what quoting UltimateCCC: "Sexual Tension." I'm introducing the ship gradually, and also realistically. In reality, enemies don't look at each other and suddenly feel sparks, and then end up kissing ten seconds later.  
**

 **Enjoy and please review.**


	5. Cha 4: Kanto 4

" _I'm going to go back to the Tree of Beginning real fast to check up on the three golems there. They still didn't notice my absence._ " Mew giggled to herself and flashed away. Domino waved a slight goodbye and turned back to the issue on hand.

Zorua and Ralts were fighting playfully over a piece of toast. Normally Ralts could just use psychic and snatch it away. Too bad the toast was already in direct contact with a Dark type's mouth.

That reminded Domino to ask Mew to teach her Miracle Eye when she gets back.

A voice called out to her from the other side of the clearing that was made into a temporary campsite. Ash motioned her to come closer. "You wanna spar with us?"

She looked to see Pikachu standing opposite of him, cheeks flashing, and Dexter standing in his Porygon form.

"Four-way battle?" Domino shrugged. "Sure."

On the other side of the field, Misty was looking at the two humans like they were crazy. Shaking her head, she lamented how weird her life had been.

Pikachu started things by directing a Thunderbolt towards Ash, who crossed his arms and a blue shield was raised. Dexter turned from his Porygon form into a flower with three petals of blue, red and green.

"Combat form initiated. Charging: Tri-Attack."

Ash called out to his Pokédex. "Don't announce your attacks. Make them a surprise."

"My apologies."

Domino wanted to test out the powers of Dexter, so she jumped in front of him and punched out a Psycho Cut. The X-shaded beam made a _swish_ sound as it went through the air, and was stopped by his Light Screen.

"You're a psychic?"

"No. I can put up Lightscreens by manipulating power, since it is part of me anyways. It's like you manipulating psychic the same way."

Domino squealed and teleported behind him before a Tri-Attack could make contact with her face, and they were both hit by stray Thunderbolt from Pikachu and Ash's battle. Shaking off the effects, she smirked as she looked at Pikachu.

At the same time, Dexter beeped, "New target acquired."

"Dissecting move: Thunderbolt. Copying move. Formulation complete. Too bad it's not effective against you." Dexter floated over and decided to Body Slam Pikachu, who was also being doubled-teamed from both sides by Domino's Psybeam and Ash's Aura Sphere.

He yelped and Force Palm Dexter's shield, and using Quick Attack to rush backwards to minimize the effect of Dexter's physical attack, as well as using the impulse to escape Ash and Domino's attacks, which ended up hitting each other and canceling out.

Completely forgetting about Pikachu, the two faced at each other competitively with looks of fire. Ash rolled on the ground to his bag and pulled out his staff, assembling it.

"Hey! No fair! You can't use weapons."

Ash shrugged. "Says whom?"

Domino narrowed her eyes. "Two can play that game."

She pulled out a black tulip made of steel and pressed a button. The stem extended out, and the petals on top bloomed, and the flower transformed into a weapon as long as Ash's staff.

Ash gaped. Domino bragged, "Say hello to my signature weapon. I never go anywhere without it. It's actually how I got my nickname."

Ash growled and swung his staff, along with a Force Palm. Domino blocked with her tulip but ran into the Force Palm, sending her back.

He pumped his fist triumphantly in the air. "Yes I won!" Then looking over at Domino, who was sitting on the ground, clutching her shoulder, he hurried over, concerned.

"You ok?"

"You thought you won?" Domino looked at him, and Ash saw a sly glint as their eyes met. "Not even close."

A larger, more powerful ball of energy came crashing out of her body and into an unprepared Ash, who was launched back from the surprise attack.

"Ha! Mirror Coat for the WIN! Rule number 1: Always do what you can to win."

"When did you work that out?" Ash stood up. After being hit for countless times in the last timeline by moves from normal Pokémon to legendaries, he got over the pain easily.

"This morning when I was sparring with Mew."

Domino held out her hand which Ash took and tried pulled himself up. Domino then let go, and Ash crashed back down.

"HEY!"

Domino giggled and pulled him up with a burst of psychic. Ash muttered a thanks, and then suddenly hugged her and tackled her to the ground, him on top of her.

"No sneak attack!"

"Rule number 1, remember."

Their eyes met again, and their faces were inches from the other. Ash stared into her purple eyes, and he felt his heart beat faster. Domino stared back at the boy, at his untamed hair, and his chocolate eyes, and trailed down hisface. Something overcame her mind that even her powerful psychic senses could not block out.

A stray Shockwave from Pikachu and Dexter's battle jolted them back to full consciousness. A blush formed on both of their faces, followed by an awkward silence.

"Umm… Can you get off me?" Domino asked quietly, wondering to herself why they always find themselves in this position, and why she didn't mind too much.

"Sure," Ash scratched his neck, and his tone was nothing close to willing.

He got up, and Pikachu fired a Thunderbolt at him, making his hair stand on its ends.

"Pikachu!" He chased after his loyal starter, who dodged and ran away to Misty for help, followed by Ash and Dexter.

Domino got up and pat herself down for dust. As she looked at the boy, a faint blush that even she didn't notice crept up.

She must have stared in his direction for quite a while, because she felt Zorua rubbing herself against her, and in her mouth, a piece of toast.

"Yes, Domino's with him, Sir." The Rocket trio said to a man in an orange suit in front of him, who is petting a Persian by his feet, "That's why we failed the mission."

"And you said he's an aura adept?"

"Yes Boss."

"Interesting. Keep on eye on that boy. In the meantime, set me up with a call with 009."

"Yes sir," the Rockets went away to comply and Giovanni stroked the Classy Cat Pokémon, who purred.

A screen was soon brought up, and Domino's face appeared. "What's up Boss?" Being raised by the man since a young age, she had actually grown to be fond of him. He was as close to a father figure as possible. That was part of the reason she became an elite in a short four years, breaking all records.

Giovanni coughed, "I'm currently with James and Jessie…" Seeing Meowth puffed out his chest, he sighed, "And Meowth."

Domino rolled her eyes, "Figures. Let me guess, those idiots blamed their failure of their mission on me."

Seeing that Giovanni gave no response, she said to her side, "Hey Ash, come meet my boss."

Ash's face popped across the screen, and he waved to the Rocket Boss, "Long time no see Giovanni."

Even with such calm that each generation of Rocket Boss was required to have, Giovanni gaped. "You know me?"

He recovered quickly though. "Oh that's right, you're probably a really prepared trainer. You did some research on me huh? So are you coming to challenge my gym?"

"I will. Now let's talk about the business at hand. Domino, is there a way to remind him across the screen?"

"No, but I can teleport into the base really quickly and remind him."

"What're you two talking about?" Giovanni stared at them, beginning to feel that he was losing control.

"Wait… Did you just say teleport?"

Domino teleported to the outside of the headquarter. Ash stayed back due to, well, obvious reasons.

The base was surrounded by a layer of anti-Psychic covering that prohibited psychic energy passing through, inspired by Dark type Pokémon.

Domino walked in, holding up the Elite pass, and kicked a new Rocket grunt in the balls for staring at her for too long. Being back in the Rocket environment really had her violent nature kicking back in.

Soon, she approached Giovanni's office, whose door was already open for her. Walking in, she saw the trio standing in the corner, and the Boss sitting on his couch, with Persian by his feet, of course.

She bowed slightly, a Rocket etiquette, and sat in a seat across from him. Persian poked his head over, and Domino bent down and fluffed his fur, "Hey boy!"

Giovanni watched her, and an uncommon glint of softness flashed by. The blonde girl turned back to him. "Boss, it'll take a long time to explain, so let me do this first."

She reached out and touched his hand. A pink energy flowed through her to him, and Giovanni was stilled for only a second before regaining his composure.

Domino chuckled, "You recovered a lot faster than Ash's friend and Pikachu." Throwing a look at the trio, she added, "And them."

Giovanni abruptly stood up and pointed at her, roaring, "HAVEN'T YOU SEEN WHAT THAT BOY WILL DO!? WHY DID YOU NOT ELIMINATE HIM YET?"

She rolled her eyes. "If there is one person on this base that knows when you are truly angry, that's me. So stop testing me and ask your questions."

Giovanni smiled and sat back down. "I see you haven't lost your touch by being with Mr. Goody-Two-Shoes."

Domino ignored that and started her explanation. "Long story short, the world ended, and Arceus recruited me to help Ash with saving the disasters that will occur in the future and ultimately stopping Cyrus. Oh by the way, I am now a psychic and Ash is an Aura adept."

Giovanni nodded while thinking. "I have seen."

Domino carefully began. "You saw what will happen in the future, so…"

"Yes, I will stop messing with the boy. He is the Chosen One, afterall. Even Arceus chose him to save the world. And you of course. Any obstruction in his path would likely be crushed, as seen from last time."

"Every single time I was close to a goal, he always came and stopped me. So it's only logical to stop annoying the boy."

Domino looked surprise. "Wow, that was a lot easier than I thought."

Giovanni looked at her with smirk, "I mean, afterall, I don't want my future step son-in-law to hate me too much right?"

A silence fell over the room for a few seconds, and the Rocket trio in the corner began laughing hysterically, and Domino blushed brighter than a Cheri Berry. "He's… not my… NO!"

Turning to the trio, she sent out a Psybeam. "SHUT UP!"

Seeing the psychic pulse fade due to the intricate layering of the base, she glared. "You don't know how lucky you are."

Giovanni put a hand on her shoulder to calm her down. "You know, denial is not just a river in Egypt."

"Where the heck is Egypt!?"

"Anyways, let's get back to business. Domino, I have never told you this before…"

"That you're my father?"

"No, that's Star Wars. You three should come listen too, it's important. What is the purpose of Team Rocket?"

Domino looked at him weirdly. "To profit from the manipulation of Pokémon?"

"Yes, but only partly. Our connections stretched from underground activities to the economy, to the scientific and technological field, and even to the Pokemon Leagues."

"That's the difference between us, and the crime organizations in other regions. We profit from Pokémon, but we don't rely on it. Our goal is not only to make money, but to rise above the normal crowd and control the direction of the world with an invisible hand."

"That requires crime, and actions like such will naturally deal with crime, but we don't depend fully on it. Now, let me ask you something, if we do stop the boy from saving the world, the world will collapse, and what will happen to the empire that we are building up?"

"It will fall back in our faces." Domino said quietly. "That's why you approve of my helping Ash."

"Partially correct. Another reason would be to eliminate the other crime groups. They are stubborn idiots who wish for the destruction of the world, which will benefit no one. Look at Team Aqua and Magma. They want to summon Kygore and Groudon. Then what? The world become an unbearable place of either a fully flooded ocean, or a dry piece of land filled with volcanoes. And let's not even talk about Cyrus, who just destroyed the last timeline."

"That's the difference between us and them. We seek to control, not destroy. We think before we act. That's why Team Rocket had stayed on this planet for the last hundreds of years. We have seen the start and end of many criminal organizations. Our criminal fields had been destroyed repeatedly, but Team Rocket never fell. Even in the last timeline when Ash thought he had me in, I was bailed out soon after by all of the other Rocket branches."

"And I am NOT letting all of this fall when Team Rocket is in MY hand."

Giovanni said to Domino seriously. "Help the boy save the world. My Arceus do help him."

Turning to James, Jessie and Meowth, he remarked, "And you three. To make up for all of the stupid mistakes, insane actions, and expensive bail we have to pay to get you out of jail, your job from now on is to go out into Kanto, capture and train up Pokémon really freaking good, and help the boy and Domino save the world. All of the Rocket resources are for you four's use when there is a world-threatening crisis."

"Every time you save the world, James and Jessie… and Meowth, you will be promoted. This is your assignment. I DO NOT tolerate failure. Understood?"

The three nodded, and Domino got up from the couch. "Okay, well, thanks for the support… Dad."

Giovanni watched his step-daughter walk out his office, and smiled slightly, satisfied that she had finally found someone she could rely herself on, both physically and emotionally with her extremely high standards.

Then, as if suddenly reminded, he pulled out his phone and dialed a number.

"Hello, Doctor. This is Giovanni. I want to tell you that when Mewtwo finished cloning, you and your team are under strict orders to treat him like you treat me. Convince him to stay with Team Rocket, but if he doesn't want to, do not try to stop him. If he so wishes, let him leave New Island. Give him the freedom to do anything."

"Remember, you goal is to NOT piss him off. Under ANY circumstance."

He dialed another number. "Yes, this is Giovanni. Send some of my most elite spies to Sinnoh and watch over Cyrus. If he is doing anything with space-time manipulation, report back immediately. This is a code red mission. I repeat, code red."

"So, how was it?" Ash approached Domino as she walked into his sight.

"Pretty well. I can assure you Team Rocket wouldn't bother you anymore, at least without Boss's consent."

"That's a relief." Misty wiped her brow. "I do not want to endure daily Rocket attacks for another two years."

"So, Misty, are you sure you're fine with the Forest?" Ash said to Misty, who was hiding behind a tree, carefully surveying her surroundings.

"Uhhh, well…"

"Do you want me to ask Mew to teleport you?" Domino asked helpfully.

"Sure, that'll be nice, thanks. You're not half bad!" Misty responded, grateful that someone had come to her rescue. Domino laughed.

"But of course, you could always be doing this so you can spend time alone with Ash." Misty winked at her.

The Rocket elite exploded. "Why is everyone suggesting crap about me and this doughnut!? I would rather be alone with a Slowbro."

"I'm right here." Ash deadpanned.

Mew volunteered to teleport the young gym leader away before Domino could go on a murder streak. Pikachu clutched his stomach and fell on the ground, laughing. He was soon joined by Zorua.

Domino growled. "Get your Pokémon! Make it fast!"

"Yes ma'am." With that, he dashed forward, scooping up Pikachu, and Domino did the same with Zorua.

Ash closed his eyes, and initiated Aura Sight. He identified several life forces of Caterpie, but there were at least a dozen within a hundred feet of him, and it would take forever to search the entire forest.

Domino stared at him. "So you are telling me that you ran in here with no plan at all?"

Ash shrugged. "Well, I kind of thought Aura Sight would take care of everything."

She facepalmed and shook her head. "Dense as ever." Zorua, sitting on her head now, giggled.

Pikachu spoke up, " _I think I can, as long as Ash point out the specific directions._ "

They looked at him confused. "I didn't teach your Aura Sight yet."

" _I'm not using that. I'll use something that you humans suck at- smell. Seriously, humans can go to space, but they can't smell a berry ten feet from them. I still remember how Butterfree smelled like. These things kind of stick._ "

"Okay, be my guest Pikachu. The first one is this way." Ash pointed in a direction.

Pikachu shook his head no while saying, " _I can't believe I'm relying on you for a direction._ "

Finally, after two hours, which seemed like forever, they approached a Caterpie that Pikachu claimed to be Ash's future Butterfree. Ash closed his eyes, and found that the Caterpie had the same amount of life force, but was glowing a lot more than others.

"Ahhh… I get how this works now! So a connection will strengthen the intensity of the light in the Aura Sight."

Domino facepalmed, for what seemed like the hundredth time today. She didn't even bother saying anything and punched Ash, for again, what seemed like the hundredth time today.

Ash walked forward to the Caterpie, and touched it with a blue-glowing palm. Beams of white light flashed out of the Worm Pokémon and he transformed into a Butterfree, who flapped his wings and stared at Ash for a second, before groaning. " _Oh come on! I'm back with the walking disaster again. Help me Arceus!_ "

Pikachu hopped over to his fellow Pokémon. " _I'll explain everything after Ash reminds Pidgeot._ "

Ash pointed to the sky, "She's a lot easier to find. I think I see her."

Domino gave him a look. "Why didn't you find her first, then have her carry us around by air instead of having to trod through the forest?"

"Well…"

" _Butterfree, can you fly up and get Pidgeotto down really fast? You remember her scent?"_

" _Yes, I do. My sense of smell isn't as good as yours, but nowhere near as bad as a Grimer… or a human._ "

"Aww… That's not fair! You're comparing us to Grimer?"

" _Trust me, your sense of smell is about just as bad._ "

The reunion with Pidgeot was emotional, and Ash apologized repeatedly for not coming back for her.

Pidgeot accepted his apology easily. Afterall, she just wanted to be with her trainer. " _It's not your fault Ash. It's all the developer's responsibility. F*ck you Satoshi Tajiri."_

"Okay, so basically this is what happened…"

Ash and Domino walked out of the forest to see Misty arguing with a man. Ash squinted and recognized him as the stone seller who was around the first time they went to Pewter, and also Brock's father.

Ash considered his options and formulated a plan as he walked over.

"What's the problem Misty?"

"This guy is making me pay for sitting on his rocks!"

The man said back. "These are very good rocks! Look at this one, it's so hard and smooth."

Arceus: " _That's what she said._ "

Sir Aaron looked up confused from the Mahjong game. "What?"

" _Oh nothing. Just something in the real world._ "

Domino looked at the rocks, and she sensed something weird with them. She reached out with a burst of psychic energy, and her eyes shot open.

She whispered something in Ash's ear, then went over and grabbed one of them that is trapezoidal in shape, with two holes on its sides.

"How much is this one, sir?" She looked at the old man, trying very hard to not let her anxiety show. The man looked at it. "$400."

"Deal!" Domino slapped 400 Pokédollars onto his hand. Being a Team Rocket elite, she hadn't run out of money in a long time.

Ash closed his eyes. Before his eyelids were fully shut, Misty saw a slight blue flashed by.

His hand trembled slightly as he detected a rock with an immense amount of life force. He opened his eyes and reached for said rock. "What about this one?"

"$400 as well." Ash reached for his Pokédex, and suddenly discovered that he did not have enough. He had been so used to being rich from beating trainers and gym leaders repeatedly on his journey that he forgot that he just started.

"Uhh… Domino?" He looked to her for help. The blonde girl put on a sweet smile and muttered in his ear, sending a chill down his spine from her being so close, but mostly her words.

"Sure… Remember that you owe me one."

He lifted his head to look at Domino's purple eyes, which were glimmering with evil plots already. He shook his head. "This won't be good."

Domino gave the man another $400. He asked, "Can you tell me why these rocks are so special?"

Domino pointed at hers. "This is an Odd Keystone, which is a piece of stone that contains Spiritomb. The Pokémon had probably went into hibernation for the past decades, but I can wake up it up.

"This is not a normal stone either. There is a significant amount of life force. It's a type of yet undiscovered stone officially. I know about it because one of my friends was doing research on it. It's called a Mega Stone. This is a Mega Stone for Pidgeot, or a Pidgeotite. I'm not allowed to release too much information yet." Ash motioned to his rock, "Now that we told you this, can you tell us why you still hadn't gone back to Brock yet?"

The man stared at him in shock. "Who ARE you!?"

"I'm Brock's friend, but you hadn't seen me yet. But I know that you have been watching my friend run the Pewter Gym. I know you want to get back to him."

The man sighed, looking down. "I do, but he probably won't ever accept me for abandoning him and the family. I sent him money monthly, and supported him in secret, but that's all I can do. There's no way I can go back."

Ash looked at him with an intense stare. "No, you're wrong! Brock loves you. I can promise you that if you go back, Brock would be so happy."

The man shook his head. "I don't know. I might just screw everything up, and mess up their happy lives."

"You're a Rock-type trainer. Rock types are strong, tough Pokémon who will face down any challenge with courage, even those whom they have no chance of beating. How are you supposed to lead them in battle when you are not showing the courage yourself? Stop hiding and embrace the reality!"

Ash realized he was yelling and calmed down a bit. "Brock wants to start a Pokémon journey of his own, but is held back to take care of the family. So if you truly love him, you have to go back so he can go live HIS life."

Brock's father took in a deep breath and looked back up, with a fire in his eyes that had long been extinguished, exactly ten years ago when he made the dumbest decision of his life and abandoned his family. "You're right. Thank you so much. I will go back. I deserve his hating me, but I will not allow him to be restrained because of my mistakes. Let's go."

The man started to walk, then turned back around. "I don't think we were properly introduced yet. I'm Flint."

Ash stuck out his hand, slightly glowing blue, and shook. "Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town."

Domino looked at their hands, waiting for something to happen. When Flint turned around like normal, she looked at Ash curiously. "Why did nothing happen?"

"Remember how Arceus said that the memory lift would only work on people and Pokémon that were close to us? I guess Flint was never that close."

Ash decided to let Flint go meet up with his sons and daughters first, then he will have his gym challenge later. He and Domino sat down at the Pewter Pokemon Center with the two rocks they bought. Ash took out his Mega Stone and his Pokédex.

"Dexter, can you take a few pictures and send it to Gary and Professor Oak?"

"On it."

He felt Pidgeot's Pokéball tremble in delight, and he pat it softly to assure that he would let her give it a try as soon as they were out of an area where people would freak at seeing a huge bird of prey circling around their heads.

On the other hand, Domino was checking out her Odd Keystone. Mew teleported over, traveling a total of nine inches in said teleport. She looked at it with interest.

" _Hmm, I'm gonna guess that this guy had been asleep for about two centuries, judging by the extreme lack of brain waves._ "

"Spiritomb has a brain?"

" _You don't need a brain to project brain waves. Any sort of consciousness could result in detectable waves._ "

"Can you wake the Spiritomb up?"

" _Yes, I can. I think I'm one of the few Pokémon who is able to support a large enough amount of psychic energy to stimulate the consciousness again. But of course, someone else could have used multiple Pokémon."_

Mew flickered his tail, and her eyes turned pink. A brighter glow that anything Domino had seen before shot out at the rock, which attracted Ash and Misty over.

After about twenty minutes of Mew charging up the rock, she stopped. Signaling Domino to come closer, she said, " _The Spiritomb will recognize the first person it sees out of a hibernation as its owner. It's almost fully regained consciousness. Be the last straw that help it revive. It'll make catching it a lot easier._ "

The girl put her hand on the Odd Keystone, and slowly inserted a steady flow of weaker pink energy. The Keystone glowed, and a sudden wave of cold air was released from the stone. A pink sphere with green orbs lining its circumference, which surrounds a cackling green face projected out of the circle.

" _Hello madam. I presume it is you who awakened me. Many thanks for your gracious and generous act._ "

Mew popped up in front of him, " _Hi! I'm Mew._ "

" _Wow, what amazing grace and dexterity in a Pokémon. Salutations Mew._ "

Mew coughed. " _You slept for two hundred years, you don't have to talk that way anymore. Arceus had long gotten bored of the fancy Pokémon speech."_

" _That is indeed a relief, but I enjoy the classiness of the oration."_

Mew sighed, " _Anyways, this is my trainer, Domino…_ "

Seeing the shock on the face of the Spiritomb who didn't think it was possible for a legendary to have a trainer, Mew continued nonchalantly. " _She's a psychic. In fact the best psychic in this current world. She can't communicate to you right now, because she hadn't learned Miracle Eye. I really should teach her now that she would be having two dark types…"_

" _Anyways, we are offering you to join us on a Pokémon journey across Kanto, which is what this region is now called. Also, we are on a mission to save the world. We'll explain later. If you accept, just press that button on the pokéball."_ Mew unclipped a pokéball from Domino's belt with her tail and levitated it in front of Spiritomb.

" _Oh my Arceus! It is my absolute honor to help Arceus's ambassador save the world, and a blessed pleasure to be a teammate with Mew the legendary._ " Spiritomb reached out and activated the pokéball. Within seconds, he was captured. Domino sent him out again.

" _Miss Domino, Spiritomb at your service._ "

Domino chuckled. Even though she didn't understand him yet, she could tell a lot from the polite gesture. She reached out and touched the Pokémon, surprise to find the projection actually solid, and said, "Welcome on the team Spiritomb. I know we're going to have a great time together."

Ash whispered to Misty, "So do you remember how you said in the beginning of my first journey that I need to weaken a Pokémon before I can capture it?"

Seeing Misty nodded, Ash finished his train of thought, "So how did she get three of the most powerful Pokémon when they are fully trained and evolve without even lifting a finger?"

"A better question would be how she got Mew to follow her."

" _Well, that's because she's cuter than you._ " Pikachu smirked at Ash and held up a peace sign. " _And Crator like her more than the developer of the anime like you._ "

Ash shook his head. "Traitor."

 **A/N: Yes, I am making you guys wait another day for the Brock battle. Mwahahaha. Don't sue me. Please don't. I am a fan. I'm a fan of a fan…**

 **Anyways, if you have any ideas for a gym battle, please tell me. I have some ideas, but more is always welcomed.**

 **Once again, please review and tell me what you think. I write this to entertain you, so I can't improve if you don't tell me what you want. Enjoy!**


	6. Cha 5: Kanto 5

Ash had decided to give Brock the afternoon and evening to spend with his father, and the group stayed in the Pewter Pokémon Center until the next day to challenge the gym. They each got in a room and retired for the night.

Ash sat on the bed with Pikachu, and Dexter materialized onto a desk.

"So what do you need?"

"Domino's Mirror Coat yesterday inspired me to learn Counter. So, can you work something out? I don't have Sir Aaron's notes with me yet."

"Hmm. Let's see. Counter works by curving the attack of the opponent and adding additional energy so it will punch back twice as hard."

" _Is there a way to construct a bunch of simple machines within an aura construct to do so?_ " Pikachu piped up.

"Yes, that's how Counter usually is. The attack from the opponent hits a lever made of aura in your body, and the lever bounces back on another side, and reflect the same amount of energy out. In the course of directing it through your body, you can add aura to it to make it stronger."

"But the downside to the method is that you have to take the damage given first."

"Indeed. I think I just worked out a best method for directing the opponent's attack with the least amount of damage taken."

" _How will that work?_ "

"We can construct an inclined plane, attached to a screw. When the energy hits the inclined plane, it will go upwards and the screw spins. The centripetal force from the circular motion will change the direction of the attack, which will direct it back at the opponent. This way, you will only take about thirty percent of the damage that would have done to you have you used a normal Counter."

"Sounds complicated." Ash stroked in chin as he tried to understand the speech."

"Yes, that is the one downside."

Domino kicked her legs up onto the desk and sat in a chair, Mew floating next to her. "So, Miracle Eye. I need to learn it so I can communicate to half of my Pokémon."

Mew nodded. " _To understand Miracle Eye, you need to first know about Dark Types. The reason Dark Types are immune to psychics is that they have a special coating around their body that block out psychic energy wholly._ "

" _At first, psychic Pokémon were baffled how they could ever beat a Dark Type. One day, Cresselia got so pissed at repeatedly losing to Darkrai no matter what she did, she teamed up with Celebi, Jirachi, and my sister to decipher the special coating of Dark Types."_

" _They caught a bunch of Dark Pokémon, and what they ended up discovering was that the special coating was also a type of brain waves, but a complete opposite one. They called it the anti-waves. The anti-waves completely cancels out normal psychic waves. So Cresselia manipulated her brain waves by putting them through a psychic mirror that she installed temporarily in her eye. The resulting waves were the complete opposite of what they were before."_

" _They tried to use the re-engineered wave on a Dark Type, and it passed through the coating no problem and had the same effect as on a non-Dark Type. That's how Miracle Eye was first created._ "

"So the key is to create the reflecting mirror?" Domino absorbed the story. "So what happened to Darkrai?"

" _He got beaten up by Cresselia, and he asked her out the next day._ "

"Did she say no?"

" _Yes._ "

"Yes she said no?"

" _No, yes she said yes._ "

"Hey sis, how's is going?" Misty said on her phone.

The reply came a little muffled. "We're great, just finished another of our performances. How's your fishing trip?"

"It was… unexpected." Misty could barely think of a word to describe everything that had happened in the last two days. "Anyways, I need to warn you, I am traveling with a guy currently, and he's going around Kanto challenging gyms. And just so you know, be prepared for him. We should be at Cerulean in about a week or two."

"Is he really good?" Daisy asked, before the phone was snatched away and Misty could hear some fumbling on the other end, and Violet's voice popped up, "Is the guy cute?"

Misty rolled his eyes. "Yes, he's really good. His name is Ash, Ash Ketchum. He's younger than me, so he's out of your standards Vi."

The phone was tossed around again on the other end, and Lily's voice popped up. "How many years younger? I wouldn't mind dating someone a few years younger. I'm only a year older than you Mist."

Misty sighed and rubbed her forehead. "He's already got a girl Lil, whether he wants to admit it or not."

A disappointed sigh came from the other end, and Misty muttered, "Desperate much?"

The trio gathered in the lobby of the Pokémon Center. Domino was yawning when Misty walked out.

"Didn't get much sleep?" Misty walked over, curious.

Domino mumbled something. It took Misty five minutes from her incoherent speech to figure out that she had stayed up overnight to learn Miracle Eye. Normally psychics can stay up for days without rest, but Miracle Eye took more energy to learn than teleportation, and she messed the intricate technique up countless times.

Ash returned from Nurse Joy with three cups of coffee, and he handed one each to Domino and Misty. Misty began sipping hers, while Domino downed the entire cup in a few gulps. Not satisfied, she took Ash's cup and drank that one as well.

"Hey!"

Domino waved him off. "It's too early in the morning to listen to your yapping. Just go get another cup. Oh while you do, get me another one as well."

Ash mumbled something about rude and abrasive blondes before getting up.

Domino asked him when he returned. "How are you so full of energy? Pikachu and you stayed up all night too to work on Counter. Pikachu is still charging himself by sucking out the Center's electricity.

She pointed to a yellow dot at the corner, and Misty noticed for the first time that Pikachu was sitting next to a wall with a cable in his mouth that was plugged into the wall. She opened her mouth to ask something, then closed it wisely. "I don't want to know."

Ash answered the Rocket elite. "This is so much easier than last time's one hundred questions. Plus, there's a trick that Sir Aaron taught me with meditation that can shortened the necessary sleep time. It's called _Mastering your Qi_."

"At least you got something. I have to drink coffee." Domino finished her third cup and eyed the one in Ash's hand.

"Na-uh" Ash pulled his back protectively. Domino pouted, batted her eyelashes, and looked at him with her version of puppy-dog eyes. Seeing her face, Ash's defenses weakened like he was Screeched, completely melting down, and he pushed his cup toward her.

"Fine… You win, Princess."

"Yay! I always do." Domino snatched it over to cover up her light blush from the nickname and sipped on the straw, not minding at all it had previously been Ash's.

Misty looked at the two, thinking to herself, "These two are made for each other."

They arrived at the Pewter after everyone had breakfast. Ash, as usual, devoured twice as much as Misty and Domino's shares combined. Misty took over the job of mocking him, since the blonde girl was too tired for her responsibility.

The trio reached the Pewter Gym. They entered and saw that Flint and Brock were sitting on a couch together, with his brothers and sisters surrounding them.

Flint stood up as he caught sight of the three. Motioning Brock to come over, he pat his son's shoulder. "Brock, you got some GREAT friends. I am so proud of you. They were the ones who convinced me to come back."

Brock looked at three. "Dad, you must be mistaken, I don't know them."

Ash held his hand out, slightly glowing blue. "I'm Ash Ketchem."

The young gym leader took his hand. "Brock Slate."

His head shot up as the memory of the future eight years flowed through. "It's you! Long time buddy! How's Kalos?"

"It was interesting, but it never happened." Ash winked. "Can we talk in private really quickly?"

After clearing everything with Brock, who bounced back faster than Misty, considering that he had traveled back thousands of years to meet Arceus in Sinnoh, he turned to Ash and pointed at Domino. "Who's that hot chick? I don't think we met before?"

An idea came to Ash's mind. He cleared his throat and spoke loud enough to make sure the referenced girl could hear. "That's Domino, my _girlfriend_."

"WHAT!?" Ash turned around to look at Domino staring at him, her face turning the brightest red he had ever seen before.

Ash laughed his head off, "Haha, you should see your face!"

Domino turned to Brock and gave him a sweet smile. "So… You're a Rock type trainer, huh? I heard that Rock types build REALLY fast. Do you mind if I damage your gym here slightly?"

Brock shook his head, completely under her spell. Ash's eyes widened, and a Psybeam was shot at his feet, tripping him. Domino lunged over and pinned him down.

She didn't notice the blue glow over his body until it was too late. With a burst of aura, he flipped her over and yelled, "Counter!"

"So you did fully work it out!"

Brock turned to Misty and was about to say something. Misty answered his question for him instead. "Yes, they're always like this."

Brock whistled. "I guess the girl's off limits then. Little Ash had finally grown up to be a man." He wiped away a fake tear next to his eye. "Maybe I could even give him my Big Book of Flirts."

Misty stared at him. "You mean the flirts that NEVER worked? If I have to drag you away from women again this time, I swear to Arceus… I still haven't used my mallet this time on Ash yet. Domino had taken my job. Don't make me use it against you."

"Wait, hold on, Domino!? The Rocket elite!?" Brock said with shock as realization finally hit him.

"Yep! I'll explain to you as they finish their… demonstration of passion."

"So let me get this straight. You," Flint pointed to Domino, "Want to battle me, and Ash battles my son?"

"Yes." Domino nodded.

"Okay. Well then, how many badges do you have?"

"This would be my first gym battle. Does it matter?"

"Yes. Each gym has separate teams of Pokémon of different level in terms of training. A trainer with none or one badge would get the beginner team. Two to three would mean the medium team. Four and five is the advance team, and six to seven is the expert team."

"Got it. So when can we start?" Domino looked at Flint with anticipation, excited that she would be fighting her first Pokémon battle using official League rules.

Brock stood on the referee stand. "This round would be between Flint of Pewter Gym and Domino. You are each allowed two Pokémon, and withdrawals are allowed unless the Pokémon is in immediate danger. There will be no ring-outs. Both sides clear on the rules?"

Seeing their nods, he pointed. "Let the battle begin."

Domino threw out her Pokéball, revealing Ralts, who used Levitate immediately to get off the rocky ground that posed a disadvantage. Domino looked forward at the Pokémon Flint just released, a weird looking blue and beige Pokémon that looked like a snail. She recognized it to be an Omastar, a Pokémon long extinct.

She called out. "I thought these were wiped out a thousand years ago?"

Flint chuckled. "I did do _something_ in the past ten years. I found a fossil of an Omastar in Johto, and used a fossil animator in the Indigo Plateau to revive him."

"Interesting."

Domino focused, and a mental link was created between her and Ralts. She decided to give commands via psychic.

"Omastar are heavy, so they can't get around well. Use that to your advantage. Teleport to spots where he can't hit you. Start charging up a Future Sight,"

Ralts complied and blinked away, disappearing entirely from the sights. Flint frowned, "You know the Pokémon can't leave the arena right?"

Domino nodded. "She's not out of the arena."

Flint decided to go with the safe route. "Omastar, Rock Polish."

Omastar flashed, but not before a light flashed out of nowhere and hit the Spiral Pokémon first. The light did nothing though, and Flint furrowed his brow, completely not getting her strategy.

The light did give away Ralts's position, revealing her to be on the ceiling. Flint look up and pointed. "Muddy Water." The Rock Water Pokémon sprayed water into the field, which was covered with dirt, and launched the resulting Muddy Water at the Psychic on the glass ceiling. Brock whispered to Ash, "That looked like something you'll do."

Ralts teleported away and landed behind Omastar. She lined up a Psycho Cut, and flung it at her opponent, who was hit directly on the back and flung across the room from the abnormally strong move. If it wasn't for that first Rock Polish, that would be game right there.

Flint snapped his fingers. "Well played. Omastar, Rock Throw."

Rocks began flying throughout the gym, leaving only a small space for Ralts to teleport to. Ralts did so, and Flint smiled. "Remember, never take an opportunity that your opponent has given you. It's most likely a trap."

A giant cage of rock formed in the small space, trapping the Feeling Pokémon and holding onto her so she couldn't teleport.

Omastar approached threateningly and charged up for a Hydro Pump. Domino smirked. "That's a great strategy, but match's over."

She snapped her fingers, and a light welled over Omastar, who was suddenly flung back into a wall and slid down, unconscious.

Flint gaped. "What happened!?"

"Remember the light from the beginning? That was a Future Sight. Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you, I'm a psychic, so I don't have to talk physically to communicate with my Pokémon."

Flint sighed. "You win the first round." The rock construct enclosing Ralts crumbled when its builder passed out, freeing her.

Ralts teleported next to Domino, who stroked her gently and recalled her. "Let's give someone else a try too, Ralts."

She thought about who she can send out next. Zorua was still a baby, and Mew was just too flamboyant, which left her with only one option.

Flint threw out his Pokéball first, revealing it to be a Graveler. Domino threw hers out and Spiritomb appeared in front of the Rock Pokémon.

"Is that the Spiritomb you got from me?"

"Yep! We successfully awakened it yesterday."

In the battlefield, the Spiritomb bowed politely. " _Greetings, my good sir. I hope this battle will enlighten the both of us equally_."

Graveler gave him a look. " _Why are you talking like that?_ "

" _Please excuse me for my speech. I was born in the Classical Era, when Arceus made all Pokémon talk fancily."_

" _So I'm fighting a Pokémon who was hundreds of years old?_ " Graveler was shocked.

" _More like four hundred, but I slept most of the way_." Spiritomb chuckled. Brock announced the start of the battle, and both Pokémon moved.

A Dark Pulse was fired out by Spiritomb, which sent Graveler crashing back into a wall that he painfully endured. The Rock that Graveler sent flying at him, on the other hand, passed through him without inflicting a lot of damage at all.

Flint stared. "What!?"

Domino shrugged. "He's a Ghost."

"That's not how this works!" Flint weighed his options and decided on a plan. "Graveler! Dig!"

Domino countered with a Levitate. Thinking, she told Spiritomb her plan silently, now that she has finally worked out Miracle Eye.

The Graveler reappeared below Spiritomb and used Sand Tomb, completely trapping Spiritomb inside a small construct full of sand. Domino smirked while Flint stared in horror as the Forbidden Pokémon rose out of it, looking no worse for wear. A giant Shadow Ball glowed before him, which was launched out at Graveler before he can disappeared back into the ground.

A small dirt cloud formed above the point of collision. When it cleared with a burst of Domino's Psychic, Spiritomb was floating above an unconscious Graveler.

"And Graveler is unconscious. Flint have no more Pokémon, which means that the winner is Domino!"

"Nice job Domino. Your Pokémon is very well-trained and powerful. Heck, you can probably beat my advanced team. You definitely won this fair and square. Congratulations, and here's the Boulder Badge." Flint held up a badge that looked like a rock, and Domino happily took it over.

Hopping over to Ash, she dangled it in front of his face. She sang. "Haha, I got my first badge… _before_ you!"

Ash rolled his eyes and threw her a box to put it in. Clapping his hands, he walked over to Brock. "Before we get this started, let me remind your Pokémon really quickly. From what I've seen, it returns them to the state before the time jump. So Onix would become Steelix."

Brock looked at him suspiciously. "Wouldn't that make your job harder?"

"Trust me, I need a challenge." Ash smirked and Brock laughed with him. Onix and Geodude were sent out, and Ash went over to tap them respectively.

A glow formed over them, and Steelix evolved from Onix, while Geodude remained the same.

"Hi guys. So this is what happened…"

After going through the process of explaining the change of events, Ash and Brock stood opposite of each other on the battlefield, both with fire in their eyes.

"Brock, show me you haven't lost your touch." Ash teased the older boy.

Brock laughed and responded. "Show me how you made it into the Kalos League, Ash!"

On the referee stage, it was Flint's turn to be the moderator. "This is a battle between Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town and Brock Slate of Pewter Gym. Each is allowed two Pokémon. The first to run out of Pokémon loses. May the best trainer win!"

"Begin!"

"Butterfree!"

"Geodude!"

Butterfree saw his once companion and bowed in midair. " _Long time no see, old friend._ "

Geodude motioned back, " _Indeed, you too. How was the perfect life, leading a tribe, being with the perfect mate?"_

Butterfree waved his antenna, " _Everything was in the past… or the future. But let's worry about the present."_

" _Yes. Right now, we have a battle to finish!_ "

Butterfree used Fly and soared into the air, and Geodude prepared himself with an Iron Defense.

Butterfree called out. " _Ash, can I do this battle by myself? I want to show you what I have learned in the past eight years in defending my tribe._ "

Ash nodded. "Feel free to do what you want Butterfree. Just tell me if you need any assistance."

Butterfree chirped a thanks and began to circle the top of the gym.

Brock squinted as he looked against the sun that is shining through the transparent roof of the gym. "We've got to get him down. Geodude, prepare some Mud Slaps to clog up his wings, even though it won't do damage. Then Rock Throw to stun him."

Geodude dutifully did so, and mud began to be flung onto the ceiling. Flint winced. "That's gonna be a pain to clean up." Of course, he completely forgot that he ordered a similar move as well.

Butterfree started to weave an extremely intricate pattern in the air that even Domino and Mew, with their extreme psychic senses, couldn't predict, dodging all of the Mud Slaps. Retaliating, he sent out a wave of pollen from his body.

Brock warned. "That's Sleep Powder. Don't breathe it in."

Butterfree smirked, " _That's_ not _Sleep Powder._ " The pollen that seemed so harmless floated down gently, and then abruptly exploded, around Geodude, blowing up all of the temporary barrier he had set up for himself and knocking the Rock and Ground Pokémon across the room.

Butterfree did a dive for the ground and used the type-advantageous Leaf Cutter on the stunned Rock Pokémon in the camouflage of the rising dust, before performing a perfect three-dimensional U-turn to get back up. He started dancing in the air with another pattern, and the sun glowed brighter as the Butterfly Pokémon used Sunny Day.

Geodude was barely recovering from being blown up in the face when he felt a threat that desperately demanded his attention. He didn't know where this precognition came from, but it was there. He looked up and had to squint into the sun to look at Butterfree.

A green energy flowed over Butterfree, who remarked. " _A lesson I learned a long time ago when I was sparring with one of the other Butterfree in the tribe was that if the sun is as intense as today, and the Pokémon you are aiming at is getting directly shined on, a Solar Beam doesn't require time to be charged up._ "

Geodude finally understood where the threat was coming from, and stared helplessly as the ray of green and yellow energy raced down from the ceiling and crashed into him. Glass began to rain down from the broken roof as the powerful Solar Beam fully penetrated the entire center of the glass dome.

Brock stared at awe at the combo Butterfree had just performed. He called out to Ash. "Wow, you've trained him well."

Ash put his hands up. "Nope, that was all Butterfree. None of me. I don't think I can do any better if I was in control, if not doing worse."

"I think you just beat the gym record for single quickest battle."

Forrest, Brock's oldest younger brother, looked at the broken roof and his dad's twisted face. He shrugged, "At least now we don't have to clean up the mud."

Flint sighed. "As soon as I come back, I witness the destruction of my gym…"

Brock withdrew Geodude and gave it to Forrest, running at him. "Take him to the healing room please. Thanks."

He turned back to Ash, who had withdrew Butterfree after complimenting him. He asked, "Who's next? Pidgeot again?"

Ash shook his head. "Nope, your gym is way too small, unless you want to take the battle outside…"

Brock turned down that suggestion. "Nah, we are in a city, remember?"

Ash shrugged. "Fine by me. I choose you, Pikachu." The yellow mouse smirked and jumped from his trainer's shoulder into the arena with a burst of Agility.

"So you're trying this again? You know the gym was just checked up last week right? So there will be no broken shower heads."

Misty shook her head. "Brock is about to get his butt kicked with that attitude. You NEVER underestimate Pikachu."

Ash smirked and gestured to Pikachu. "You may do as you wished." He found a seat and sat down.

Brock raised an eyebrow and sent out Steelix, who roared a greeting to Pikachu, who held out his msignature peace sign. " _What's up you big lump! Ready to get zapped?_ "

Steelix bent down and laughed. " _You're going to attempt to electrocute a Ground type again?_ "

Pikachu smirked, and Flint called. "Begin!"

With a burst of Agility followed by Extremespeed, powered by aura, Pikachu became a blur of yellow and was jumping from constructs that were sticking out of Steelix's body to other constructs. He was halfway up the Iron Snake's body before the Pokémon even had a chance to respond.

Brock yelled, "Shake him off! Sandstorm!"

Steelix threw himself on the ground to try to throw off the agile mouse and a Sandstorm appeared as commanded. Seeing this, Pikachu hopped through the air, using the height to his advantage as he continued forward, soaring through the air and launching himself at the falling Steelix. A shaky Protect he had just learned from Ash shielded him from the sand. Steelix turned around and saw the electric Pokémon coming at him, and his head turned fully silver as he used Iron Head to swing at Pikachu.

Pikachu smirked, and his palms glowed blue. With the momentum from the fall combined with the aura he had been charging for the past minute, he punched Brock's Pokémon with a Force Palm with three times the normal power he usually used. His palms stung as Pikachu registered the impact, and the recoil threw him back, forcing him to use a Quick Attack and taking full advantage of the height to land.

On the hand, Steelix was thrown backwards by the forceful punch, which was a rare sight to see: a giant Pokémon like him being launched by a small mouse like Pikachu. Of course, if anyone judged Pikachu solely on his size, said person was about to get a serious whipping.

Steelix's body landed. He managed to choke out, " _I think I just got hit by a building… I might get a concussion_."

With that, he fell to the ground, with swirls for eyes.

The entire field except for Domino and Misty stared at the insane demonstration of power they had never seen before. Pikachu jumped back into Ash's arms, but none of Brock's siblings were mistaking Pikachu for a cute, innocent mouse anymore.

Flint recovered from the shock and waved weakly. "And this battle goes to Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town."

Brock recalled Steelix and tossed the Pokéball to Forrest to carry to the healing station. He approached Ash and threw a Boulder Badge over. "Wow you have grown a lot since your first journey. I remember you were trying to electrocute Ground types at first."

Ash rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, about that… it still happened in Kalos."

Brock laughed. "So, I can still join you right, now that you have three people already?"

Ash laughed along with him. "Of course. If you're not here, who will cook all of the food? I mean, even I'm getting tired of my ramen noodles."

Brock pat his shoulders, then bent down to whisper in the boy's ear. "Oh by the way, I noticed that your 'girlfriend' never denied of being your girlfriend. Just keep that in mind."

 **A/N: And there you go, the Pewter gym battle. The intention was for Domino and Ash to wipe the floor. More epic battles will come later. (Quoting Donald Trump) Believe me. In my opinion, the best Pokémon battles are the ones that involves strategy, and physics, not just raw power and BAM BAM BAM.**

 **I'm going to hold off the Cerulean gym battle until Chapter 7 b/c there's something I want to do in the next.**

 **Enjoy everyone! And again, please review.**


	7. Cha 6: Kanto 6

"Wow! This is better than anything I've ever had!" Domino remarked as she chewed on Brock's food. "Thank Arceus I don't have to eat Ash's ramen noodles anymore. I wanted to cut off my tongue."

Ash rolled his eyes, too busy eating to respond. Brock chuckled, "Thanks. It's a trait you need to have when you have so many siblings. You know that last time, Ash didn't let me cook until the near end of the Kanto journey?"

Domino turned to Misty. "How did you manage with Ash's food for so long?"

Misty shrug. "The pain becomes numb after being tortured for a long time."

"That's NOT FAIR!" Ash shouted, pointing at the orange-haired girl. "You should have tasted hers. At least mine was edible."

Misty looked as though she was about to blow up, and Mew had to use Calm Mind on her. She sighed, "Yeah, my food is pretty bad."

"At least Pikachu isn't complaining about not having ketchup now…" Ash turned his head to find Pikachu chomping down on his Pokéchow. At the mention of the red relish, he hopped over.

" _Hey Brock, is there a way to make something healthy that tastes exactly like ketchup?"_

Dexter translated, and Brock thought for a moment. "Hmm… Good question. I have to experiment on that and get back to you. It should be possible."

Ash laid out a map in front and him, and Dexter materialized next to the group. He scanned it.

"Information transferred. Setting up the best route. Finish computing." Dexter looked up and a red beam shot out of him.

"The best way to Cameron Palace is to start heading in this direction. I will warn you when you need to change course."

Brock heard the commotion and came over. "Why are we going to Cameron Palace? Isn't that way down the journey?"

"It is, but Sir Aaron told me that he left a bunch of his old gear that can help me train and fight at the place. I also need to go retrieve Lucario and cut him out of the seal of Sir Aaron's staff.

"Be careful not to touch it. Lucario might jump out and tried to beat you up again."

Mew spoke up, " _Why are we walking? You know I can just get you all there the next second right?_ "

Ash facepalmed.

"This is a cool place." Domino remarked as she teleported herself in front the castle in Rota. It's the first time she tried long-distance teleportation, and she loved the feeling, even though it just zapped a third of her energy. Of course, normal human psychics wouldn't even dream of teleporting a hundred miles, much less a thousand.

Ash landed beside her, upside-down, courtesy of Domino, of course.

"OW! Can you stop abusing me!?"

"Nah, it's fun."

Mew, Misty and Brock appeared next to them a second later, landing on their feet. Ash pulled himself up and closed his eyes. Using Aura Sight, he can see a remarkable pulsing aura that has a similar frequency deep in the castle.

"What's the plan? Just go in there and take it?"

Ash shook his head. "We're going to meet the Queen and ask her permission. She has Sir Aaron's staff in the royal treasury, so we need to go through her anyways."

Domino huffed. "Fine, Mr. Goody. Lead the way."

"Oh my beautiful Queen! The day had finally came for our undying love to meet aga…" Brock had hearts popping out his eyes.

Misty snorted and reached over to drag him by the ear back into reality.

Ash bowed to the guards in front of the Palace. "Hello. My name is Ash Ketchum, and I wish to see the Queen for an important reason."

The guards eyed the group suspiciously, and Domino had to fight the urge to start beating people up.

"What's the reason?" The guard on the left said in a hoarse voice.

"I can only say it in front on the Queen."

"Can you go ask for her permission?" He turned to his partner, who nodded and went into the gate.

A few minutes later, he came back out. "You're lucky. Queen Ilene is free from her work today and is willing to meet with you. Next time, make an arrangement at the reception building first."

"Thank you. I will do so." Ash nodded.

They follow the first guard into the Palace. After a few minutes of walking, the opening widened to reveal a fancy throne room. Queen Ilene sat on the throne at the top of an elevated surface with some mini-stairs leading up to it. The guard kneeled, and motioned the group to do the same.

Brock came down in an instantly, not surprisingly. Misty and Ash followed suit. Domino growled behind him, not used to being on the other end of the ordering. Ash reached out and squeeze her hand slightly. She looked down to see his pleading look to make this easy, sighed and followed their lead.

The Queen smiled and gestured everyone to be seated. Like Brock's speed of kneeling, Domino's speed in standing back up was just as swift. She seated herself on the chair, bit her lip and closed her eyes, leaving the talking to Ash.

Closing her eyes made her miss the dazed look on Ash's face as he turned around and saw her cute expression. Shaking the feeling off, Ash remained standing and bowed to the Queen.

"Queen Ilene, I came here in hopes to obtain one of the items in your royal treasury of which you have no use."

Ilene looked at him curiously, "And that is?"

"Sir Aaron's staff. Everyone thought Sir Aaron disappeared without leaving any trace behind a thousand years ago. In truth, he did leave something."

"When I was on my Pokémon journey, I encountered a very complicated situation. Long story short, I became an aura user because of some of his remaining stuff." Ash tried to be as general as possible in his explanation.

"He had asked in his remaining will that his inheritor shall come and free Lucario, who was sealed in the staff by Sir Aaron until the world is a safe place again. He also recommended me to get his past-accessories, which will aid in my training and fighting."

Queen Ilene was silent, and Domino smirked a bit at the truthfulness and hiddenness of Ash's speech.

"Do you have any proof? If this is really his will, I will gladly respect his wishes, but please show me your evidence."

Ash unclipped his backpack and took out the staff, assembling it. On the other hand, he spun a ball of aura.

"This is aura, and this is one of Sir Aaron's other staffs. You can see by the medieval designs and other patterns that this is indeed a thousand years old."

Queen Ilene looked at it for a while, then nodded. "Very well, you had earned my trust. Guard, please retrieve for me Sir Aaron's possessions."

The guard returned a few minutes later. The few minutes entertained Misty and Queen Ilene talking about makeup, Brock staring at his beloved royalty intently, Domino pretending to sleep, and Ash planning with Pikachu on how to revive Lucario without his being wrongly pissed at Ash.

The Queen took Aaron's clothes, which consisted of his hat, boots, and gloves. She handed those over, but held the staff on her hand. "I have one request before I give you the staff."

Brock interrupted before Ash could open his mouth. "Anything my Queen, anything!"

Misty sighed and dragged him back.

"I want to see how Lucario would be freed."

"Okay, that's doable." Ash nodded after meeting eyes with Pikachu. "However, we have to do it at a place that is NOT the Palace, preferably a really large clearing. Definitely not in the city. There are… things that could go… unexpected."

Queen Ilene arranged that easily, and took them to a park behind the Palace, secluded from most other influences. Misty and Brock ledher back about sixty feet from the staff, which Domino had taken and laid on the ground. Mew floated next to her, and took her Pokéballs, and released Spiritomb, Ralts and Zorua. On the other hand, Pikachu jumped off Ash's shoulder in alert, and the boy released Pidgeot and Butterfree. He threw out his Pokédex, which materialized into a Porygon.

The guards stood in front of the Queen, and Misty and Brock sent out their Pokémon as well. Geodude construct a barrier with windows in front of them. Mew then teleported next to them and formed a bunch of pink Light Screen.

Misty turned to the pink legendary. "Why aren't you with them?"

" _They need to sharpen their skills. They can't do that with me there wrecking everything all the time. Real lessons are learned when put under extreme pressure. And let's just say that Aaron's Lucario is quite a bit of pressure._ "

"Is this really necessary?" The Queen asked, not seeing the point of their immense preparation.

Ash nodded. "OH YES! Lucario can probably beat up a normal legendary by himself."

He looked over to Domino. "You ready?"

Domino stared him back in the eyes. Her heart shook a bit, and she reached over spontaneously and grabbed his hand. "Don't get hurt."

Ash nodded and squeeze her hand. With the other hand, he touched the staff with a burst of aura.

The staff began glowing, as the aura seal performed by Sir Aaron began leaking away through the hole that Ash's aura had just created. It shot up in the air, and the couple backed away cautiously.

Within a few seconds, a form materialized next to the staff, which fell back down. The blue and black bipedal form of an ancient Lucario opened his eyes, which were a dull color, not realizing at all what was going on from the amount of time sealed.

The first thing he sensed was a familiar aura pulse next to him. The familiar pulse of his once teacher, once hero, once master, and whom he thought was the most wicked traitor in his life.

He reflexively roared. " _Aaron!? You dare to come see ME!? You traitor! You betrayed me and all your soldiers!"_

Ash held out his hand in a friendly gesture, and Mew tried to calm Lucario down with a Calm Mind.

"Lucario, I'm not Sir Aaron. My name is Ash…"

" _Do not talk, traitor! I cannot believe you will use such a lame excuse! You dare mock the transparency of AURA!_?"

With that said, he lashed out with a blue-coated fist, using a Force Palm a lot stronger than any ones Ash and Pikachu had used in the past. It shattered Ash's Protect and knocked him flying.

Pikachu jumped off Ash's shoulder toward the bipedal Pokémon and punched with a Force Palm of his own, which hit Lucario on the chest.

The blue glow was absorbed, then a second later, released back at Pikachu by Lucario's Counter, sending Pikachu flying back into Ash.

In the distance, Misty and Brock drew in a deep breath. It had been a long time since they last saw Ash getting beat up as bad as this.

Butterfree and Pidgeot both soared into the air. The Bug Pokémon released a wave of Sleep Powder that engulfed his opponent. His aura turned red, and pulsed out a Fire Blast. The five-sided star lit up the cloud, burning it off. Using the few seconds, Butterfree released a partial Solarbeam, which turned into a full -on one as it took in the energy from the sun.

Lucario raised a Protect shield, and deflect the green and yellow energy to the side toward the attacking Ralts. The Feeling Pokémon yelped and teleported away. His palms flashed, and a giant ball of aura formed, which broke into numerous pieces of Aura Sphere and sent it flying toward Spiritomb, who traded Shadow Balls with the spheres, but was interrupted from charging up his Dark Pulse in the process.

Pidgeot dived down from the air and used Extremespeed. With the wind at her back and gravity helping her, she managed to get a glancing hit at Lucario without defense, who swirled around and avoided the most power of the attack at the last second.

" _Why are you still following that TRAITOR? Pidgeot, you have more sense than THAT!_ "

The Bird Pokémon ignored his outburst and lifted back up into the air. Ash and Pikachu recovered from the initial strike. Pikachu stood back and started charging up an electric attack, which is probably extremely powerful by the amount of time it was taking PIKACHU to prepare.

On the other hand, Ash launched a dozen Aura Spheres at Lucario, forcing him to stay in place and use Protect. Sliding over, he poked the shield, shattering it and followed the series of attack with a Fire Punch, with a prepared red-glowing fist.

Lucario met fist with fist, and a sickening crack was heard as Ash stumbled backwards. Domino teleported next to him in an instant.

"Are you okay?" She asked with concern.

"Nothing's broken. My arm just hurt like crap." Ash muttered as his arm is lit with aura, trying to heal the damage.

Lucario charged over. Domino narrowed her eyes. Her eyes glowed with an anger never seen before. A strong pink energy flowed over her. "Dumbf*ck! How dare you hurt him!"

Arceus looked up from the Times Magazine Dialga just published. " _Domino is under stress. Her psychic just spiked to the level of a normal psychic legendary. Not Mew level, but say, Jirachi level._ "

"Domino? Really? I would think that Ash is the emotional one. Afterall, she's always so calm."

" _Yes, normally, but not when it comes to Ash, so the sudden rise probably has something to do with Ash_."

"You're right again. They are a good pair."

Domino used Psychic, launching the Pokémon back ten feet. Following up without giving him anytime to recover, she sent out a barrage of Psybeams and Psystrikes. Teleporting behind his just-risen Protect, she develop a pair of Psycho Cuts that knocked the Aura Pokémon off his feet.

Mew stared at her trainer/apprentice. " _HOLY CRAP! Her psychic just spiked so much. Why does none of them see their care for each other?_

 _She projected a psychic sense onto the girl. "Come back and charge up, or else you will run out of energy extremely quickly in the hype mode._ "

Before Domino could teleport, she was sent flying by a Force Palm with only a half-formed Light Screen as cushion. She landed, and Lucario punched out twice to send Zorua and Ralts scurrying backwards. The Psybeam from the green and white Pokémon was sent at Butterfree by his Counter, who had to abort his attack run to avoid the sudden assault. At the same time, he opened his mouth to spit out a series of Aura Spheres, using it as if it was Bubblebeam, backed the immense aura collection of an ancient Pokémon. Spiritomb blocked most of it with Shadow Claw, and had to phase behind a tree to avoid the rest, which blew said tree apart.

Lucario ran toward the blonde girl, who's still sitting on the ground, recovering from the shock of the attack. Ash took a deep breath, and his aura started to burn as he saw Domino under attack. He zoomed out, and within a second, he was somehow behind the Aura Pokémon and launched out a fist.

Lucario turned around and punched his fist too, like last time. Another crack was heard, but it was the bipedal Pokémon who was sent back flying this time. Ash stepped forward to follow with another punch, and another. The second one shattered his shield, and the third one landed directly on his chest, and a sickening noise came from his opponent's ribs.

"Don't you DARE harm her!"

"Wow, now Ash too? He just had an aura spike as well." Sir Aaron finished making the chocolate pie.

" _They must be under some severe stress._ "

Mew stared in shock. "Him too? How does emotion affect them so much!? And also, did he just crack the ribs of an ancient Steel Type?"

Lucario retaliated with a barrage of Aura Spheres to the boy in front of him. Having no time to dodge or put up a shield, he closed his eyes, preparing for the wave of pain and possible unconsciousness.

Suddenly, he felt himself getting lifted up. He opened his eyes to find himself in the talons of his loyal Pidgeot. Looking down, he saw Pikachu finally finished charging up his attack. He recognized it in an instant. After losing in the Kalos League, he spent an entire week with Pikachu and Dexter, trying to work out an electric Hyper Beam variant by referencing Zekrom's Fusion Bolt. It's only half worked out, but seeing the energy flowing from the mere half, he couldn't wait to finish it. Last time, there were a bunch of concerns about manipulation of electricity, which would not be nearly a problem now that Pikachu knew aura.

The yellow mouse is wearing a ball of electricity between his ears, with two more in his paws. The three balls lashed out, and waved a pattern in the air, leaving stranded energy in the air. The energy suddenly turned magnetic, which attracted more natural, static electricity to fuel the hurling ball. By the time the three balls got to Lucario, they were three times their original size.

Lucario's shield was shattered upon contact, and the super effective move hit him dead on, sending him into a rock, which also shatter from the impact. For the first time, tiredness could be seen on the ancient Pokémon's face.

On his large bird's back, Ash whistled at the power of the attack. Pidgeot spoke up, " _Ash, do you still have the Pidgeotite?"_

Ash slapped his head. "Oh yeah! That's right. He reached into his bag and took out the Mega Stone and hung it around Pidgeot's neck. Grabbing his staff as well from the bag, he touched the purple Keystone.

Evolution lights shone from the Bird Pokémon, and Queen Ilene gaped at the new transition. "I thought Pidgeot was already the highest evolved form of the Pidgey line."

Brock was shocked along with the Queen, so Misty took the job of explaining to everyone briefly the concept of Mega Evolution that Ash told her about.

The huge bird grew even more giant as she reappeared. Newly grown blue feathers lined her tail, wings, and the three special feathers on the top of her head. Shrieking into the air at her new power, she prepared for a Gust attack, and found the attack that she had to charge up for was almost instant. Ash jumped down from her back, falling for twenty feet and still landing safely with a burst of aura.

Lucario was too busy recovering from the Paralysis to care about him. This gave Mega Pidgeot the time to go in for a Brave Bird attack. Releasing Gust first, she did some damage to the ancient Pokémon, bringing the blue and black Pokémon to his senses. Seeing the physical attack coming in, he glowed with the standard light of Counter.

Which was a good move, had the attack been fired by Regular Pidgeot or had he not been Psybeamed/Striked/Cut, aura abused and electrocuted by Pikachu.

Mega Pidgeot landed her attack full force, and an unexpectedly overwhelming energy rushed into the Lucario's body. Before the Counter could trigger and convert the attack to be his own, it became the last straw and he passed out from the attack of the first ever Mega-evolved.

Mew floated over and used Calm Mind on everyone to get them to settle down from their pumping adrenaline. Mega Pidgeot devolved back to Pidgeot and exclaimed, " _That was awesome! Can I fly you to the Cerulean Gym in Mega Form?_ "

"Of course!" Ash laughed. "Hey why don't I Mega Evolve you again so Dexter can take a few pictures to send to Gary? He's probably finishing his research while journeying.

"Gary Oak, you have one new message." His Pokédex, Dee, rang. Gary pulled it out and opened it. He did a double take.

Shaking his head as he headed back to his car, he remarked. "That boy!"

He flipped out his research journal.

 **Day 6:**

 **Received pictures of Mega Pidgeot, the first ever Mega-evolved Pokémon. Trainer: Ash Ketchum. Mega Stone: Pidgeotite.**

 **Each trainer needs a Keystone along with a specific Mega Stone to Mega-evolve. The Keystone and Mega Stone cannot stay apart for too long of a distance, and they are activated by the Pokémon's will. Further research will be conducted when I meet up with Ash.**

Lucario came to his senses, and discovered that he was lying in a bed. He blinked, and saw a bunch of humans and a few Pokémon alongside them. He sensed the familiar aura again. Now that he had gotten over the rush of being first released, he discovered something different about this aura. Even though it is the same frequency as his previous trainer, it was obviously weaker in comparison.

A stream of realization suddenly hit him. Lucario coughed. " _Maybe I should go back into the staff…_ "

Ash chuckled. "Hello Lucario, we meet again." He held out his hand, slightly glowing blue. He had his other hand in wrappings, being nursed from the previous fight.

Lucario stuck out his hand to shake, and jerked slightly at the pain in his chest.

"Sorry for punching you so hard." Their hands touched, and Lucario looked up abruptly. Breathing deeply for a second or two, he asked quietly.

" _So my death is sealed._ "

Ash shook his head. "No it's not. This is another timeline, so nothing is set in stone yet. This is Mew from the Tree of Beginning." He motioned to the pink cat next to Domino.

Lucario bowed. " _Lucario at your service._ "

Mew waved back coolly.

Ash continued. "As long as we can get that photographer to not provoke the white blood cells, we're good. Even if something does happen, I'll be here with you to save the Tree. We might be extremely weak afterwards for a while, but we won't die."

The Aura Pokémon's eyes started to glimmer with new hope. " _In that case, I better start training up. Currently I am extremely weak from being sealed for… how long? A thousand years?_ "

Ash nodded in confirmation. "Just to let you know, you still punch extremely hard."

Lucario winced. " _Yeah... Sorry about that._ "

"Ooh! Aaron told me to tell you to try some chocolate. They can calm your nerves apparently.

The Pokémon agreed. " _In the last timeline, after I died and was with him, his chocolate was indeed very good._ "

He then looked at Ash expectantly.

"What?"

" _What are you waiting for? Capture me!_ "

Ash stuttered. "But… you're Sir Aaron's Pokémon."

" _Whether I want it or not, he's dead a thousand years ago. You just beat me in a Pokémon battle, so you have the rights to capture me, and you've proven yourself with your aura and bravery in both the last world and the current one._ "

He continued. " _And I need a trainer to help me with aura. I could also help you with training as well._ "

Ash thought for a while. "Okay, I'll capture you. But just letting you know, you can leave whenever you want."

Lucario shrugged. " _It's not like I have anywhere to go._ "

Queen Ilene spoke up, after witnessing what she thought was the craziest scene of her life, "Lucario, you are welcomed here in Rota whenever you want."

Lucario looked at her. " _I can sense part of Aaron's blood in you. Are you a descent of him?_ "

The Queen nodded. "Yes, but the line had been dormant for many generations."

Lucario bowed to her. " _Either way, please accept my apologies of breaking your palace._ "

"Don't worry about it. I can get it fixed in no time," Ilene waved, "Now, who wants lunch?"

 **A/N: Sorry guys that this chapter took a bit long. I wanted to make the battle awesome, not some two-piece crap. Thanks for waiting patiently, and not spamming reviews of negative comments.**

 **So enjoy! Pidgeot just Mega-Evolved, and a bit Skillshipping fit in there. They just care for each other so much! So cute!**


	8. Cha 7: Kanto 7

ew left to check back up on the Tree of Beginning. After being reminded of the wildness of the white blood cells, she went to seal most of them up with the help of the three Regi's.

Ash and co. decided to spend the night at Rota. Ash got into a room, followed by Lucario, who, like Pikachu, did not like the Pokéball. He changed into Aaron's outfit and took out the stack of notes left by the Knight.

Lucario picked one of them up. " _This is probably useful. 'Comments on Aura Reservoir._ '"

Ash poked his head over and inspected the piece of paper, which, somehow after a thousand years, was still intact.

"Hmm, infusing stones to become aura-fueled so that it could be released back out when there's an opening. That's kind of like the seal on the staff."

"We could definitely try that." He thought for a while, and Lucario left. When he came back, he held a few stones in his hand.

Lucario started pouring his aura in the stone. " _Read me Aaron's directions._ "

"Insert aura gently into…"

The stone exploded under the pressure. Lucario winced. " _Too late._ "

He picked up another stone, and starting inserting his aura extremely slowly. The stone glowed, but cracks still formed.

"Insert aura gently into a stable, hard rock without detectable fragility, or else it will break under the pressure."

Lucario's rock cracks in half again. " _So we need some hard rocks. Let's see, we can ask a Diglett to find us one of those._ "

"Or Brock." Ash added, "He's a rock trainer, so that has to count for something."

Brock went to open his door after hearing the knock.

"Hey, can I talk to you?"

"You already are."

"Lucario and I are currently experimenting with infusing stones with aura to make them an aura reserve, but the problem is that they keep cracking under the force. Do you have any idea where I can find some non-fragile rocks?"

Brock's eye twitched at hearing that rocks were fragile. "I know that limestones are pretty good, so are volcanic rocks. They have to undergo severe pressure to form. Cooled magma sounds like a good idea to. We can visit the Cinnabar Gym early to get some of that."

"You guys are forgetting the obvious." A voice next to them sounded. Ash turned around to find Domino standing at her doorway. "I heard some commotion, so I came out. If you need something hard, just get some gems. As in amethyst, diamonds, rubies."

Ash raised an eyebrow. "You know I just started the journey right? It's not like I'm a millionaire from winning so many battles like before."

"I am," she smirked. "I'll let you borrow some money, but you will owe me."

"Nope! Owing you favors is like owing a Primeape bananas. It's dangerous." Ash shook his head, popping the "p".

She shrugged. "I don't mind. Just a suggestion." With that, Domino went back into her room.

Brock remarked. "She is so into you, Ash."

Ash shot him a look and push the older boy back into the room, shutting the door in his face, silently denying to himself how good that sounded.

" _Any ideas from Brock?_ " Lucario looked up from the notes. " _Aaron used sapphires in his time. He said the harder the rock, the more aura it can store. A small piece of sapphire can carry as much aura as a huge rock._ "

"Brock suggested limestone and hardened magma, and Domino said diamonds and stuff."

" _Do you have the money?_ "

"No."

" _We could start with something simpler, like steel._ " He eyed the notes, " _As a Steel Type, I can sense it and get it really easily, and believe me, they're hard._ "

"Do you have any steel on you?"

Lucario shot him a look. " _You realize I just came out of the staff in the last five hours right?_ "

"We could go talk to the Queen." Ash said. "Actually, on a second thought, let's not. We've bothered her enough. Speaking of the staff…"

He picked up the staff that he threw on his bed, the one that trapped Lucario in. He took the original one out and held them together.

"Okay, I can see the resemblance."

" _Cool staff. It looks a lot like Aaron's._ " Lucario remarked at the one with the purple gem. " _Where did you get it?_ "

"Sir Aaron himself actually. I met him after the world ended, like I explained before. You can have the staff that trapped you in." Ash tossed the other staff over. "I don't need two staffs."

The bipedal Pokémon caught the flying weapon. " _Thanks. I feel like this thing is practically part of me, from being together for a thousand years, way longer than Aaron's time with it. You think I was good barehanded? Just try me with the staff._ "

Ash smirked, "I will, but after I finish basic training."

" _So that thing Pidgeot was doing today… I have never seen anything like it before. What's it called?"_

"It's Mega Evolution. In the future… about eight years from now, my friend was doing research on it. Mega Evolution became a thing then, even though it's extremely rare, to the point of legendary rare. Using a type of natural force that is within a special kind of stone, a Pokémon can borrow that force and make its body stronger. A Mega Stone is paired with a Keystone, which serves as a link to trigger an opening in the Mega Stone for the Pokémon to absorb."

Lucario fell into deep thought. " _What if we use Mega Stones as the aura reservoirs? It will automatically seal the aura in without our manual operation. A stone that powerful must be extremely tough. Then when we want the aura, we can use a modified Keystone to open it._ "

Ash stared. "Mega Stones are as rare as legendaries right now."

" _Not if we recruit Digletts and Dugtrio to help. Like you said, few people know about this stuff right now, so there should be plenty in supply. How did you get the Pidgeotite?_ "

"I bought it from Brock's father, who didn't know about it until I told him."

" _Where did_ HE _get it?_ "

"Good point."

Flint picked up his phone. "Hello, this is Pewter Gym."

"Hey Flint! This is Ash Ketchum."

"Hi Ash, what can I help you with?"

"I need to know where you got the Pidgeotite."

Flint was confused for a moment what the boy was referring to, then realize it was the rock he brought from him. "In the Viridian Forest. You know the big Beedrill hive in the center? There's a pile of similar stones about a few hundred feet to its west."

"Thanks Flint!"

"How's the trip going?"

"Normal. Nothing interesting actually happened." Ash paused. "Oh wait, I got a thousand-year-old Lucario."

Flint: "..."

The group was sitting at the table laying out the plans of the day. "We're going back the Viridian Forest to see if the there are other stones at where Flint found the Pidgeotite."

Domino spoke up, "I need to go to Professor Oak and see if I can get a Pokédex from him."

"How about this, I go with Ash to help him identify the stones, while Misty go with Domino to prove to Oak that she is trustworthy."

They nodded. "Okay, I guess that's the plan. Girl, you ready to soar?" Ash turned to Pidgeot and lightly pet the bird on the wings. She nodded vigorously, and she Mega Evolved. Brock and Ash climbed on. Mega Pidgeot let out a loud chirp and took to the air. A _boom_ was heard a second later, and a clear shockwave can be seen around the bird, who was currently going past sound speed.

"Misty, can you give me the coordinates of Pallet Town?"

Misty took out her phone and inserted the place, and held it up to the other girl.

"Thanks. Let's go." Domino took her wrist and the two disappeared.

"Weezing! Quick, Sludge Bomb!" Jessie, James and Meowth were currently running away from a group of psychotic Spearow. They came to their breeding grounds after Meowth had pestered them repeatedly about getting a Spearow.

"Meowth! This is what happens when you go provoke something without preparation!"

"So wat if we da had preparation!? We go blastin' off anyways!"

Weezing release a cloud of smoke onto the sky, which blinded the Spearow flock.

"Arbok. Poison Fang." Arbok shot up into the cloud, able to see because of being a Poison Type as well. On the other hand, the Spearow flock leader was struggling in the smoke, blinded. He never saw Arbok coming, and was dragged down to the ground, weak due to the poison.

"Constrict!" Arbok wrapped itself tighter around the Spearow, who passed out under the strength. Arbok and Weezing HAD been training for over eight years, so they're not the beginner Pokémon like the start of the Kanto journey either.

James flung a Pokéball at the unconscious Pokémon, who was captured instantly. Jessie went to retrieve the ball, and ran for their lives after seeing the smoke cloud starting to dissipate. They hopped into the Meowth balloon, and pulled the emergency lift off hatch, sending the balloon flying up without beforehand warming-up and other preparations.

They sighed. "Dat was close!"

"My turn next!" Jessie piped up. "Let's see… I want a Nidoran. Boss's Nidoking is insane."

Mega Pidgeot fell out of sound speed and started cruising along Viridian Forest. On her back, Ash and Brock panted, with sweat dotting their foreheads.

"That was…"

"Scary." Brock concluded.

Mega Pidgeot smirked. " _Glad to be at your service. And as for Ash, that was payback for leaving me for that long._ "

"I apologized!"

" _Don't lie to yourself. That was so fun. You probably want to try it again._ "

"Hell yeah!"

As they flew along the top of the Forest, a flock of Spearow suddenly bounced into them. As soon as they saw them, they aggressively rushed over.

Ash frowned. "I didn't do anything to them this time. It's not like their flock leader was bothered or captured."

Mega Pidgeot chuckled. " _In this case, I shall let them see the power of the first ever Mega Pokémon!"_

Ash warned. "Don't hurt them… too much."

Mega Pidgeot chirped, and started beating the air. A pair of wings about five times her wing size formed around her, and with that, she slapped the air harder. She then launched out a Gust attack, and a mini-tornado formed and crashed into the Spearow flock, sending them flying off.

Brock and Ash, as well as Pikachu who poked his head from under Ash's backpack dropped their jaws at the sight of the scene.

" _We should get you to battle against… say, Lugia one day. Just to test you out._ "

" _And we should get you Zekrom, or Raikou to spar with_."

Ash rubbed his forehead. "I guess this world is a lot more, well, epic than the last. Let's go visit the pile of stones and get out."

"Hey Professor!" Oak turned around to see Misty walking in, along with a blonde girl he had constantly seen over official League reports.

"Hello Misty, Domino." Oak returned he gesture politely. Afterall, he was not only the ex-champion of Kanto and Johto before he retired, but also the Professor of the area. Therefore, with his immense life experiences, he tended to be calm, unlike the Elite Four, who upon seeing Domino, would probably freak.

Domino looked at the Professor. "You know me?"

"Of course, the famous Black Tulip."

"Well, normally if someone from League saw me, they would probably send out their Pokémon by now."

Oak waved the idea off. "That would be foolish. You're here with Misty, and I know Misty wouldn't ever go to the wrong side. What can I help you girls with?"

"Ash told me to compete in Leagues, I need a Pokédex, and he said you had one. So I'm here to retrieve it."

Oak nodded. "You're with Ash? Okay then, sure thing. I'll be right back."

A few minutes later, he came back with a red Pokédex. He handed it to Domino, and the Pokédex began glowing as it touched her hand. She placed it down abruptly, squealing a bit at the surprising change. She looked at Oak questioningly.

Oak stared at it, amazed as well, and Domino concluded that the Professor didn't know what's going on either.

The light stopped flashing, and a Porygon appeared in front of Domino. He nodded at her slightly.

"Thank you for waking up my consciousness. If I am correct, the power within you is a tool constructed by the fragments of the rules of memory?"

Domino shrugged, beginning to get what is going on. "Maybe. Arceus called it a memory lift."

"Well, thank you. May I ask your name, for that from now I will be serving you."

"Call me Domino."

Misty pat the girl on the back. "Congrats. I guess you got yourself a new Pokémon."

On the other hand, Oak was busy typing on his computer, taking notes of the situation. He hummed, "Lifting up memory will create a conscious mind…"

Misty and Domino turned to looked at each other, said goodbye to the regional professor, and blinked away.

Ash poked at the stones. What they saw was nothing near what they predicted. In front of them was a giant pile of rocks, bigger than Pidgeot when being Mega. Brock sent out Geodude, who began the process of spreading the rocks out.

Ash used Aura Sight, and he saw four special stones with a significant amount of life force. He went and picked them out. Two are blue, one purple and one red.

He nodded to his Flying Type. "Mission complete. Let's go meet back at Mt. Moon. Domino would be heading there too. I texted Professor Oak to leave a message."

"If you want, you can try some aerial moves…"

"NO!"

" _NO!_ "

Brock and Pikachu both shouted out in opposition of the idea.

Ash plucked his lips. "Or not."

Mega Pidgeot looked down. " _Downers!_ "

The bush next to him shook, and suddenly a boy dressed like a samurai jumped out and lashed his sword at Ash, who jumped back and threw an Aura Sphere at the blade, knocking it out of his hands.

"Hey!"

"Woah! What was that? Are you magical?" The boy's jaw dropped at seeing Ash's ability.

"Never mind that. Don't you know it's unsafe to point a sword at someone so carelessly and without reason? I have full rights to beat you up now."

"Sorry, it's just part of the costume." The boy bent down to retrieve the sword and place it back into its sheath.

"Anyways, as I was saying, Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town, I, Samurai, challenge you to a battle."

"How do you know my name?"

"The last trainer who passed by here, Gary, mentioned to me about you, and that how a fight with you would be memorable.

"Not to be offensive, but do you really want to fight me? Can't you see the huge bird of prey twice the size of a normal Pidgeot behind me?" Ash didn't even bother explaining Mega Evolution.

The boy looked at it, then sighed. "I don't. Seriously, you guys are one better than the last. The first one was an Ivysaur. I still lost, but it was definitely beatable. Then Gary was just hard, his Squirtle for some reason could fire Hydro Cannon all day. Then you're just… impossible."

Ash looked at the boy with a complicated look. It was never his way to destroy someone's dream. "Don't stress about it kid. Trust me, I am… a special case. I have more experience with Pokémon than I appear. You might not want to believe me, but if there's another universe, I would have lost to you."

"Thanks for the encouragement man. And hey, you better watch out. One day, my Bug Pokémon and I are going to come and challenge the Pidgeot to a match!"

Ash pat the boy on the back. "I'm looking forward to that day."

Dexter materialized in front his species. "Hello. My name is Dexter. Welcome to the world. What's your name?"

Domino's Porygon turned to his owner. "Would you like to give me a name?"

The blonde girl snapped her fingers and came up with a name. "How about Noah?"

"Noah it is."

"Well, greetings Noah. Come with me, I'll transport you some data that you need to know traveling with us. Believe me, the people you're seeing in this team is… abnormal."

"We're not THAT abnormal!"

"My recording of your meeting all 50 legendaries excluding Alola because Crator hates that region of anime begs a differ."

"I never met 50." Domino interrupted.

"You will girl, if you follow Ash around. And plus, Ash never captured a legendary, but you did."

"I'm probably going to try for it this time."

" _Good, how about you start with me?_ " A booming voice sounded in the skies on top of the group. They looked up to see a Ho-Oh circling in the clouds, and floated down and rested himself in front of Ash.

" _Greetings, Chosen One! I see that you have awaken your aura. It's quite surprising actually. Only a few month ago I was checking on you, but you seemed dormant._ "

Misty and Brock both clutched Ash's shoulder together. "Is this the Ho-Oh you said you saw?"

Ash nodded. The Rainbow Pokémon tilted his head. " _I did not realize we met before._ "

"No, it's not that. We haven't met in this universe yet. We come from technically the future, and Arceus sent us here to stop Cyrus, a man who will eventually wipe out the world by re-writing space-time."

" _Ahhh, so the meeting with me was in another timeline?_ "

"Well, you flew over my head during the beginning of my journey." Ash chuckled, "So what did you just ask me to do?"

" _I am officially offering you a chance to capture me, if you manage to beat me with your Pokémon._ "

"Why though? You can live freely flying over the world, and I heard the Tin Tower was a great place."

" _Comfort and freedom gets older after a while, believe it or not. I have seen humans pass by for thousands of years, and I am curious to how they work. I know I can definitely trust the Chosen One, and your aura is pure._ "

" _I also wish to battle for you, and be trained. It's a natural desire of Pokémon that even legendaries have, but I couldn't find someone deserving of such chance besides you in a long time._ "

" _And thirdly hearing your story supports my determination even more. It's rare that something as interesting as saving an entire timeline, not just a planet, comes up. Plus I get to say to Dad that I helped him with a mission when he asks me what I accomplished in this millennium._ "

"You call him Dad too!?" Domino piped up.

Ho-Oh chuckled, " _All of the legendaries supposedly do, except for those that was created by others, like how I created the Beasts. Of course, Giratina…_ "

"... complained that he needs more dignity in order to rule over the Shadow Realm." Domino finished for him.

" _I see that Mew did come to find you. Greetings to you too, my Queen._ "

Domino was confused. "Queen? What are you talking about?"

" _Arceus established a long time ago that the Chosen One is the King of all legendaries, but barely any actually listen to the Chosen's orders. It's more like a respectful title than a real position of power. But one who has such a title proved their purity already._ "

" _You're Ash's mate, so what's wrong with calling you Queen?"_

Domino's face went blank, then flushed into a deep scarlet redder than Ho-Oh's tail feathers, all the way from her ears down into her neck. It's not everyday that she got called… that from a legendary Pokémon.

Misty and Brock were rolling on the ground, laughing their heads off. Pikachu fell off Ash's shoulder. By the way how none of them had stopped to breathe, CPR was likely to be a definite option soon.

Ash started to put up Protect shields all over him, knowing that her deep embarrassment would soon turn to flaming anger, and she will a hundred percent take it out on him.

Truth be told, a few moments later, Domino had finally came back to her senses and growled, flinging a dozen Psybeams at the Pallet boy. "I don't know HOW you arranged that, BUT YOU DID!"

Ho-Oh looked at the pair on the ground. " _Did I say something wrong?_ "

"No, just too bluntly." Misty choked out and fell back into laughter.

Brock poked the girl and the legendary. "Notice how she still hasn't denied it."

 **A/N: There you go, I made it up for not uploading yesterday by posting 2 chapters today. Enjoy! Lucario's battle was epic, but you are looking at a legendary battle right around the corner.**

 **Stay tuned for more adventure and drama. Oh and also Domino beating Ash up. Skillshipping for the win. *Squeal.**


	9. Cha 8: Kanto 8

"So shall we start?" Ash looked at the Rainbow Pokemon.

Ho-Oh nodded. " _Indeed, whenever you're ready, Chosen_."

Domino, Misty and Brock backed away, and the blonde girl sent out Ralts and Noah to put out Light Screens.

Pikachu hopped off his trainer's shoulder into a battle stance, while Ash released Butterfree, Pidgeot and Lucario.

The former two soared into the air, while the latter looked at Ash with a weird expression.

"What?"

" _I don't know. There's something on you with tremendous life force and power. You have three similar ones, but that special one attracts me somehow._ "

Ash blinked, having no idea what the Steel Type was talking about. Brock reacted the quickest to Lucario's statement. "Ash! He's talking about the Mega Stones. Maybe one of them can Mega Evolve Lucario.

Ho-Oh watched with interest as the boy took out four rocks. " _Chosen, what's a Mega Stone?_ "

Ash explained the concept while putting down Dexter, and Ho-Oh nodded. " _So this battle would be harder than I thought…_ "

Lucario picked up a blue Mega Stone, and his hand trembled as he sensed the immense amount of resonating energy within. " _Ash, activate your Keystone. Try to Mega Evolve me._ "

Ash nodded and the purple gem on his staff glowed, and so did the Mega Stone in Lucario's hand. The light crawled onto the Aura Pokemon, who began to grow larger. Reinforced steel plates lined his body, and his yellow fur along his chest puffed out into a porcupine-like state. Extra spikes grew out of his arms and feet, which turned red in the process.

Mega Lucario roared, and a giant aura ball formed in his palms in the blink of an eye. In the sky, Pidgeot saw Lucario's transformation, and began her own as well. Her entire body grew to twice her size, turning into Mega Pidgeot.

She chirped, " _Lucario! Congratulations on being the second ever Mega Evolved Pokemon._ "

Mega Lucario hadn't gotten this excited in a long time. A thousand years of age tend to calm the nerves, but this new evolution is way too addicting. He yelled back. " _Thanks Pidgeot!"_

Turning to Ho-Oh, he smirked fiercely, _"Ready to play, legendary?_ "

Ho-Oh spitted out a Fireball and began his takeoff. Lucario blocked the entire attack with a Protect and his shield still stayed intact. " _I'm loving this!_ "

Seeing Ho-Oh's ascent, he spun up a dozen aura spheres, and threw them on top of the great bird, stopping his climb. Another dozen shot out effortlessly, making Ho-Oh charge up a Fire Blast to clear the way.

At the same time, Mega Pidgeot rushed down with an Air Cutter, developed by her makeshift wings of air almost ten times her normal wing size, forcing the legendary down.

She used the momentum of her descent to use an Aerial Ace in the blink of an eye, and Ho-Oh countered the attack run with a Wing Attack. The two moves slammed together, and both were knocked out of balance for a second. Ho-Oh recovered first, showing his great power that developed through the centuries. A cage made of fire was constructed, and it began to close in an effort to trap Mega Pidgeot in.

The Bird Pokémon's tail swung in a special pattern, and her speed skyrocketed as she soared into the air using Tailwind, leaving the fire binding behind her.

A drop of sweat dripped down from Ho-Oh's forehead, which was evaporated a second later, but still showing the clear amount of stress the legendary is under in the last few minutes of exchanges between himself and the two Megas.

Dexter beeped, and released a wave of Fury Swipes at the now only slightly above ground Fire Type. He took the attack head on, and used the boost to dance out of the way of a Force Palm. The legendary returned the Porygon's favor with a Flamethrower.

Dexter absorbed the attack, and glowed red for a few seconds as the burn settles in.

"Copycat." The Virtual Pokemon returned the blast with a Flamethrower of his own, which washed harmlessly over Ho-Oh, who raised an eyebrow.

" _I have Flash Fire._ "

"I know." Dexter smirked, "Analyzing ability. Transferring copy. Copying finishes 33%, 66%, done. Flash Fire acquired."

Ho-Oh's jaw dropped as a red coating washed over the Porygon. " _Did you just… copy Flash Fire!? How… what… You are not normal man! Ash, how do you train your Pokémon? They are insane!"_

"Thank you. So are you."

Ho-Oh yelped and swerved in the air with a sharp U-turn that almost sent him into a stall, avoiding a series of Solarbeams sent at him by Butterfree.

The Bug Type then sent out a wave of Twineedle mixed with Pin Missiles, which was evaporated by Ho-Oh's Fireballs. However, that was just a distraction that paved the way for the Butterfly's next move.

Butterfree charged down with a Bug Buzz, following his other aerial teammate's Tailwind to boost his own speed, while she led the way with a Drill Peck.

On the other hand, Mega Lucario sent aura into his knees, grabbed Dexter off the ground and jumped for the Fire Legendary with a Force Palm and throwing the vector construct. The Porygon flew towards the phoenix with a Giga Impact.

Ho-Oh screeched at seeing the four super-powerful attack reach him. He sucked in a deep breath, knowing that this was probably the most dangerous situation he had been in for a long time.

He let his signature move that he had been saving- a Sacred Fire- at Butterfree, knowing that if it hit, the Bug Type would most likely be out of the game. Using the recoil, he managed to dodge through most of Mega Pidgeot's Drill Peck, only taking a glancing hit on the side.

Now turning to face the two ground-based Pokémon's attack, he released a giant Boomburst, sending both of Ash's Pokémon back, looking worse than they did before jumping, but also taking the full force of their two attacks.

Butterfree had just deflected part of the Fire attack launched before with a Silver Wind and using Quiver Dance to evade the rest. Ho-Oh panted, and he rushed for the opening to the skies that had been broken open by his Sacred Fire.

Mega Pidgeot flew next to him, and circled around, trying to think of a way to pressure him down so Mega Lucario and Dexter could join the battle as well. She soared on top of him, surprisingly being faster than a legendary in the current Mega-state, and used Sky Drop, hoping to force the Phoenix to descend.

Instead of doing so, Ho-Oh took the attack, but his wing pattern slurred, showing the damage it had done greatly on him. He released a beam of light that hit her, but didn't do anything.

Mega Pidgeot narrowed her eyes. " _Didn't know you know Future Sight?_ "

Ho-Oh smirked. " _That wasn't Future Sight._ "

A ball of light appeared beneath his chest, and Butterfree's Fury Cutter hit him on his breast. Both Flying Pokemon blinked, doubting the easiness of hitting a legendary like that. Mega Pidgeot came to her senses first. " _Run! He's charging a super powerful attack! That's why he's stationary_."

Ho-Oh smirked, " _Too late. By the way, that was a Mind Reader_." With that, the Rainbow Pokemon released his Guillotine that had just finished. The normally easy-to-dodge move, combined with Mind Reader, hit Mega Pidgeot dead on, which sent her tumbling down.

Ash and all his Pokémon winced. Halfway to the ground, she flashed, and turned from Mega back to normal.

"Crap! Pidgeot's out." Ash ran to the falling Bird Type and threw out his Pokéball, retracting her, knowing that a Pokémon would only turn back unwillingly when unconscious. The Mega Stone fell next to ball, and Ash picked it up along with a now full Pokéball. He caressed the red and white sphere for a second.

"Thank you Pidgeot for that amazing battle. Take a long rest, I'm so proud of you."

Ho-Oh circled through the air, panting heavily now, from taking so much damage in the past few exchanges, as well as releasing a move as powerful as Guillotine. Butterfree took the opportunity to release a wave of Sleep Powder.

A Flare Blitz lit up on the legendary Pokémon, burning off most of the cloud, with the rest not enough to harm him. Taking in another deep breath, he beat his powerful wings and rushed toward the last aerial Pokémon, boosted by both the Flare Blitz and a newly released Fire Spin and Flame Wheel.

Approaching him, Ho-Oh used Heat Wave, cutting off all forms of escape that even Butterfree's intricate flying pattern couldn't dodge. Sensing his prey's helplessness, he added to the attacks with a Heat Crash, taking full advantage of the momentum of his arrival and his heavy weight and aiming to take out the Butterfly Pokemon in this exchange.

Realizing that all routes had been cut off, Butterfree chose the next best option: Perish together. He ran at the legendary with a Megahorn, and the green energy drove itself deep into Ho-Oh's form, but his opponent's waves of attacks still overwhelmed him. Butterfree closed his eyes. " _Ash, I did my best._ "

Satisfied that the battlefield was finally turning to his favor, Ho-Oh soared below Butterfree and looked at the Pokémon on the ground, who, he assumed, had no way of attacking him.

Just then, he sensed that something was wrong. As he flew past Butterfree, the Bug Pokémon released a cloud of pollen right before he fell into a deep sleep, which Ho-Oh had dove into now that he had taken his attention off the unconscious Bug Type. The Pollen Puff blew up, with him being right in the center, sending him tumbling down uncontrollably into a stall.

Now feathers smoked, with his appearance looking like he had just crawled out of a swimming pool that he failed to evaporate as a Fire Type- basically like a drenched chicken- Ho-Oh muttered, " _I can't believe I couldn't dodge the attack of an unconscious Pokémon._ "

Ash lunged at the unconscious Butterfree, who is floating down due to his light weight, he sent out the respective Pokéball and returned him. Patting the ball, he calmly whispered, "Thank you buddy for trying your best. Sweet dreams!"

As Ho-Oh fell, the air around him became moist and he fell into a puddle of aura that had formed in midair, courtesy of Mega Lucario, now that the legendary had fallen into his range of attack thanks to Butterfree. Ho-Oh described the puddle as being a state of matter that was half liquid and half gaseous.

Shaking his head, he used Fly and attempted to climb back up. Suddenly a tuck at his now weakened wings kept him down. Mega Lucario, taking full advantage of the situation, had no intention of letting him back up.

The Steel Type smirked. " _I invented this move a long time ago with Aaron, but usually it sends me into unconsciousness before I can even execute it. But with being Mega, I think I can use this without passing out immediately. Taste this: Aura Storm!_ "

A huge amount of aura radiated out of Mega Lucario, and was compressed to a point of liquefying, showing its original dark blue. The literal wave twisted itself into a giant tornado like construct, which sucked in the Rainbow Pokemon and sending him hard into the air while being hit by multiple Aura Spheres that formed in the swirling storm.

Ho-Oh screamed something, which was muffled by the roaring winds created by the Aura Storm. Ash closed his eyes and used Aura Sight, and did a double take upon seeing the amount of Aura his Pokémon just poured out. There was no way Ash could have completed the move himself, as of right now. In fact, it was almost as large as the amount of aura used when they saved the Tree of Beginning in the last timeline.

"No wonder Lucario said he couldn't have done it without passing out in his normal state. Heck, even with the help of the Mega Stone's energy, that still will probably drain him."

Ho-Oh roared, and released a massive Sacred Fire attack that managed to blow a hole in the wall of the Storm, and he used a reflexive Bounce to escape the tug.

Mega Lucario sighed. " _There's still way too many loopholes in the attack. With the way Sir Aaron used to perform it, even legendaries can't break through the walls this easily._ "

He knelt down to the ground, supporting himself with his fists, panting heavily as the after effect of the severe drain settled in. Ho-Oh split himself into a dozen replica with Double Team. He then took the opportunity to rush in with a Flame Charge. Dexter had no idea which one was the real one. After popping three fake ones with Tri-Attack, the Porygon failed to stop the Rainbow Pokemon from hitting the unmoving Steel Type with a super effective Overheat, knocking him across the clearing. Mega Lucario lit up during his flight through the air of a perfect projectile curve, and crashed next to Ash as an unconscious Lucario.

Ash pat the Aura Pokémon's back and retrieved him. "Thank you Lucario. I am so proud, so is Sir Aaron."

Ho-Oh blocked Dexter's Body Slam with an Air Cutter after revealing his real self. The shockwave from the clash popped the rest of the Double Teams.

He looked at the vector image. " _Now that you're the only one left, let me try my last resort… No it's not Last Resort._ "

A dark orange flame glowed, and the Rainbow Pokémon's red wing feathers began to fade to white as the large phoenix used Burn Up, releasing all his Fire Type energy, disabling him from using anymore Fire type attacks for rest of the battle.

But it didn't matter, for that the energy released from the Burn Up hit Dexter straight on, crashing through his Light Screen in an instant, and knocking him off his feet, popping the projection.

When the dust from the attack cleared, it showed that the Porygon had disappeared. Remaining on the ground was a red Pokédex. Ash walked over to pick up the machine. "Nice job Dexter. I'll find you a charger as soon as possible."

Ho-Oh smirked triumphantly at him. " _Chosen, I have defeated all your Pokémon. I guess you lost this battle._ "

Ash shook his head. "You forgot the most deadly of them all." He pointed at a furry yellow mouse by his feet, who hadn't released a single attack in the barrage of exchanges.

Ho-Oh took a look at him, and huffed. " _Yeah right. I have defeated two Megas and a Pokémon created through time travel. This is just a mustard rat. What can go wrong?_ "

Ash froze. Domino froze. Brock and Misty froze. There was a pause, as if space-time just froze as well.

" _My f*cking sh*t!_ " Arceus knocked over the tower he was working on.

Sir Aaron looked at the deity. Instead of jumping in the air, celebrating his victory over the game, he looked to the Original One with pity. "Something horrible is about to happen, right?"

" _Hell yes… Ho-Oh is about to be crucified._ "

Brock and Misty, being the oldest of the group, reacted first. They dove into a cave on the side of Mt. Moon, not caring about the possibility of disturbing the sleeping Zubats, Golbats, and Crobats.

Ash slid next to Domino and put a Protect shield behind them. He wrapped his arms around her, who responded by jumping into his hug, and he looked into her amethyst eyes. Domino stared back at Ash's chocolate ones, and the feelings broke the barriers in an instant, and fireworks exploded between their eyes.

"Let's enjoy this last moment on this planet peacefully." She whispered and placed her head on his chest.

He spoke softly, "Is there anything you want to tell me before…"

Domino put a finger on Ash's lips, shushing him. She twirled her hair and said quietly, "I… Ash."

"What?" Ash asked with anticipation.

Domino bit her lip. "I said, I l…"

 _BAM!_

A loud boom echoed across the entire mountain, waking up countless bats who were too scared to venture outside to find out what was going on as a wave of powerful energy swept across the peak of Mt. Moon.

A man knocked on the Boss's door, which opened to reveal Giovanni sitting on a couch, reading a book. The man bowed. "Sir, there was an unnatural explosion of energy on Mt. Moon that destroyed the peak. It was suggested it was the result of a very powerful legendary."

Giovanni looked up from his book. "Then don't disturb it. Something that powerful is not something we want to tamper with."

Lorelei entered Lance's office room. "Champion! We have a situation! The peak of Mt. Moon just exploded into pieces. We think that it may be the handiwork of a legendary Pokémon."

Lance drew in a sharp breath. "Send in the Blackthorn Clan. Get a few dragon riders in to investigate it. Whatever legendary it was, do not disturb it, or we might have a situation on our hands that we don't want to deal with."

Jessie, James and Meowth gaped at the massive shockwave from Mt. Moon that was sweeping across the land, almost reaching their Meowth balloon.

"Holy crap that was close!" Jessie panted as she placed down the control of the balloon.

"We are definitely going to talk to Boss about getting us a plane." James continued.

Meowth pointed in the direction of the explosion. "Watever dat was, I bet it got somethin' ta do with Ash!"

Professor Oak looked up from his work at his PC. His energy detector was beeping in a red color, signaling an emergency. He rubbed his forehead. "What the heck did Ash do now?"

Lugia looked up from Shamouti Island. " _Hopefully this disturbance won't affect the weather. I can't afford leave this place to the three idiots alone again to go fix the damage._ "

Ho-Oh lied in a DEEP hole, surrounded by molten rock and plasma that lost its electrons due to the severity of the Pikachu's last attack.

His last thought was how thankful he was that Burn Up didn't erase his Flash Fire ability before passing out.

Ash began carefully, "Don't you think you overdid the Galvanic Burst?"

Pikachu glared at his trainer for a second and turn back to the huge bird. " _He called me a mustard rat. No one, not even Mewtwo, not even ARCEUS had nor DARED to do that!"_

Domino sighed. "I feel bad for him."

Ash took out a Pokéball and pointed it at Ho-Oh. "Believe me, we all do."

 **A/N: Battle with Ho-Oh. Pikachu shows us his mean side. Just to clarify, the extremely powerful move that I am intending to be an electric Hyper Beam variant is called Galvanic Burst.**

 **Let's pretend that also in the off times with Ash, Brock and Misty had successfully learned to use Aura to understand Pokémon. It's going to take way too much time to write about the process, and I doubt you guys want to read about it either.**

 **So there we go! Hope you enjoy the battle. Ho-Oh is a true beast. Well, Father of the Beasts. Please Review, I would appreciate it a lot.**


	10. Cha 9: Kanto 9

A giant Dragonite landed in front of the group. The Dragon Pokémon reached up to his back and carried two humans down.

"Professor Oak!? Mom!?" Ash stared at the two, "What are you doing here?"

"My detector sensed that a giant explosion happened on Mt. Moon, so I came to check on it."

"Why did you bring mom?" Ash walked up to his mother and gave her a hug.

"He figured something as major as this will involve you. Speaking of which, why did you not remind me?" Delia returned the hug, then gave her son a hard stare.

"Umm… Sorry mom, but I know there was no way you would have let me out of the house if you knew the danger I would be getting myself into." Ash said hesitantly.

She sighed. "Why does MY baby boy have to take on the responsibility of saving the world?"

Professor Oak came over and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Delia, think about it this way: Your son can be the hero of our world, and he will carry the fame of being the savior of all of us for a long time. You should be extremely proud."

Ash rubbed the back of his neck, "Actually I haven't saved anything yet. Mewtwo is the first thing, and Domino already asked Giovanni to treat Mewtwo with utmost respect when he finished being cloned. There's no way anything will happen until then."

Domino dove behind a rock. Ash looked at her, confused. After a while, she poked her head out carefully. "Did anything happen?"

Ash shook his head. "Why are you hiding behind a rock?"

"Anything can happen next to you, especially when you say, 'There's no way…'"

Delia sighed again. "Okay, Ashy, remind me. I want to see your future accomplishments, no matter how much of overdrive it might send me into. Sometimes, ignorance is bliss, but not here."

Ash led her over to a tree stump. "You might want to sit for this."

Delia waved him off. "I'm prepared. Three or four times of world-saving won't be enough to shock me too much.

Ash held up a blue hand and touched her. Delia stared at him for a while, then jumped up into the air so high that a Lopunny would have marveled at.

"ASHTON RED KETCHUM! YOU ARE GROUNDED FOR TWENTY-ONE YEARS!"

Ash sulked, knowing this would happen, and looked to Professor Oak for help. Oak sighed and went over to the raging woman. "Delia, let's sit. Be calm."

Delia glared at the sky. "Arceus, why can't you put this responsibility on someone else, like her!?" She pointed to the nearest person, who is Domino.

Ash chuckled. "Actually mom, she IS assigned to be my partner in this mission, or should I say, these missions."

Delia looked at the two, who are currently standing shoulder to shoulder. She let out a deep breath, "Treat my son well."

Domino blushed a bit, and pretended not to understand the hidden meaning. Or the hidden approval. Or that she liked both. "Yes ma'am. I will keep him out of trouble for sure."

"Aww! You're such a nice and polite girl, unlike my foolish son here."

Ash gagged for a second after hearing his mother calling the deadliest and most elite agent of Team Rocket, the girl who beat him up all the time, and the person who was voted 'Most Violent' at the Rocket Base 'nice' and 'polite'."

Indicated by his cough, Professor Oak had the same reaction, but of course, as the regional Professor, he could hide his emotions a lot better than the boy.

On the other hand, Domino giggled and bowed slightly. "Thank you, Mrs. Ketchum."

She held out her hand and said in a sweet voice. "I don't believe I have introduced myself. My name is Domino."

"What a pleasure to meet you. Please, just call me Delia. Mrs. Ketchum was what I call Ash's grandmother."

Domino covered her mouth and laughed lightly, performing the perfect manners that Ash did not think she had even heard of before.

"May we take a little walk and chat?"

"Of course darling, let's go."

Ash looked at Oak. "What the heck is happening?"

"She's sweet-talking your mother. Can't you see how much she is doing for you?" Professor Oak answered like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Uhhh, no?" Ash answered questioningly.

The old man sighed. "When Delia finds out about her true identity, she would freak if Domino hadn't befriended her by then. Your relationship would be a lot rockier if she constantly interferes."

"But… we're NOT in a relationship!" Ash cried.

Professor Oak shook his head. "You'll understand when you grow up."

"I'm eighteen and you know it!"

Oak smirked. "I demand written proof."

"Arceus help me!"

"I hate landing in forests!" Meowth shouted as the hot air balloon descended slowly. "It's so hard ta find a clearing."

"From what I have read, this is where Rhydon live." Jessie replied. "Keep a lookout. This is their most common breeding grounds."

"I think I see one." James handed over his binoculars, "Take a look."

Jessie and Meowth both put one eye over the device. "Wait, is dat a gray Rhydon?"

"Yep, a shiny Rhydon. Now I know why we get blown away when we bother the twerps. They basically infect us with their bad luck."

The Meowth Balloon landed on the ground stably. "And now the luck is pouring in."

Jessie walked over to the Drill Pokémon, who growled slightly.

"Come on boy, I'm not going to hurt you. Here's a berry." She held out her hand, with a few Oran Berries sitting in her palm.

The Rhydon walked over. He sniffed her hand suspiciously, took one and then immediately hopped back. As he chewed, he looked at Jessie, who hadn't moved a muscle. After he finished the first one, he returned and got another one from her hand, this time staying in place.

Like that, he finished the rest of the berry. Jessie reached over and pet him slightly, and the Ground Type didn't object. She asked in a quiet voice, "Hey little guy. Do you want to come with me? I'll train you to become extremely strong and let you battle against other Pokémon."

The Rhydon barked, and Meowth came over. "He said that he wants a traditional battle to defeat him first."

The Rhydon stared at Meowth, who laughed, "Yes, I know how ta talk ta humans."

Jessie threw out Arbok, who landed in front of the challenging Pokémon.

Rhydon looked at him. " _Why did your trainer send you out? I have a type advantage over you_."

The Cobra Pokémon chuckled. " _We have a friend who taught us over the years that type advantage doesn't mean jack. He has a Pikachu who can electrocute Ground types._ "

Rhydon nodded, and began the battle with a Drill Run. Arbok burst into twelve different Double Teams of herself, and the one in front of Rhydon popped.

All of the Double Teams began to Glare at him, making him more stunned than the move would usually do with one attacker.

Using his moment of weakness, Arbok sprang forward to release a Spit Up on him, knocking him back. Due to extra paralysis, Rhydon still wasn't able to do anything, allowing the snake to hit him again with the former move, this time doing double the previous damage, knocking the Pokémon out in a short and powerful combo.

James looked to Meowth. "When did she get so good?"

Meowth shrugged. "Dunno know, but we might actually have a chance at Leagues."

Another huge Dragonite landed next to the previous one. The latter one looked to the former one as if challenging for dominance, and then did a double take at seeing himself smaller than Oak's.

Lance jumped down from his faithful Pokémon's back and landed in a crouch. He nodded to the Professor. "Professor Oak, I see that you are already here. Any ideas what's going on?"

Oak nodded back, and pointed at Ash. "I think he can explain it better. He's one of my trainers."

Lance turned his attention to the boy. "Hello Ash, I am Lance, the current champion of Kanto."

Ash stuck out his hand, slightly glowing blue. "Nice to meet you, Lance."

The champion was a little surprised and disappointed at seeing the boy's lack of reaction. Normally beginners would be thrilled to meet him. Nevertheless, he shook hands with the boy.

Ash looked at him with anticipation, but nothing happened. He shrugged and turned to Oak. "I guess we weren't familiar enough."

Lance steered the conversation that he felt like was slipping out of his control back on topic. "So Ash, can you tell me what happened?"

Ash pointed at his starter. "Well, once upon a time, there was a Pikachu…"

"A mere Pikachu can do all of that?" Lance glanced at the yellow starter suspiciously. Ash and co. froze. Professor Oak froze.

" _NONONO!_ " Ho-Oh burst out of his Pokéball. " _You foolish mortal! How can you possibly be the head of this land!? Do you want Mt. Moon to be completely destroyed!?_ "

Lance stared. "Is that a Ho-Oh? And why does he looked like he wants to eat me alive?"

Pikachu waved a paw. " _I'm too lazy to do Galvanic Burst again. Speaking of which, I need something that can give me immense energy after a Galvanic Burst. Ash, can you re-engineer a Thunderstone?_ "

"We'll try that later."

"You can understand him?" Lance felt that the situation had completely slipped out of his grasp.

Oak sighed and placed a hand on Lance's shoulder. "Lance, I can assure you that Ash can be trusted and you should take his word."

Lance looked at the Professor, licked his lips, then back at Ash. "Fine. I guess this situation will go under the " **Unexplained Incident** " files.

Laughing sounded behind them, and Delia and Domino strolled back.

"DOMINO!?"

She looked at the Dragon Trainer. "Sup champ?"

"I knew it! This boy is scheming with Team Rocket, who caused this explosion and captured Ho-Oh, which is why he was so angry!" Lance ranted, turning to face Ash. "Do you know what the heck you are doing!? Team Rocket is an abusive group aiming to use and manipulate Pokémon for their own profit. Teaming with them is a crime of abuse!"

He continued and turned back to Domino. "The League doesn't want to be at war with you just yet, so release Ho-Oh, and get out of here in the next minute!"

Domino rolled her eyes, and went next to Ash, sitting down. "I didn't do this. Team Rocket didn't either. I'm just a witness."

Lance glare at her. "Yeah, sure, okay. You still have forty seconds."

"Oh, while you're here, Lance, tell Goodshow that I will be participating in this year's League, so have them fix a place for me."

"You are NOT coming TO INDIGO PLATEAU to mess up the SINGLE BIGGEST EVENT OF THE YEAR! Team Rocket hasn't taken over Kanto yet, and NEVER will!"

Professor Oak placed his hand on the champion's shoulder. "Lance, calm down, let her do the event. Also, she didn't participate in the incident. I know Pikachu. He's insane. In fact, I gave it to Ash."

Lance shook his head. "No, the evidence is all here. Team Rocket is using the legendary captured to later go to Leagues and make a mockery of our rules."

Professor Oak gave him a hard stare and began in a voice none of them had ever heard him use before. "LANCE, as the former retired champion of the land and current regional Professor, I demand you to allow the girl to participate in the League and drop all investigation with them. Do you understand me?"

Lance was taken back by the command. "Uhhh…"

"Or I don't mind having a battle with you. You became champion after I retired voluntarily, since no one beat me in those twenty years. I don't mind testing out how good the current one is."

Lance drew in a sharp breath. He knew that seven years ago, when he became champion, the process was a lot simpler. Agatha had substituted in as champion after Oak left, and there were only three elites. So, instead of having to defeat four elite level trainers and one champion level master, he only needed to beat three elite level to win champion.

Even though he was the best at his time and even until now, he knew deep down that if Oak hadn't retired and his other elite didn't have left with him, the best he would have done was beating Agatha.

Lance sighed. "How's Fuji, Professor?"

"I lost track of him when he left."

"Didn't he leave with you?"

"No. His daughter passed away, and he decided that he wasn't fit in his mentally damaged state to continue the job as the head of the Elite Four. He went on to pursue a career in cloning. The last time I heard from him was during his doctorate graduation at Pokémon Tech Institute.

Lance looked at Domino and threatened, "You may attend the Leagues, but don't you dare mess this event up, or we will strain our resources to go to the ends of this world to arrest you."

He then turned to Ash. "Do not be involved with Team Rocket affairs. If I hear you with any inappropriate misconducts of said sorts, I will come and personally tend to it. Is that clear?"

Ho-Oh roared his disapproval at Lance's tone, who stepped back cautiously. His Dragonite picked him up and put his on his back. "Professor. If anything with Team Rocket intimidates the completion of Leagues this year, you will have at least half of the responsibility."

With that said, Dragonite took off with a beat of his strong wings into the air, and the crew watched him leave.

Professor shook his head. "That man still has the fiery temper like I first met him. You would have think the years could have calmed him down."

"Wait Fuji? As in Dr. Fuji?" Domino recalled the name suddenly. "I think I know a Dr. Fuji, but there's no way they're the same person."

Oak looked to her curiously. "Where did you hear the name?"

"Actually, he's the head scientist in charge of the Mewtwo affair."

The Professor nodded. "It does make sense. He went into cloning. Fuji wished to clone his dead daughter using her cells."

"Yes. Dr. Fuji had repeatedly mentioned the name, 'Anna', in his weekly reports as a clone along with the Kanto starters and Mewtwo."

"Can I have his phone number Domino?"

"Yep. Let me just check." Domino took out her phone and gave Oak the number.

"There's one. Finally!" Jessie pointed in front of her. Behind a tree hid a Nidoran, who was scratching her ear with her rear leg, having no idea that she became a target.

James let out his Weezing. "This one is mine. Buddy, use Smokescreen."

The Poison Gas Pokémon complied, since Sludge Bomb won't work due to her being a Poison Type as well.

The Smokescreen hit, alerting the Poison Pin Pokémon that someone was attacking her, but was blinding her as well.

Her attacker yelled something that she didn't catch, but a purple light lit up on her body. Nidoran used Toxic Spikes to put down a layer of the sharp weapon around her to avoid being surprised before her sight came back.

She never sensed the Levitating Pokémon approached her until a wave of trembling energy reached her. Then a force that felt like being slammed by a truck hit her as Weezing Exploded, knocking her down with barely any health left over. Then, the purple Destiny Bond triggered, sucking her last strip of energy as well. Her last image was a Pokéball being flung at her, before descending into unconsciousness.

The four entered the Mt. Moon cave entrance after Oak and Delia left in search of Brock's Bat Pokémon.

Ash led the way, with Domino by his side. Misty walk into the middle, with Brock bringing up the rear. Ash released Ho-Oh, who said he had to go take care of some duties in Johto, after the Lance ideal. The Rainbow Pokémon gave an apology to Pikachu for stating false exclamations before testing out the truth, which Pikachu accepted. Ho-Oh asked his trainer to call him upon any time he needed help, and he'll sense it if Ash just hit the Pokéball button.

Domino poked the boy next to her and whispered playfully, "Hey Ash, your mom told me to remind you to change into clear underwear tonight."

Ash facepalmed and almost walked into a protruding rock from the ceiling, and Domino giggled. "And also tomorrow night, and the night after, and…"

Ash threw his hand up exasperatedly. "Okay, okay, you got something to blackmail me with!"

"Too bad you can't find anything with me." Domino taunted.

Ash raised an eyebrow. "Sounds like you're challenging me. Consider it accepted."

She sniggered, and pressed herself against him for a second, using 'tight space' as an excuse for her action, and blew into his ear. "I'll like to see you try, Ashy."

'Ashy' narrowed his eyes. "Don't call me that."

"Remember to change into clean underwear."

"Shut up. You want to help me?"

Misty bumped into the abruptly stopped girl, and tap her on the shoulder to make sure everything was right, since she didn't catch any of the previous conversation.

If Ho-Oh was still around the peak of Mt. Moon, he would hear a voice echoing out of the cave, yelling: "ASH KETCHUM! YOU PERVERT!"

James sneaked in front of the giant house and pressed himself down behind the bushes as the scanning detector sent a red line that spun just above his head. "I'm so glad I still remember all of the elaborate contraptions Mom put around here."

"Why can't we just land with the balloon?" Jessie asked behind him, crouching as well.

"If we sent in the balloon, it would have gotten shot down by the lasers outside of the island." James looked around, and waved for the other two to follow him, now that the coast was clear.

"I can't believe ur parents not only build a YUGE doghouse for da Growlithe, but also placed guns to protect him!"

Jessie looked to him. "Why can't we just walk into there, like you own the place, because, well, you do!? Heck, why did you join Team Rocket with your being this rich."

James shushed her. "Remember Jessiebelle? That answers both questions. Who the crap wants to be with a control-freak like her? Actually, I take 'control-freak' back. She's just a straight-on freak."

James put a key into the house lock, twisted the knob and entered. "Thank Arceus only the outside is ridiculously protected."

A orange and black ball of fur came rushing out of a room and looked at the three suspiciously. After sniffing the air for a couple of seconds, the Growlithe recognized the familiar scent and bounced into his owner's grasp.

"Aww… Growlie, I missed you too," James pet the Puppy Pokémon.

Jessie raised an eyebrow. "Really? Growlie the Growlithe? You couldn't get any more creative than that?"

James placed a look of fake hurt on his face. "I was two. And I'm not changing it now. It'll just confuse him."

Turning back to his loyal friend, he held out a Pokéball. "Growlie, I can't stay for too long, but I can offer you a chance to come with me, battle for me and be with me. I miss you."

Growlie looked at James, and back at the ball. He waggled his tail excited in response of the idea, and pushed the red and white device.

James and Jessie high-fived, while Meowth went to pick up the ball.

"Mission complete!"

This time, Brock led the way in their running for their lives. In his hand, he clutched a full Pokéball. He leapt out of the cave, with Misty following him. Ash and Domino jumped out at the same time, one shooting out a bunch of Aura Spheres behind him and the other a series of Psybeams.

Rolling away from the cave, Ash yelled, "Brock! Seal the hole!"

Brock duly complied by sending out Steelix and Geodude. "Geodude, Rock Slide! Steelix, Earthquake."

Geodude produced rocks from who-knows-where and threw them into the cave. Steelix slapped his tail onto the top of the entrance and used his commanded move, making the top of the rock wall cave in, successfully blocking off the access.

They panted, and each found a place to collapse in.

"That was freaking closer than the first time."

Brock held out his Pokéball. "At least we got Zubat. Can you remind him, Ash?"

"Let's see." Ash went over to the released Zubat and touched him. Lights grew out of him, and soon Zubat was stretched to four times his original size, and a giant Crobat appeared.

"So, this is what happened… Man, we should really make a recording of this speech!"

"Hey Boss!" Domino said to the other end of her phone.

"Domino. How's the saving-world mission going?"

"It's fine. Nothing too major had happened, except almost getting blown up by Pikachu and then an hour later nearly murdered by a few hundred Bat Pokémon."

"But anyways, that's not the point. I just spoke to Professor Oak, who informed me that his head Elite Four's name was Fuji, as in Dr. Fuji from our Mewtwo Project."

Giovanni nodded. "I know."

Domino's jaw dropped. "What?"

"I said 'I know.'"

"Then why are you still allowing him to work for us? How do you know he's not a spy?"

Giovanni chuckled. "You forgot our capabilities Domino. Remember that Team Rocket is a dominator of not only the criminal world. Fuji helps with the scientific and technological field. Also since we are the only power great enough to bribe him with what he really desires- a chance and ability to revive his daughter by cloning- he wouldn't betray us.

"And plus, he signed a contract with us at the beginning to not reveal any secrets as long as he wasn't involved in any criminal activities. Remember that so-called good guys always keep their words. It's part of their honor system that I don't get."

"Anyways, back to you," Giovanni smirked, "How's your relationship going with Mr. Ketchum?"

 **A/N: Team Rocket got new Pokémon. Domino received her clearance into the League. Brock got Crobat, and the crew trained. Basically this is a filler type chapter that clear up stuff and hopefully can make the future smoother. It's kind of boring, but necessary, so I tried to fill it with humor and jokes, and of course, Skillshipping romance. Those who had read my past chapters know that I love ending a chapter with some sort of Skillshipping.**

 **Please review. It's always appreciated.**


	11. Cha 10: Kanto 10

A pink light blinked next to the blonde girl. Domino looked up from experimenting with Zorua's changing forms at her.

"Everything fixed at the Tree?"

Mew nodded. " _It took a while, but the white blood cells are fully sealed. It put the Regi's out of energy for a quite while though. Anything interesting happened?_ "

Domino placed her hand on her chin. "Let's see. Ash captured Ho-Oh, and Pikachu blew up the peak of Mt. Moon in the process.

" _So nothing too special?_ "

"Nope."

Zorua changed into a Fearow and tried to soar into the air, but she ended up flipping upside down in the process. Domino's Porygon came over. "Fly works by Bernoulli's Principle. Air passes through your wings, and due to the curvature of the wing and its tendency to pass through up and down at the same time, the lower branch of air pressure increases more than the top, which forces the user up."

She stared at the Virtual Pokémon, who continued. "So basically, don't aim straight upwards. You need to start by inviting the wind in, since you're still a beginner to this process."

The Dark type thought for a while. " _So maybe I can start with a run, and then pushes through the wind?_ "

"Yes, that will work. We should start your training by first having you glide through the air to get the feel of the wind down. I'll ask Ash's Pidgeot to help. She can probably explain it better."

Ralts was sitting with Domino and Mew.

" _So this is all fake?_ " The Feeling Pokémon asked the legendary.

" _Yes. All this is will just be a mental simulation. You ready?_ "

The other two nodded, and Mew pulse out a wave of psychic. " _Psymulation!_ "

Ralts and Domino fell into a world unclear to them. They looked around, and Mew appeared in front of the darkness. She waved her tail around, and the darkness was replaced by a grass field.

" _So the primary purpose of this game is to destroy the others' flag without yours being destroyed. Anything is allowed. Like shields._ "

Three flags appeared, and lines were drawn between them to form an equilateral triangle about a hundred feet on each side.

" _On three! Two! One! GO!_ "

The three psychics burst into a range of motion.

"Ash, you have one new message." Ash looked at his Pokédex and sent out Pidgeot.

"Zorua needs some help with flying. Can you go help her?"

Pidgeot nodded, and flew over. " _Sup guys! What do you need?_ "

"We are getting Zorua used to the air by having her glide down from… maybe a tree. Can you lift her up?"

The Bird Pokémon shook her head. " _That's not how you learn to fly. Tie a string to me, and I'll drag you around in the sky. Now THAT's how you get used to the air._ "

Zorua stared at her doubtfully. " _I really don't think that's a good idea._ "

" _That's how I learned it. C'mon, let's go. There are of course safer ways, but do you want to have Domino wait that long for you to get strong?_ "

Zorua looked up with a look of fire, at the mention of her owner's expectations. " _When you put it like that… let's do this! I will NOT be the one holding the team back._ "

"Good." Noah produced a rope from nowhere, and tied one end to the large bird and the other end to the transformed Dark type, this time into a Pidgeot.

With a beat of her wings, Pidgeot took off, dragging a screaming Zorua. " _SLOW DOWN!"_

Pidgeot didn't comply with the command. Instead, she began her teaching. " _Use your wings, stick them out and manipulate my tailwind. You always want to take off into the wind and fly into it as well. It might slow you down, but it will make you rise higher. If the wind is behind you, it may make you faster, but it'll press you down._ "

Zorua struggled to open her wings against the pressure of the fast-moving air around her. But when her wings did open, she re-balanced from the increased moment of inertia. She aimed to hit the tailwind from Pidgeot blowing against her face. " _Okay, this feels a bit weird, but I think I got this part down_."

" _Good. Next part is turns…_ "

Spiritomb floated over to Ash's training area. " _How are you doing, Mister Ketchem?_ "

"Nothing much, just finishing Pikachu's Galvanic Burst move."

" _The move that obliterated Mt. Moon? That's not finished!?_ " Spiritomb gaped at the boy.

"Far from it. First all, Pikachu needs to learn how to release it as a beam of condense energy, not spread out like that. It may have looked bad, but Ho-Oh was hit only by a fragment of the energy, taking around the damage of a Hyper Beam, even though he's at the center of the attack."

Dexter nodded. "With the amount of energy Pikachu used, and it was a lot since he almost burned out his entire electric reservoir- speaking of which, we need to get the control down as well- the attack should have been at least the power of a V-Create at the center."

Pikachu grumbled. " _And my cheeks still hurt from releasing that much energy._ "

"That's normal. It's like exercising without stretching enough, or working out very hard after a long time of not."

Ash added, "Or having too much ketchup."

Pikachu glared at him. " _Don't you dare put ketchup into this._ "

"Don't I dare put ketchup? Okay… I'll ask Brock to not give you the extra. I was going to reward for performing so well…"

This brought Pikachu's attention back, and withdrawing the Thunderbolt he had just sent out at Ash. " _... What I meant was, you're a great trainer Ash._ "

Ash pointed at a hologram Dexter produced of the intricate system of Galvanic Burst. "Nice save, now back to this. When your electric energy pulse out, how can the transition between Magnetic and electric go faster?"

Dexter highlighted a part of the blueprint. "We could set up a profuse amount of positive charge at the base near Pikachu to extract the negative charges in the world. The energy clashing through would radiate as waves, which could be easily transformed into electromagnetic waves, which is heat, then turned to lightning using Faraday's Law."

Ash nodded as he somehow understood that. "But it will take a while to charge up the base, and transforming it could be a problem."

Pikachu shook his head. " _There's no problem with forming the basic positive sphere. Turning heat into lightning will be hard though._ "

"Not necessarily. The lightning in beam form travels out as particles, not waves. The heat will energized the electrons to an extreme point, and protons to become plasma. The heat doesn't have to be converted, and can't be, as dictated by the First Law of Thermodynamics. But we could use it to focus the beam to become exceedingly powerful, even though not wide-ranged."

"Which was the original goal anyways."

"It can even combine the three energy balls that weren't previously compressed because of similar charges repelling."

" _The next part is just experimentation and practice._ "

Spiritomb looked at the three whom he just deemed insane, and floated off to find Lucario.

Pidgeot landed gracefully onto the clearing. Behind her, Zorua hit the ground with a thud, and the unattached rope glided down from the air.

Before they landed, Zorua had learned the basics of aero-maneuver, and Pidgeot decided to have her try landing after unhooking the rope.

" _That's not bad for your first time in the air. Not bad at all_."

Zorua looked at her with anticipation. " _Can we do that again? That was so much fun!_ "

Pidgeot chuckled. " _I recall somebody screaming for their life when I first took off._ "

Zorua switched from Pidgeot to a Swellow. " _The torture was kind of pleasant once I got used to the rush_."

The Bird Pokémon looked at her weirdly. " _Please don't repeat that._ "

Brock was dumping some ingredients into the pot when Misty walked over and sat next to him.

"So Ash's coming to my gym after this week's training course, and I still have no idea how to beat him."

Brock finished stirring the soup and placed its cover on and took off his mitt. "I know the feeling. He basically tore through my gym."

Misty pulled out her mallet and leaned on it, eyes spinning thoughtfully. "The only idea I have was for Pikachu, using the gym Lanturn, since it's immune to electric attacks with its Lightningrod."

Brock counted on his fingers. "At this point, Ash has Pikachu, Ho-Oh, Butterfree, Pidgeot who can Mega, and Lucario who can Mega."

Misty pointed out, "Don't forget Dexter."

"Yep. I always skip out on him since I don't need to prepare food for him."

Misty placed a hand on her chin. "What to do, what to do?"

"Maybe Ho-Oh can be countered with a Water Pokémon who can just regenerate in the pool, and wear him down that way?"

"Have you seen his battle with Ash? It took two Megas and two others, AND Pikachu's insane attack to take him out." Misty shot him a look. "And plus, he's a Fire Legendary. Water counters him, but when fire gets too strong, he can just evaporate everything… like the pool."

Brock coughed. "Maybe you need to pay Lorelei a visit."

Misty nodded. "Exactly what I'm going to do. Mega Lucario is also insane. He can basically use aura to punch out everything and revert physics. I don't think Ash is using Pidgeot and Ho-Oh though, since they're too big for the gym. "

"Of course, at the end of the day, he could always just blow a hole through the gym roof, like he did with mine." Brock winced at the thought of his destroyed gym.

"If he does that to mine, his head will be introduced to my mallet." Misty growled. "Butterfree is hard, but not impossible like the two before. She's Bug and Flying, so I'm probably going with a Water and Rock Type. I miss my Kabutops."

Brock turned his attention back to the food. He started to roll seaweed, beginning the process of making sushi. "Dexter is kind of unpredictable, so I suggest a balanced Pokémon."

"I asked Noah ways to fight a Porygon, and his response was to attack rapidly and furiously." Misty shook her head. "Plus, balance and logic never work around Ash. I think I'm going full force with a powerhouse if I am facing off the Porygon."

" _That's basically the concept behind the move."_ Lucario finished explaining to Spiritomb about Aura Storm.

" _So, do you think it'll work with the Shadow energy? I know that it's a lot lighter than aura, but it's more dark and manipulative, so the effect can be the same._ "

Lucario nodded. " _So you can make smaller versions of my Aura Storm without sucking up all your energy in one go. I would suggest condensing the energy into Shadow Balls to provide a more physical feel to the attack, so the opponent can't just somehow faze through or smash through._ "

Domino rolled on the ground to dodge an attack made by Mew. Catching sight of Ralts, who was running toward her flag while charging up a huge Psybeam, the reason she didn't just teleport, the girl teleported behind her and stopped her attack with a Psyshock. The charging pink ball blew into pieces from Domino's attack, the explosion blowing both the owner and her trainer back.

Mew blinked to the Feeling Pokémon's flag after her being stun. She fired a Genesis Supernova, wiping clear the entire area of Light Screens and, of course, the flag.

Ralts cried out. " _No fair! You can't just use a move you used to basically help Arceus create the planet._ "

Mew looked at her and stuck out her tongue. " _This three-way battle had went on for over four hours. It has to end somehow!_ "

Ralts looked at her trainer, their resonating psychic communicating secretly, and both charged at the recovering Mew. Domino launched a Psystrike, countered by Mew's shield, stopping both for a second. In this time, Ralts teleported next to Mew's flag and flung a bunch of Psycho Cuts at Mew's shields, blowing through half of them. She had long learned Ash's technique for countering shields.

Mew took in a deep breath and yelled, " _Nooo!_ " A giant pink ball flashed out toward Ralts, who was hit. At the same time, Domino was blew back unexpectedly.

"WHAT!?"

" _That was a Synchronize, my trainer!_ " Mew smirked and used the second of their immobilization to fire a Prismatic Laser at Ralts which froze him from mining, and used Genesis Supernova again to destroy Domino's defenses and flag.

" _Yay, I won! Raw power for the win!_ " Mew flew into the air and did a happy dance.

" _What the heck was that!? I could have totally gotten to your flag before you finished charging your signature move. It just froze me in space._ "

" _That was called Prismatic Laser. I invented the move after seeing Palkia's Spacial Rend._ "

The Rocket trio landed in front of their headquarters. They soon made it to Giovanni's office. Preparing to knock on the door, James began, "We are here as ordered, Boss."

Before his hand touched the surface, the entrance opened automatically. "Come in."

They came in and saluted him. Giovanni pointed to three seats.

"I just received a call from Dr. Fuji. Mewtwo had just finished being cloned, and will be awaken shortly. You three are the first to receive notice. Not even Domino had been notified. I asked him to treat the Genetic Pokémon with care, but no one associated with scientific field really know about the legendary, or know how to care for a Pokémon."

Giovanni stopped and looked at them seriously. "Your job is to go to New Island and make sure Mewtwo is happy. I am sending you three instead of my elites because you have been around Mister Ketchum frequently, and are aware of his gentle approach to Pokémon. In addition, you also know how bad this could turn out if Mewtwo turns on us."

He continued, "If you can somehow convince Mewtwo to stay with us, you three will be promoted to beginner admins, and you will fully step into the ranks of high level Rockets, and no longer be an expendable grunt or simple agent. Prove to me you are not as bad as last time."

The Rocket Trio looked at each other blankly, shocked that the Boss would give them a mission as important and serious as this one.

"I expect no failure. Now go!"

"Hey Lorelei." Misty spoke into her phone.

"Hi Misty! It's been a while since your qualification battle. How's everything?"

"Fantastic. I love this gym leader position. So much more stuff opens to you."

Lorelei chuckled on the other end. "Just wait until you get to Elite Four. I heard Agatha is considering retiring, and Lance is moving out of his Elite spot to become a full time Champion."

"Wait, really?"

"Nothing is clear at this point though. They only mentioned it a few times at max. So, what do you need?"

Misty brought her focus back to the situation at hand. "Currently, I know a trainer coming to Cerulean Gym to get the Cascade Badge. He's a great friend of mine, absolutely great friend, and also an extremely good trainer. He's never participated in Leagues… yet, but trust me, he's an Elite level trainer."

"I want to give him a challenge at my gym, but I can't seem to find anything that can handle the power of his Pokémon, so I called to borrow a few from you."

Lorelei nodded. "So basically like what you did for your qual battle against Bruno."

"Yes. I'm thinking a three Pokémon battle with this guy, so I'll need Cloyster, Lapras and Dewgong.

"Got it. When do you want them?"

"If you can send them to me by Sunday noon, that'll be great."

"You got it Mist." Lorelei hung up.

Misty dialed another number. "Hey Lance. Can I borrow your Gyarados for a battle?"

"Sure, thing, can you come to the Plateau to pick it up?"

"No problem. I'll be there in a day." Misty turned flip off her phone and turned to Brock. "You want to come to Indigo Plateau with me? Those two are probably going to stay up here and train until Saturday."

Brock nodded. "Okay. Hopefully they wouldn't starve. But how are we going to get there in two days without alerting Ash that he would be fighting Pokémon from the Elite and Champion?"

"Remember? Cerulean, as well as all the other major cities with an active gym, had installed a train system to Indigo Plateau so that in cases of emergency, gym leaders can unite for a meeting fast enough. Pewter didn't do it yet because of funding."

Looking at Ash, she remarked, "Potentially fighting two Megas, which aren't even a thing yet at League, a legendary Pokémon and whatever the heck Pikachu is, most definitely classifies as an emergency."

Gary took out his beeping Pokédex and flipped it open. Out came pictures of a giant creature that looked like a modified Lucario. At the bottom, the caption was: Mega Lucario. Gary sighed. "Only he can encounter something this ridiculous."

Shaking his head, he turned back to the business at hand. He shook Violet's hand, winking. "Thank you for such a wonderful battle Miss Violet."

Violet blushed and passed the Cascade badge over, hand lingering over Gary's longer than needed.

Gary continued. "Would you like to talk about this battle with me over some lunch at the Springdale Restaurant?"

Violet smiled. "That'll be lovely."

Behind her was a bunch of jealous glances from Gary's cheerleaders, and giggles from the other two Sensational Sisters.

Lucario, Ash, Dexter, Domino, Noah and Mew stood solemnly in front of Pikachu, who was standing next to an indimidating-looking machine with twelve holes. "Are you sure about this, Pikachu?"

The starter nodded. " _I need to get more powerful. I'm an expert in electricity, and more potent than a Raichu, but not a legendary like Zapdos. I need to be able to beat a legendary by myself. I need to protect you, Ash!_ "

Ash caressed his yellow mouse gently. "Thank you so much, Pikachu."

Dexter floated a device with a dozen Thunderstones over. "Remember, you only need to change your cheek pouch cells. They're the only thing producing electricity in any of your species."

Mew did a double take at the amount of elemental stones. " _He needs this much?_ "

Noah confirmed the amount. "Yes. Pikachu's current pouch cells are distinctively mutated somewhere in the last timeline to create a special kind of electricity that can naturally gather electromagnetic energy. That's how he can electrocute Ground Types and how he powers Galvanic Burst. Because of this change, we need a lot more Thunderstones."

Dexter cleared his throat. "Everyone cleared on their tasks?"

They all nodded. Dexter stabilized the device on the ground. "Whenever you're ready Pikachu."

The furry mouse bent its ears backwards to signal his nervousness, then walk bravely forward and placed his nose on the technology.

All twelve elemental stones began to shine, and a beam of intense lightning dripped down a tube in the middle to enter Pikachu's body.

He cried out in pain, and everyone present sent out their special energy. Domino and Mew had pink spheres before them that had a pink line of psychic attached into the electric mouse. Ash and Lucario had their palms lighted up in blue aura and pressed onto Pikachu's back. The two Porygon had wires that were trembling with power connected into his ears.

A wave of different energies rushed into Pikachu's body. The psychic formed a shield around the entrance of the Thunderstone and a man-made wire to direct it to the pouch specifically, and not anywhere else. The two Porygon had their power surrounding the pouch area so that when the elemental energy change Pikachu's electricity generators, it wouldn't seek to other parts.

The process went smoothly for a while, then the extreme capacity of TWELVE Thunderstones began to wear them down. Domino and the two Porygon were the first to request a break. Ash and Lucario stepped into Dexter and Noah's job, while Mew extended her immense power to secure the elemental energy from spreading.

Never in a million years did she thought she would have to battle something more electric than Zekrom, and it wasn't even alive!

After a while, Domino joined in with a faltering Ash. The process was about half done, and the six were starting to go deaf from Pikachu's screams.

At least all of his electricity is all trapped in the pouches so he couldn't electrocute them.

Dexter and Noah substituted in for Ash and Domino after getting themselves recharged at a backup capacitor. Ash panted and fell backwards. "This is almost as tiring as reviving Mew's Tree."

Domino placed her head carelessly on Ash's shoulder, too tired to care. "I imagine that Pikachu can probably electrocute, well, Groudon after this. Can he even count as an Electric type anymore?"

Ash shook his head, careful not to bump the girl snuggled up to him. "Probably not. What's a good type name? The Power type, or maybe the Static type."

After a while, Lucario backed down from having his aura drained. " _We really should have tried this after we made the Aura Reservoir._ "

Ash held out a hand and pulled Domino up. "Guess it's our turn again."

He joined the Porygon, while Domino sent out a pulse to help out her pink starter, or whatever you want to call having a legendary as your first official pokémon. Even Mew was panting heavily and sweating profusely. She pat her. "There's no way we could have done this without you Mew."

Mew pointed her tail at her struggling barrier, and said seriously. " _This is harder than when I have to help Arceus create Zekrom, and trust me, that idiot was a piece of work! Of course, Dad took the blunt of the force._ "

The barrier stabilized after Domino joined in, but Ash's side was beginning to crumble. Lucario joined in after using Meditate for a while, and saved the collapsing container.

" _Holy crap, that was close!_ "

Dexter beeped. "It's almost done. Eleven of the twelve stones have run out. Just a little longer."

The next fifteen minutes to the six were worse than a pregnant woman in labor. ( **A/N: Or at least I assume.** ) Pikachu had long passed out from the pain, which spoke for itself. Puddles of sweat formed under the four living beings, while Dexter and Noah uncontrollably changed into different colors, showing their lack of restraint on their power and systems right now.

Domino, with the agony flowing in after being almost stripped of all her psychic energy, began to return to her violent state present only in the Rocket headquarters and started to swear out curse words that would even put Donald Trump to shame.

Never mind, that's worse than the Rocket base. Even Giovanni would scold her for her current… demeanor.

Just when the group was about to pass out in consensus, the last Thunderstone flickered and exploded, its dust turning into the last strand of elemental electrical energy entering Pikachu.

The six crumbled from their pose at the same time, along with the yellow mouse and the device. Mew panted. " _I'm a legendary. I demand free time and an enjoyable life. How come Ho-Oh get to skip out on this monstrosity of slavery!_ "

Lucario whined. " _I want chocolate bars. Or chocolate favored ice cream._ "

"Sure thing, we'll beat up Articuno so she can make you ice cream."

" _Or I can ask Regice from my Tree. Actually that's a good idea. Ice cream on me._ " Mew stood up, and pink energy flashed over her as she teleported.

Then she fell down from a tree branch a few feet on top of her into Domino's arms. " _On a second thought, let's rest for a while._ "

Ash panted. "Yeah, good idea."

"Ash Ketchum resting?" Dexter opened one eye from recharging at his almost-depleted pre-prepared capacitors.

Ash grunted, way too lazy to respond.

Pikachu began to regain consciousness. He yawned. " _I just had the weirdest dream ever. I was trying to evolve my electric pouches to outmatch the capability of a Raikou_."

" _Wait, why are you all laying around? You should be training!_ "

Ash looked at him. "Touch your pouches buddy."

" _What?_ " Pikachu placed his hands on his cheek, confused. Ash must say it was interesting seeing his starter, who had shocked him more times than he ran into coincidences, get electrocuted by HIMSELF, a feat that even Zekrom had failed at.

He laughed hysterically and clapped his hands. "KARMA!"

 **A/N: Enjoy! Sorry guys I didn't write about the Cerulean Gym battle. It'll come, I promise. The main theme of today was that Pikachu got a HUGEEEE upgrade. This will explain his ability to electrocute Ground types, which will indeed be a normal thing from now on. Let's just say that currently, the only thing of the electric type able to outmatch Pikachu's Galvanic Burst is Arceus's electric Judgment. Misty begins her elaborate plan in hopes to not be beaten too badly, and Team Rocket has its own plans.**

 **Also, Psymulation is a made-up move that pulls people into a world created through their own psychic. It's going to be very powerful and cool.**

 **Also, Gym Leaders must go through a qualification battle in which they have to beat the Elite Four to become Gym Leaders. It sounds bad, but really, the leaders are using Gym Pokémon and others they could borrow from Elites and Champions. The real test here is just tactic.**


	12. Cha 11: Kanto 11

"Where have you two been for the last few days?" Ash asked the two Gym Leaders who just got back.

"We went down to Cerulean to set up a few things. Think of it like a surprise, Ash." Misty winked.

"When are we planning to leave for Misty's gym?" Domino asked the boy.

"We could do it today. Most of the Pokémon reached their goal for this training course already."

Misty clapped her hands together. "Okay, then what are we waiting for? Let's go!"

Ash raised an eyebrow. "You seem quite excited at the prospect of getting destroyed."

The redhead glared at him. "Oh yeah!? Well let's see who's destroying who."

"The correct grammar is who's destroying whom."

Oak opened up his Skype account and entered in a number. The line got through, and a familiar voice he had missed for years popped out. "Hello?"

Tears came to the Professor's eyes. "Fuji, is that really you?"

There was a pause at the other end. "Hello Sam. Didn't think I'll speak to you again."

Oak started. "Why did you not contact me in so many years? We were best friends, travelmates, childhood buddies!"

"I… can't tell you."

Oak sighed. "I know about Team Rocket and your being their head scientist for the Mewtwo project."

A shocked silence radiated through the other end. The Professor continued. "Look, I'm not the hot-headed Elites. Team Rocket had been around for centuries, and they are not fully criminal. In fact, I had quite a few affairs with Madame Boss before she passed away."

A heavy breath came from the other end. "Sam, you have got to believe me. I have never been involved in their criminal activities, which was on our contract. They gave me the chance of reviving my daughter, and I have to take it!"

Oak nodded. "I never said you were wrong. I totally understand. In fact, one of my best trainers is in a romantic relationship with Team Rocket's head elite admin.

"Who?"

"009, the Black Tulip."

"DOMINO!?" Fuji was shocked way too many times today. "That's straight-on impossible."

"Well, neither of them realizes yet." Oak chuckled. "But that's not the reason I called. I called to warn about Mewtwo. When he comes out, treat him well."

"Yes, I have been told by Giovanni. By the way, how did you know about Mewtwo? The only people who knew is Giovanni, Domino, the scientists and very high ranking admins."

"Remember forty years ago when I time-traveled to save Celebi?"

"Yep."

"Something similar happened to my trainer that I told you about. Basically …"

"So welcome to the Cerulean Gym," Misty motioned to a transparent arena made of light blue colored glass and opal deeper inside. On top of it was a giant glass dome. "Don't break my roof like you did to Brock's or else…"

A crowd of people flushed out of the gym as they approached. "Looks like my sisters just finished their water show."

They waited for them to disperse, and then went into the arena. The Three Sensational Sisters walked out, with Gary holding Violet's hand. Misty's jaw dropped. "What did I miss?"

Ash smirked at Gary. "Didn't know you're such a player."

Gary pointed his thumb at Ash. "Backatcha."

"I don't have a girl yet…"

"Yeah, sure, keep thinking that. Grandpa told me about Domino already. By the way," He held out his hand to the Rocket Elite. "Pleasure to meet you."

Domino, blushing, shook his hand. Misty rushed her three sisters away from the group to have their sister time and catch up with Violet.

"What happened Violet? You're with GARY OAK!?" Misty stared at her blue-haired sister.

She giggled. "Gary asked me out after he defeated me in a gym battle. He's cute, and plus he's really smart. Did you know that he's discovering a new evolution? I mean, who can ever do THAT?"

"You know that Gary is going to leave Cerulean to go on his journey in a few days right?"

"He has a car, he can get by easily. And plus, we are starting to stop our water shows to focus more on battling." Violet waved her off. "According to last year's League Record, we have the highest percentage of defeats, even higher than Pewter, which is designed to be an easy one since most beginners passed through that one first."

"Violet is planning to travel with the guy." Lily interrupted.

Misty stared at her and turned to Violet to confirm. "Are you serious? You? Traveling?"

She nodded. "Surprise, huh? I find the idea kind of cool actually. I have been stuck in one place for way too long. The gym can run fine with Daisy and Lily here, and I need to sharpen my battling skills and capture more Pokémon."

She winked at Misty. "Plus, you're always going on about how cool it is, so I thought I might as well give a try with a guy I like."

"Can't believe you already caught up to me." Gary sat down with Ash. "I mean, I have a car."

Ash smirked and poked Domino, who pushed him violently. "Domino here is a psychic, and both she and her Mew use Teleport really well."

Gary gaped. "A Mew?"

A pink flash appeared behind the boy. " _Hiiyah!_ "

"Oh by the way, I also a Ho-Oh."

Gary took in a sharp breath, then shook his head. "I should really start traveling with you. Maybe I'll catch a Moltres. Too bad I'm your 'rival' right now."

Ash looked at him challengingly. "We both know I'm going to win, like last time."

"We shall see," Gary laughed loudly, "Now look who's the arrogant one!"

"So I guess I'm going first?" Domino looked at Ash, who nodded.

"So just to clarify the rules again, each one of us would be battling you with one Pokémon." Daisy said. "The battleground is in our giant pool."

Domino smirked at the three older girls. "Bring it, Waterflowers!"

Misty stood as the referee. "This would be a three-Pokémon battle between The Sensational Sisters of Cerulean City and Domino. Begin!"

( **A/N: From now on until the battle finishes, Domino's dialogue with her Pokémon is in psychic.** )

"Go Vaporeon!" Daisy commanded.

"I choose you, Charmander." The red Lizard Pokémon landed on a surfboard in the pool. Ash snorted in response.

Brock kicked him lightly. "You need to learn her deceit."

Daisy chuckled. "A Charmander in a Water Gym? Are you sure?"

Domino smirked. "I'm confident in her abilities."

Daisy looked doubtful. "If you say so. Vaporeon! Water Gun. Get him off the platform."

Domino screamed. "Nooo! Charmander! Fire Spin away." The red Fire Type tried to spin to another platform, then fell into the water.

Daisy sighed. Here's another beginner. She's got a lot to learn. She yelled to the Vaporeon in the battlefield. "She's trapped in place. Finish this with a Hydro Pump."

She never noticed the evil glint in the blonde's eyes. "Zorua, Shadow Force."

The Hydro Pump smashed into the water where Charmander fell, expecting to hit the Kanto beginner. Daisy waited for a few seconds, lookin for her to float up. When the waves stopped, there was nothing at the bottom.

She blinked. Suddenly, an image fazed behind the inattentive Bubble Jet Pokémon, and a Night Daze slashed across his back, knocking him tumbling into the water.

"WHAT!? Charmander can't use Night Daze!"

Domino licked her lips. "No, they can't." The Tricky Fox flickered from her Charmander form to a Zorua, to the surprise of the oldest Waterflower.

"Let's see how much you learned from Pikachu. Zorua, Thunderbolt!"

A stream of lightning shot out from the Tricky Fox's body into the water, and paralyzed the fallen Vaporeon.

At the stage, Pikachu shook his head. " _We need to work on that. The bolt wasn't concentrated enough. That was only a bunch of Shockwaves combined together. If it's not in the water, there's no way he would be paralyzed._ "

Zorua winked and yelled back. " _Sorry master._ "

Ash coughed out the water he was in the middle of drinking on Pikachu. "What the heck did she just call you?"

Zorua pounced on the Vaporeon and used Facade, sending him back extra far due to the Paralysis effect. The series of attack was in such quick succession that he had no time to use any counter or defense.

"Get up on a block. Ice Beam. That should do something to a Dark Type."

Vaporeon pulled himself onto a block after gaining distance from the Dark Type. Choking out water, he landed a little hard, and clearly favoring one side.

Panting heavily, he spat out an Ice Beam.

"Zorua, Feint Attack."

Zorua disappeared below her block, the Ice Beam shooting above her onto the ceiling, cracking it. Domino yelled to Misty. "Mist! I didn't do that, your sister did!"

Misty blew out a heavy breath.

Daisy thought for a while. "Vaporeon. Come back for a rest." She took out a Pokéball and was about to retrieve her Water Pokémon when Zorua jumped out of the air.

" _Pursuit!_ " The attack struck him, knocking him clear across the field into unconsciousness.

"Wow." Daisy looked at the turn of events from whom she thought was a 'beginner'. She pat Violet's back. "You're up Vio. Good luck with your last gym battle."

Violet stepped up to the Gym Leader position and threw out a Poliwrath. "Be careful Domino. This is my starter Pokémon and my only third-stage Pokémon."

Domino asked Zorua, "Do you want to continue?"

Zorua shook her head. "Let's give someone else a chance."

Domino nodded, recalling her, and sent out Ralts.

"Aw man! Type advantage." The opposte side echoed.

Gary yelled into the arena. "Be strong Viopop! Type advantage doesn't mean anything."

Misty shot a look at him. "Viopop?"

Ralts started the battle by teleporting behind him and spammed out Psybeam, which became a second instinct after training with Domino and Mew for so long.

Poliwrath obviously didn't expect such an agile combination, and dove into the water after taking two hits.

Shortly after, a pink glow lit up on Ralts involuntarily. Domino warned her Pokémon. "That's the beginning phase of a Hypnosis. I have an idea. Calm Mind then Mirror Move."

Ralts nodded and his body glowed in a silver color, absorbing the pink energy herself and directing it to the Poliwrath underwater as well.

Violet, not knowing what's going on, thought Ralts was Hypnotized. She pointed at her. "Poliwrath, Brick Break."

Poliwrath failed to jump up. She frowned and gave the command again, still having no result.

Ralts was the first to break through, having beforehand used Calm Mind. Her hands glowed purple as she found the Tadpole Pokémon, outlined by pink energy. She dove down and broke through the surface with Psychic, and hit the Water Type straight on with a Dream Eater, waking him up from the Hypnosis, in the process damaging him.

Ralts teleported back to Domino, who recalled her. Violet looked at her curiously. "Why did you do that? She clearly had the advantage there."

Domino smirked and threw out her Pokédex, who projected himself into a Porygon as he used Levitate. "The rules never said you can't switch out."

"What is that Pokémon?" Violet point at the blue and red duck.

"He's called a Porygon. I'll explain after the battle."

Violet pouted, then pointed at him. "Poliwrath, get clear and observe." Poliwrath duly jumped from board to board to the other side of the pool.

Noah fired out a Priority at him, forcing him to attack. He jumped in and fired a Bubblebeam, which hit Dexter, who used Endure to tank the damage. Soon, a similar beam was fired back out at the Tadpole Pokémon with Copycat.

Violet smiled, thinking that finally this insane trainer had shown a trace of novice. "Poliwrath has Water Absorb, so he heals from the Bubblebeam."

Domino nodded. "I know." Violet's face went blank, not catching her drift.

On the bleachers, Misty slammed her fist down on her leg. "Darn, Noah is copying Dexter's strategy with Ho-Oh."

Like Misty said, Poliwrath used Water Absorb on the attack, and Noah copied the ability.

Violet's jaw dropped. "What?"

Noah explained. "This is a special ability of Porygon. We are able to copy certain abilities of the opponent."

Domino waved her hand. "Noah, Baton Pass, come back. Ralts, get out there!"

The said Pokémon switched positions, and Ralts teleported away from a Dynamic Punch, then a Focus Blast.

"Okay, that's just plain cheating!"

Ralts stopped to fire a Psycho Cut at Poliwrath.

"Protect." Poliwrath used Protect, and both the Water Pokémon and the gym leader stared in shock as the shield crumbled easily. Ralts jumped forward and used Magical Leaf, with a Future Sight hidden in the mass of greenery.

Poliwrath was hit was both super effective move, and was sent crashing into the water. A few seconds later, he floated to the top, unconscious. Violet recalled her Pokémon and sighed. "Well, that was utter destruction."

Lily stepped up to take her place. "I'm guessing that you are probably using that Porygon next. So… Slowbro!"

Domino sniggered at the Pokémon. "I was going to use Noah, but in this case, I think it'll be easier this way."

"Zorua!"

Pikachu covered his eyes. " _I can't watch this._ "

"It's always fun seeing her torture someone that's not me." On the other hand, Ash was growing interested at the 'battle' between a Dark Type and a Psychic who couldn't learn Miracle Eye.

"In fact, she's pretty cute doing so too." He said absently, missing the two glances shot at his wayward behavior.

Zorua landed in the arena. She smirked, and used Extremespeed to charge at the unmoving Hermit Crab.

"Light Screen." A Light Screen appeared in front of her, who passed through, unaffected by the psychic energy.

"What!?"

"Dark are immune to psychic. There are no native Dark types in Kanto, so they are extremely rare in this area. It's okay if you haven't learned to battle them yet." Daisy shouted to her sister.

Zorua slammed her Night Daze into the opposing Pokémon, followed by a Dark Pulse.

"Uhhh… Water Gun! Get him away."

" _I'm a HER!_ " Zorua slammed a Sucker Punch in her fury and used to impulse to Bounce away.

After the series of super effective assault, Slowbro was already looking very bad for wear. "Crap! All of his good moves are psychic. That's how we trained him! Use Slack Off."

Ash shook his head. "Bad move. Slowbro is now a posing target that had no way of moving, so mostly anything will hit."

Zorua noticed that as well, and charge forward with a Shadow Ball, courtesy of Spiritomb's teaching, and slammed home with a Crunch, knocking the Water/Psychic Type out of the pool and the match.

The three Gym Leaders marveled at the speed the Pokémon was destroyed.

Daisy tossed a Cascade Badge over. "Congratulations… I have no words… just take it."

Domino waved the Cascade Badge in Ash's face. "Haha, another badge before you." Ash pulled her to him playfully and wrestled the Badge out of her hand to place it into her box.

Brock and Misty couldn't help but notice the increased frequency of their… contact in their fights. And the decreased frequency of Domino's punching with full force.

Misty walked down from the referee stage to the Gym Leader space. She twiddled her finger at Ash. "Bring it, boy!"

Ash stood up and jumped twenty feet onto his spot with a burst of aura. "Let's see if I can beat Domino's record of speed at beating this gym."

"This is a battle between Misty of Cerulean and Ash of Pallet. The challenger must send out his Pokémon first…" Daisy shot a weird look at Misty from the moderator stage, and the redhead girl motioned for her to continue. "Both sides will use three Pokémon. After each battle, the Pokémon must be withdrawn for the rest of the fight. Switches are NOT allowed. There will be no ring-outs. The best of three wins. Begin!"

Ash smirked at Misty. "You're really trying to make this hard, huh? Let me guess, you're afraid I'll wipe your team with Pikachu?"

Misty nodded. "You up for the challenge?"

The Ketchum boy laughed. "When have you seen me ever back down? Let start with you, Lucario!"

Lucario jumped onto a board, which began to sink. Light glowed out of him as he Mega-Evolved, which completely broke the board due to his weight, followed by his sinking underwater.

Misty laughed. "Didn't think that one through, did you?"

Ash chuckled. "Wait for it…"

Mega Lucario did a backflip out of the water and landed onto the balls of his feet ON WATER.

Misty's jaw dropped. "WHAT!?"

"Oh yeah, forgot to tell you. In the days that you were gone, Lucario worked out a way to manipulate the physics of water in his favor. Basically, he uses aura to bunch up the water tension and also spread his weight out in an area way bigger than he looks like is standing on. That way, the normal force of the water will press up enough to counterbalance gravity."

Misty sighed. "This is going to be hard. Dewgong, go!"

The Sea Lion Pokémon jumped out into the water and began to use Rain Dance.

"Don't let her finish that. She has Hydration, so it'll heal her."

Mega Lucario nodded and started to pulse out a Sunny Day, his massive aura reservoir easily overwhelming that of the Dewgong.

Using this moment of his immobilization, she fired three Ice Beams. Only one of them shot at Mega Lucario, the other two zipping past him. The Aura Pokémon raised a Protect shield and absorbed that attack. Dewgong shot a Signal Beam and an Aurora Beam, then rushed forward for an Aqua Jet, boosting its Frost Breath attack.

Mega Lucario was forced to keep its shield up by the series of attacks, and the two missed Ice Beam suddenly curved around and shot at Lucario's back. At the same time, Dewgong's Giga Impact finally punctured the shield and slammed forward in an attempt to hit Mega Lucario with her previous Ice Beam.

The Steel Type shrugged and gave up the aura he was using to balance on the water and sank to the bottom of the pool, undamaged. Misty gaped at the easy counter to a plan that she had spent an hour drawing out.

"That is not a gym Pokémon." Ash narrowed his eyes at Misty, who noticed that Ash's previous sentence was not a question, but a statement. "In fact, that was elite level by the looks of her power, and the only Elite I know with a Dewgong is Lorelei. So THAT's what you've been up to for the missing days."

Misty grinned. "A little too late Ash."

Ash tossed his head. "Whatever. It's a bit of practice for when I face off and beat Lorelei."

"Mega Lucario! What are you waiting for? I brought enough time for you." Ash shouted.

A giant whirlpool formed beneath the struggling Dewgong, who was thrown into the air a second later by the sudden burst of aura. Mega Lucario jumped out, the drag of the water not affecting him at all, and smashed a Close Combat into the Ice Type, followed by a Giga Impact of his own.

Dewgong was knocked higher, and Mega Lucario brought his leg around for a roundhouse High Jump Kick and the Sea Lion flew off into the distance.

He was about to go after her with a Focus Punch to end the battle, when a Hyper Beam was released at him. Silently marveling at the speed of her charging up the move even after she just got beaten by so many high-damaging moves infused by aura, Mega Lucario brought out a Protect shield.

It was shattered as a result of the lowered defense of the Close Combat, but the Aura Pokémon took relatively small amount of damage with a well-timed Endure. On the other hand, Dewgong landed and was struggling to balance on a float.

Misty winced at the result of the exchange. Lucario is as powerful as a normal legendary, being two millennium old. Being Mega brought him to a completely new level. Even if Lorelei was present herself, she couldn't do much better.

Drawing in a deep breath, she pointed down. "Dive and Rest."

Dewgong complied, the wave of the Dive bringing Mega Lucario back.

The Steel Type shook his head. " _You made the same mistake as your sister. Never leave a Pokémon stationary when she's facing off an opponent many times stronger than her._ "

Misty smirked. "I didn't. That was a trick." A purple light shot out of the place the Sea Lion had dived into and covered Mega Lucario. "Perish Song!"

Ash muttered. "Crap!"

Mega Lucario looked back at his trainer and waved him off. " _Don't worry about it. If it was this easy taking me down, two thousand years ago, all the enemies had to do was overwhelm Aaron and I with Pokémon who can use Perish Song. We had long thought of a counter to that._ "

A light lit up on Mega Lucario's body, and his blue pulsing energy formed swirls, and the purple Ghost type energy of the Perish Song was forced out by the aura and dissipated in the air. Misty's jaw dropped. " _Aaron discovered that Ghost energy is a form of death energy, while Aura is life force, so the two counter each other. So while Aura Sphere is a fighting move, it does damage to Ghosts._ "

" _When enough Aura is used on Ghost energy, the move is neglected. And a Ghost move from a non-ghost is even weaker than normal, and I am in Mega form, so Perish Song will have no effect on me._ "

The purple chains that lined Mega Lucario's body snapped, breaking through the Perish Song constrain. Seeing that her spell failed, the Ice type disappeared underwater. The Steel Type raised his arms, and a bolt of silver energy shot out. Suddenly, the glass roof of the doom shattered as iron meteors from his Meteor Mash crashed into the gym pool, emptying half of it and drenching everyone present except those quick enough to form a Light Screen or Protect.

As the commotion died down, Dewgong resurfaced, with its stomach facing up, signaling his loss.

Ash smiled sheepishly at Misty, who had a blank face. "Sorry?"

"You should be! I'll beat you with my mallet after the battle."

Daisy coughed, and wrung out her hair. "The first battle goes to Ash of Pallet Town. Both trainers, please send out your next Pokémon."

Ash tossed out Dexter, and he formed levitating above the water. Misty threw out a black and yellow Ultra ball, revealing its Pokémon to be a Gyarados almost twice the normal size.

The boy frowned. "Ultra balls are only available to Elites, so that Gyarados belongs to…"

He stared in shock at the Atrocious Pokémon. "I'm fighting LANCE's Pokémon!?"

Misty smirked. A few seconds later, he picked his head back up. A strategy quickly formed as Gyarados began his Surf attack, producing a massive wave aiming to sweep Porygon off the board into a more disadvantageous battlefield.

"Conversion 2!" The Surf attack reached Dexter, who flashed blue as his type was changed to one immune to water attacks- which was a Water type.

The Surf blew him into the pool, but not having any effect on Dexter, if fact boosting his speed due to his just-changed Type.

Misty facepalmed, lamenting how even her attack can turn into a help for Ash. Now that Dexter became Water Typed, Water attacks will have no effect, which put half of Gyarados' moveset to waste.

"Gyarados, use Thunder Wave!" Gyarados climbed onto a float and fired a series of lightning into the pool. The water turned yellow for a second, but Dexter had no effect.

Misty pointed. "Now what did your crazy Pokémon do!?"

"Dexter is a Porygon, a technological device that literally runs on electricity. He's a normal type, but electricity cannot harm him. We had Pikachu test him out when you were away. Of course, unless you can overload him with electricity, but even Zapdos can't do that. Although, we haven't tested it with Pikachu yet."

"Which means, Dexter, it's time for our counter. Zap Cannon!"

"Catch, Gyarados!" A Wacan Berry was thrown at him, who caught it in his mouth, and the electric attack did much less than Ash had hoped due to the snack.

Gyarados shook off the effect, and started a Dragon Dance.

"Copycat!" Dexter started mimicking the Atrocious Pokémon's move, not letting himself getting thrown behind at all. Ash knew full well that if Gyarados reached max stats with Dragon Dance, he might as well battle a legendary.

Seeing his opponent occupied after he finished the Dance, Gyarados fired a Dragon Pulse at Dexter. A Light Screen formed in front of the Dragon attack, and absorbed it without shattering. He had had a lot of practicing handling extremely strong attacks from sparring with Mew and Lucario.

Gyarados got closer and used Thrash, breaking the shield. Dexter shined, and the Counter forced the attack back at the Water/Flying Type with double the power, flinging him back.

The Pokédex, now being a Water Type, rode the waves easily and got to Gyarados, striking him again with a powerful Giga Impact. Gyarados roared angrily at being hurt this badly, which hadn't happened in years. His mouth lit up with an orange light.

"Crap!" Dexter muttered as the Hyper Beam sent him crashing back.

As he was flying back, a Thunder attack formed at his bill. Seeing this Misty quickly threw out another Wacan Berry.

A glint flashed in the Porygon's vector construct eyes. "Deceit working. Covet!"

Dexter flashed by the Flying Pokémon's large mouth and promptly stole his Wacan Berry, before finishing launching his Thunder attack taught by Pikachu.

Gyarados screamed as the double super effective move struck him in the face. Even as Lance's Pokémon, taking such a powerful move was unbearable. Therefore, the Substitute popped.

"Wait what?"

Gyarados's second Hyper Beam crashed into the Virtual Pokémon and knocked him out.

Ash looked at the huge Pokémon, now looking as smug as ever. "When did you use Substitute?"

" _After he fired out the first Thunder. It was a routine Lance and I practiced. If there was an electric attack, let it hit a substitute while I hide. Wait until the attacker believe that he had taken me out, and then come out of nowhere and hit him with a super powerful move._ "

"Lance is truly deserving of his champion position. No wonder he could be in charge of Kanto and Johto for so long." Ash nodded. "So technically, I didn't lose to you, Mist. I lost to Lance."

"You said you want a challenge, so you have to win the next battle to win the Badge." Misty waved her hand. "And also, you're going to pay me back for the dome."

"Whatever. Next battle." He pointed into the pool. "Go, Pikachu!"

The furry mouse hopped into the arena. Misty smirked. "I knew you would do that. I choose you! Quagsire!"

The Ground and Water type Pokémon popped out of his Pokémon and landed in front of Pikachu. She waved. " _Hi! You're an Electric Type!_ "

Pikachu shook his head. " _No, I'm not._ "

Quagsire looked confused. " _Yeah you are. You're a Pikachu._ "

Pikachu fired a Galvanic Burst without even charging and sent the Quagsire flying clear through the gym wall.

" _No, I am NOT!_ "

"Oh yeah, when you were gone, Mew helped us infuse twelve Thunderstones in Pikachu's cheeks." Ash coughed. "And also, Dexter discovered that his pouch cells have evolved to deliver a different type of electricity. Electricity conducts through an imbalance of charges. Most electricity delivers through electrons, but Pikachu uses protons instead."

"So we decided to call Pikachu's ability Positricity, and his type a Positic Type."

"So you basically hired the New Species Legendary Pokémon who have created or was involved in creating over half of the world's Pokémon to mutate Pikachu?" Misty deadpanned.

Brock poked the orange-haired trainer. "I told you we shouldn't have left. You just got wrecked."

"Congrats on getting the Cascade Badge." Misty sat down hard on her seat and threw the badge over. "You're paying for the gym walls as well."

Ash winced. "How much?"

"Twenty thousand Pokédollars." Misty said nonchalantly.

"When do you want it?"

"Now."

Domino walked up to him, giggling, and slapped twenty thousand into Misty's hand. In the process, she whispered, "Thanks for making Ash owe me another favor."

Turning to Ash, she winked. "We're going to have a lot of fun with these favors."

Ash threw his hands in the air. "What the heck does that mean?"

Brock pat him on the shoulder. "Don't act like you don't want it."

Ash muttered sarcastically. "Yeah, can't wait."

 **A/N: There you go, Cerulean Gym Battle. This one is a lot more epic than the Pewter one. Ash actually had to try. It's also a first demonstration of the sheer power of Galvanic Burst.**

 **I know how the Sensational Sisters are always saying: "like". I skipped out on that because it just makes my writing sound retarded.**

 **FYI, Ash and Domino's Pokemon can learn moves that others of their species can't. Why? Because I said so.**


	13. Cha 12: Kanto 12

"See you guys! I guess the next time we meet up is at Grandpa Canyon?" Gary waved from his car.

Ash waved back and shouted. "No. The Diglett thing."

Gary coughed. "I'm way too lazy for that. You go take care of it, Mr. Chosen." With that, he zoomed off into the distance, and sounds of Violet's thrilling screams came echoing back.

"I guess we're off too." Misty hugged her remaining two sisters and looked back at the beginning-to-be-repaired gym.

Ash pumped his fist in the air. "Hell yeah! Vermillion."

" _I call dibs!_ " Pikachu yelled from his trainer's shoulder.

A pink energy surrounded them. " _Okay, let's go._ "

Mew was about to teleport when Ash stopped him. "Wait, did we miss anything, Dexter?"

His Pokédex checked the records. "We have a fight with AJ, the savage Pokemon trainer, your getting Bulbasaur at the Hidden Village, Charmander and Squirtle in that order."

"So yeah, you missed a lot. We're getting your Pokémon first before picking a fight with this guy." Domino knocked him on the back of the head. "Dexter, may I have the coordinates of the Hidden Village?"

"My pleasure."

Domino looked at it on the map Dexter projected, grabbed Ash's hand, and teleported off.

Brock had stars in his eyes. "Ohh, my beautiful, attractive, alluring, prepossessing Melanie… yoww!"

Misty dragged him off to Mew, who teleported them in an instant.

Daisy looked at Lily, "Was that a Mew?"

She shrugged. "Enough crazy stuff happened today, so what's one more?"

"Oak, do you want to come with me to do a visit speech at the PTI?" Fuji face popped up at Oak over Skype.

Professor Oak looked up from his paperwork ask his longtime buddy. "PTI?"

"Pokemon Tech Institute." Fuji explained, "I've skipped out on so many of their reunions. I basically never came back once I graduated. Now that Mewtwo is finally done, it's time to pay back my school. I'm planning a month-long stay at the place to lecture about Pokemon cloning and battling."

"Really!? How's Anna?" Oak looked up at the Doctor. He winced a second later, recalling what happened last time with the situation.

The answer came surprisingly to Oak. "Anna is doing fine. Her stats are exceeding on the monitor. It's going to be a while until she wakes up. Same with Mewtwo."

"Since you're the regional professor, I want to ask if you know two Rockets by the names of James and Jessie. They have a talking Meowth too."

Oak nodded, clear who the Doctor was talking about. "Yep. Ash had A LOT of contact with them."

"Should I trust them with Mewtwo? From what you've told me, Mewtwo is insane, so I was going to personally tend to him when he wakes up."

Oak nodded. "You should trust them. From what I have heard, even though they're with Team Rocket, they have kind hearts. They're also the only ones besides Giovanni and Domino who are reminded of the past timeline in the Rocket Base, at least from what I've heard."

"So maybe THAT's why Giovanni sent them." Fuji stroked his chin. "So anyways, tour at PTI, you want to come?"

Oak nodded. "I can go for about a week. Then I have to leave for a conference with Dr. Akihabara over some stuff on technological consciousness."

"See you there." Fuji's hand appeared on the other end to be shutting his monitor, before saying, "And also, I miss you, old pal."

Oak smiled one of the biggest smiles in years. "And I you."

Jessie and James tapped their foot on the ground of the lab containing the Genetic Legendary. Meowth sighed. "You know, I thought dis would bi a lot mor exciting."

Jessie shot him a look. "I told you two idiots we didn't have to come this early."

James groaned after sitting in front of the giant cloning machine for hours. "When is he going to wake up!?"

A voice came from the door. "In approximately two months."

The three swirled around to find an old man in a white lab coat walking towards them. He held out his hand. "You must be the Rocket agents that Giovanni sent. I am Dr. Fuji, head scientist of the Mewtwo project."

James and Jessie shook his hand. "Pleasure to meet you, Doctor."

Meowth stretched out his hand. "Hey! You missed me!"

Dr. Fuji looked to the two humans questioningly. They facepalmed. Jessie whispered, "Just shake his hand please."

The scientist raised an eyebrow, then nonetheless bent down and shook Meowth's paw. "Anyways, like I said, Mewtwo will not wake up for two months. His brain is done, which was the hardest part. Now, all his limbs and body have to condense, and the process is already secured a long time ago from previous research. Now, all we have to do is wait."

The head of the project turned to walk out of the door. "Oh yeah, I'm leaving for a while, so if you need anything, you can talk to my assistant at Rm 113."

The three nodded. Jessie sat down with a magazine of Princess Relief, and James took out his doodling book. Meowth hopped next to the ice cream maker.

Suddenly a mental projection entered their minds. " _Hello humans and Pokémon, as I presume._ "

Ash touched Bulbasaur on his bulb, and a flashing light shined through him. The Seed Pokemon seemed startled, then came back to his senses after a while. He poked his head next to Ash and rubbed it against his trainer's palm.

He snapped his hand. "Dexter, please."

The red Pokédex materialized a few holograms in the air. "Hello. If you are hearing this tape, then you must have been just reminded by Ash. So this is what happened…"

Brock scuffled next to Melanie. "Hello there."

She giggled. "Hi. Your friend is quite interesting."

"More like weird." Misty sat down next to the girl. "So all of these Pokémon are really all yours?"

Melanie shook her head. "Of course not. I don't own a single Pokéball. They all stay with me willingly because they have nowhere to go. Either their trainer abandoned them or they are carried away by severe weather conditions."

" _Both things happened to me._ " Ralts looked down sadly.

"Is that a psychic? Cool! I've never seen one of those before." Melanie raised out her hand, and Ralts floated onto it. "You're so cute. Why would anyone abandon you?"

"He didn't know how to train a psychic, so he abandoned me because I was 'weak'."

Ralts sighed, then picked her head back up to snuggle back into her trainer. "I can't complain though, because then I met the greatest trainer ever."

Domino smiled and stroked her Pokémon. "Aww! You're a great Pokémon too Ralts. One day, we will find that trainer and give you the justice you deserve."

Seeing their bond, an idea came to Melanie's mind. "Hey Domino, since you're so good with healing hurt Pokémon, why don't you take one from the Hidden Valley with you?"

Domino looked at her, shocked. "Really? You'll let me do that?"

"Of course. Like I said, I take care of them, but don't own them. A lot of them seemed to be getting tired of the peacefulness and wanted to go on an adventure. I rather I give them to someone I trust than the Pokemon Center for adoption."

Domino grinned. "Then let's go see the Pokémon."

"So Pokemon battling is not only giving commands. It's a type of bonding with your Pokémon. Remember that even though the battle simulators teach you the tactics, you must treat your Pokémon well and understand them in order to perform the best in a battle." Dr. Fuji finished the day's lecture and head on to his dorm.

The crowd of students muttered about the day's content as they dispersed. He opened his PC and video chatted Oak again.

"What's up?"

"Fine. Just finished today's lecture."

"Cool. I should be there in a day. Also, I texted my grandson, Gary, to come as well. He's looking into Pokémon research, and has already dug up something that none of us had found."

Fuji raised an eyebrow. "Really!? I can't wait to meet him. You raised him well Oak."

A knock came at the door. "I'll talk to you later. Gotta go."

"See you Fuji."

Dr. Fuji shouted. "Come in. Door's open."

His door swung open to reveal a teenage girl standing there. Fuji recognized her to be the current star student of the school, according to the head of the undergraduate branch.

He smiled. "Hello, Giselle. Got a question?"

The girl seemed taken back for a second. "You know my name, Doctor?"

Fuji nodded. "You have been mentioned by a few people here."

Giselle gleamed at the discussion of her popularity, but dragged the conversation back to her purpose here. "So Dr. Fuji, you said today that the battle simulator isn't a completely accurate measurement of battling. What do you think, as former head of Elite Four, is a correct way of training."

Fuji pondered on the question. "The battle simulator allow you to develop strategies, but you have to train your Pokémon to be familiar with those strategies. An important factor in battle is the trust a Pokémon has in the trainer. That requires a strong relationship. Another factor is the will to fight, which is also encouraged through bonding. So maintaining a good relationship with your Pokémon is crucial."

Giselle nodded as she absorbed the information. "How do you bond with your Pokémon?"

Fuji smiled. "Great question. You treat them with care, with respect. An old friend of mine once told me that you want to treat the Pokémon like your father, your friend and your son at the same time. I didn't listen at the time, and pushed them all to their limits."

"That went great for a while. Don't get me wrong, I still had a great relationship with my Pokémon, but that old friend went on to win the Kanto Champion for twenty years, while I lost to him and became the Head of the Elites."

Giselle was lost deep in thought. "Think about it, it'll do you a lot of good if you can comprehend what I just said."

"So here's all of the Pokémon who wished to go on an adventure." Melanie brought Domino in front of a crowd of seven to eight Pokémon.

Some of them cheered in recognition of Melanie's words. Domino looked at them and kneeled down. "You all want to go?"

They all nodded. Domino continued. "Sorry guys, I can only take one. I'll rather treat you right than having a herd and neglecting you all."

The Pokémon looked at each other in anticipation, hoping they would be the one chosen. Domino scanned the crowd again, settling on a weird looking Bug that looked like a Scarab. She had studied different Pokémon for a long time at the Rocket base, but she had never seen one of this kind before. She approached the Bug and reached out with a psychic pulse.

"Hi. What's your name? I'm Domino."

The Bug Type, seeing that the girl had taken an interest in him, bounced around excitedly. " _I'm a Shedinja. I'm from Hoenn, so you probably never seen me before._ "

"Shedinja." Domino repeated the name under her breath. She smiled and unhooked a Pokéball from her belt and held it up to the Bug. "If you want to come with me, just poke that button right there."

Shedinja pressed its nose on the Pokéball, and was sucked in and captured without struggling. He was released back out a second later, and Mew flashed over. " _Welcome on the team!_ "

The Shed Pokémon's jaw dropped. "You're a Mew!"

Mew flipped backwards and touched him with her tail. "Mew I am."

The bug whistled to the jealousy of the other Pokémon. "Boy am I in for an adventure."

"Wait, who's speaking?" Jessie looked around and found no one.

The voice appeared again. " _Look to your right._ "

The Rocket trio looked to Jessie's right, which was the giant tank containing Mewtwo. They gaped.

"Are you Mewtwo?" Jessie asked carefully.

" _Talking like this is way too stressful. Let me pull you in._ " A sudden burst of Psychic wiped through the room, and the trio felt themselves falling through a hole that seemed like it stretched on forever.

After a second, or maybe hours, they found themselves in… a lab room, in fact, the same lab room as before. But this one is… different.

A hand reached out to tap each of them on the shoulder. The three whirled around to come face-to-face with a Genetic Pokémon that had come out of the tank.

Their eyes widened, but Mewtwo calmed them down. " _This is just my mental world. In the real world, I'm still in the tank. I formed this environment for you because it's all I know of this world. Speaking of which, what is the world outside like? From what I understand from Anna, there are two types of classifications- humans and Pokémon?_ "

The trio nodded, and was about to speak when Mewtwo waved his hand. " _Anna is knocking on my projection. Excuse me, please._ "

A hole appeared on top of the roof, and a girl floated down. She waved to the trio. "You must be friends of my daddy. Hi!"

"Domino?"

"I swear, I'm going to start charging you for this." Domino rolled her eyes and held onto Ash.

He whispered into her ear, "Don't act like you don't love it."

Domino, shivering, blushed and turned around to glare at him. "What the hell did you just say!?"

Ash shrugged. "I don't know. It's something in Brock's 'Big Book of Flirts.'"

Misty pinched the Rock Trainer. "I told you NOT to give Ash that."

Domino pouted, a little disappointed that Ash wasn't making a move on her. Of course, not that she'll ever admit it.

Misty coughed. "The denial is real."

The group blinked away. When they reappeared, they were in front of an empty tree stump, with Ash falling on his head as usual.

Ash got up, and remarked. "I guess Charmander wasn't abandoned yet."

Dexter materialized and showed a calendar. "Last time, Ash got to this point after a month from all of the getting lost in the woods and walking. This time, with teleportation, we still have at least two weeks until Charmander is first abandoned."

Ash shrugged and pointed in a direction. "In that case… Onward to getting Squirtle."

The Rocket Elite kicked Ash in the shin and whined. "Teleportation takes energy!"

The boy wrapped his arm around Domino's waist, who was too lazy to care. "Ice cream's on me when we get to town. What flavor do you want?"

Domino poked Ash playfully. "You should know."

"Chocolate."

"Yay! You remembered."

Lucario popped out of his Pokéball. " _Did someone say chocolate?_ "

This is insanely important. One wrong move, and it'll cost him everything. It's the last step of the process, and he must win.

"Palkia, if you don't stop creating a gravitational mirror behind me, I'm going to put up a Protect shield." Sir Aaron slapped down a hand. "Oh by the way, royal flush."

The mirror disappeared behind Aaron, and the Spatial Legendary sighed. " _How are you so good at sensing these things?_ "

"A millennium of experience."

Arceus spoke up, " _Dialga, stop cheating with your time powers. You can't just look into the future._ "

A blue light was forced back into Dialga, who swung his tail. " _Then what were YOU doing in the time realm, Dad?_ "

Arceus coughed. " _I was… uh… reminiscing about the creation of the world._ "

Suddenly, a booming sound crashed into the bubble. " _You're playing poker and didn't ask me!? Come on, Dad!_ "

Arceus looked up with tears in his eyes. " _You called me Dad again!?_ "

Sir Aaron looked behind him to find Giratina trotting at them. "How did you get here?"

" _It's not hard to open a portal from the real world to parallel dimensions. I do it all the time. A dimension with four balls of cosmic power as you all are quite attractive._ " Giratina shrugged. " _And also, Dad, I'll stop calling you that as soon as Palkia and Dialga grow up and we're back to our constant fights._ "

" _Don't you dare grow up._ " Arceus pointed two Judgment at Palkia and Dialga. He then shot out one of those Judgment at Sir Aaron.

" _No cheating with Aura Sight!_ "

Squirtle posed with his sunglasses pointed at the sun. " _No power of any sort shall stop this magnificent Squirtle from saving this world. The power of this planet and its Pokémon shall bond to form a passion of fire that will lit up the world. Cyrus shall be stopped. That is the decree of the leader of the Squirtle Squad._ "

Domino looked at him while licking on her chocolate ice cream sundae. "Is he…normal?"

Pikachu nodded. " _He does this all last time as well, probably even after he left._ "

Squirtle shook his head. " _I'm not leaving this time until my burning will stopped Cyrus…_ "

The yellow mouse slapped his shell with his tail. " _We get it dude, you're into anime._ "

Ash put his head into his hands. "Sometimes I wish I can't understand Pokémon."

Officer Jenny was collecting the contracts the rest of the Squirtle signed. "Thank you so much, Ash. Because of your help, not only did the town eliminated a threat, but it also gained a powerful group of firefighters. I salute you!"

Brock jumped in front of the officer. "My goddess, do you want to go on a date…"

Misty came over and slammed him with her mallet. She dusted her hands. "Don't worry about him. He does that to every girl."

A hand pointed up from the ground. "Not you, Misty."

Misty's face twitched into black lines. "What the hell does THAT mean!?"

" _So let me see if I understand this: The difference between humans and Pokémon is that humans capture and train Pokémon to battle each other?"_

Meowth shook his head. "Partially. Some of us Pokémon don't like ta battle, but most do. We let ourselves be captured to get stronger, since humans train us. Personally, I'm not one of those though."

Jessie added. "Pokémon doesn't have to battle though. There are Contests, where Pokémon perform glamorous acts in front of crowds. It's truly amazing."

Mewtwo thought for a while. " _So what am I? What's my purpose?_ "

The trio was silent as Mewtwo continued. " _Why did humans create me? To serve them?_ "

Fearing that this would go down the wrong path, the trio thought of a way to explain, but found nothing.

Anna walked over and touch the purple cat. "Not necessarily Mewtwo. I don't know about your purpose, but I can tell you about human's. I always hear from my dad, when I was with him, that humans love to create. The outside world is amazing. Humans built structures from amazing bridges to giant skyscrapers. They built great technologies that could be faster than Pokémon. There is the Pokénet, which is a thing that mimics the psychic wave. It can transmit data over thousands of miles in the blink of an eye. Creating is definitely human's purpose, whether they realize it or not."

Mewtwo allowed that to sink in. " _What about a Pokémon's._ "

Meowth spoke up. "We're simpler in one way, but more complicated in others. Our purpose is ta maintain harmony."

" _But you battle each other._ "

"And ta's where the complicated part comes in. Have you heard of natural selection?"

Mewtwo shook his head. " _No. That was never part of my inscription._ "

"Natural selection is the way for Pokémon numbers to maintain at a stable level. A Sharpedo would eat a Magikarp. That's da way of life. If everything does live at peace, the population would explode. As a result, the world would run out of resources, and everyone would die. You achieve harmony for a short time, but that is not true harmony."

"We compete with each other and keep the world in cycle. The best lived on to carry the best genes. That is harmony, and the way of life before humans. Humans aren't as smart as psychics, and nowhere nearly as strong as Fighting types. They don't have powers, or at least very few did."

"But after humans came, our ancestors discovered that, somehow, humans can develop tactics ta train us ta be extremely strong. By working with them, some found they were a lot more fit than da rest of da same species. As a result, da cooperation began, Pokémon were becoming more involved in human activities. Ponyta-back riding, using Rock Types ta help build, recruiting Pokémon ta help fight."

"It's all part of creating and living in harmony. There are times when Pokémon killed another or when humans blew up their own creation. But at da end of the day, this cycle helps da end goal in a major way."

After Meowth's speech, Mewtwo was silent as he took everything in.

Jessie poked the Scratch Cat Pokémon. "I never knew you could talk this well."

Meowth shrugged. "I didn't either. But life-and-death situations brings your potential out."

Mewtwo looked up from his comprehension. " _So what's MY purpose? I'm a clone. I'm neither a Pokémon nor a human._ "

"That's for you to find out. Follow your heart, that's what you need to do. Set an example for the rest of the world that is non-Pokémon/Humans. Let Arceus's laws take care of the rest."

" _Thank you. I appreciate this very much. Only one more question for today._ "

The trio tightened themselves as they prepared for another extremely hard question coming their way.

" _Who's Arceus?_ "

"An undefeatable trainer, huh?" Domino huffed at the giant sign displaying AJ's current record. "99 to 0."

She rolled her sleeves. "Let's see what will happen when…"

The blonde girl turned to the boy. "Ash, I need a cool nickname. Black Tulip is only my Rocket name."

Ash slanted his head to one side. "Easy. Princess Tulip."

"Aww…" Brock and Misty cooed at the nickname, but a glare from the Elite shut them up.

"Okay, I like it."

Misty grinned. "You'll like anything Ash gives you."

Domino pretended like she didn't hear that and pointed at the sign. "Let's see what will happen when Princess Tulip enters this arena!"

A boy ran out of the arena, clutching an unconscious Rattata. He bumped into the group. "If you're here to challenge AJ, I suggest you leave. There's no way you can beat him!"

The boy ran off, to probably a Pokémon Center, and Domino rolled her eyes. "Of course he lost. He only had a Rattata."

"Like you can do any better." A voice sounded from behind her, and Domino turned to find a boy looking at her.

She smirked. "You must be the unofficial gym leader here?"

AJ nodded. Misty interrupted their conversation. "Do you know why it's not an official gym?"

AJ turned to the redhead. "Who are you to tell me?"

Brock pointed at her. "She's the Cerulean Gym Leader."

"And who are you?"

Brock held up his Boulder Badge. "Pewter Gym Leader."

AJ looked taken back. "Fine, tell me, why is my gym not an official gym?"

"Because gyms are not only a test of battling, they're also a test of character. For example, my water gym focuses on the character of resilience, while Brock's rock gym focuses on endurance. Your Pokémon battles are only battles, which don't educate."

AJ thought for a moment as that sunk in. "In addition, gyms serve as a place to teach new trainers and give them a chance to get the badge based on their skill level. If a trainer with a Rattata comes, I wouldn't send out a Dragonite against him. That won't be fair. You have to give the trainers a chance to win, and learn, not just destroy them with brute force."

AJ thought about what he said, and bowed to them. "Thank you. Thank you so much. No wonder the League always say I am not a good teacher."

Misty then added. "Also, to be a gym leader, you need to challenge and beat the Elite Four.

AJ's jaw dropped.

"Okay! Let's get to the battle!" Domino yelled over at the three older teens that were getting more and more excited with discussing about League logistics.

AJ turned to her. "Sure thing, if you want to get destroyed this badly, GIRL."

Ash quickly walked forward and held her to him, restraining her from going off on a rampage. She elbowed Ash and walked forward. Taking a deep breath, she motioned to the arena. "We shall see!"

"This will be a battle between AJ and Domino. One Pokémon is allowed, and the first one to faint loses! Begin!"

Domino pointed. "Charmander!"

Her three friends rolled their eyes at seeing the trick again.

"A classic choice, too bad it has a weakness to my best Pokémon." AJ smirked. "Sandshrew!"

"Sand Tomb! Trap him!"

The layer of sand form around the 'Charmander'. Domino pretended to struggled. "Oh no! Get out of there!"

AJ commanded. "Let's end this quick! Earthquake!"

Domino chuckled as a pink light materialized out of the Sand Tomb and levitating above the ground, dodging all the the shaking of the ground.

"What was that!?"

Ash walked up to her. "Zorua learned Teleport? I thought you haven't figured out a way to have Dark Types learn psychic yet?"

"I haven't." Domino looked at him innocently.

Ash's eyes widened as he realized the situation. "You DIDN'T!"

Domino let herself lean on him. "Oh yes I did! His fate was sealed as soon he called me 'girl'."

The 'Charmander' flashed and turned into… Mew. The others gasped. AJ stared in shock as panic settled in, with the realization of his currently fighting a legendary flashed through his mind.

"Uhhh…"

"Mew! Psychic Routine number four!"

"Yes ma'am!" Mew saluted with her tail while upside-down and flashed at the unprepared Sandshrew.

A second later, he was hit with two Psybeams which shot out of the ground into a Psycho Cut, which damaged him and formed a net around his body, dragging him into a Psystrike.

The Ground Type fell to the ground. " _Why me?_ "

The four are back at the tree stump that they were before. Domino was helping Ash gather firewood for Brock's dinner when she heard yelling.

She poked her head from behind a tree and saw a boy pointing at the stump and ordering a Charmander on it.

"Sit here, you weakling and think about your mistake! You just cost me the battle, fool! You are so weak, you miserable little grunt!"

Domino's eyes widened in horror as she recognized the situation.

"Sit here and wait for me to come back! If you're not here when I'm back, I will disown you!"

Domino gritted her teeth and jumped out of the forest. "Stop right there you son of a female Arcanine!"

The trainer turned around and saw her. He whistled through his teeth and leered at her. "What's up, princess?"

Domino froze, and her hair spiked out as fire literally burst out of her eyes, which lit into a reddish pink. She took a step forward, and the earth cracked beneath her feet.

The trainer backed away as he sensed that something was wrong.

"No one, I said NO ONE! Except for ASH is allowed to call me THAT!" She leapt at the poor boy and kicked him in the nuts, sending him flying off.

His still loyal Charmander jumped out at Domino. " _Don't hurt my trainer!_ "

Domino raised a Light Screen and blocked his Scratch. "He's going to abandon you for being weak! Why are you still protecting him?"

The Charmander, in shock, turned to his trainer. " _Damian, is that true?_ "

Damian got up and clutch his crotch. "Yes! Screw you, you weakling. You made me bow down to my greatest rival! I HATE YOU!"

He continued, not noticing the tears coming out of the Fire Type. "You should be ashamed of living…"

"GO DIE IN A HOLE!" Domino threw him into the trees with a burst of Psychic, unable to stand him anymore.

She grabbed the Charmander. "Shhh, don't say anything. Everything would be clear soon."

The reunion with Charizard was comforting, as Ash repeatedly assuring Charizard that they will get back at Damian one day for his offenses.

Dexter broadcasted the tape recording again, for the third time in two weeks.

Charizard laughed. " _You girlfriend already beat his ass for me_."

Ash yelled. "She's NOT my girlfriend."

" _Yet._ "

 **A/N: The ending sucks, I know, but this chapter already dragged on for longer than I planned. The next chapter is going to be another epic one. Domino is going to battle against a ridiculously strong Pokémon who, like Lucario, is not a legendary but might as be classified as one.**

 **Domino got a Shedinja. Ash got all three of the Kanto starters. Squirtle is still nuts, but I love him. You're going to be seeing a lot more crazy Squirtle actions in the future.**

 **I'm leaving for a camp today, that's why this chapter is published earlier than usual. I have no clue whether it has Wi-Fi, so don't be surprised if I don't upload for a week. I didn't quit. I really hope there is though, since it IS at a university.**

 **So enjoy! And as always, please review.**


	14. Cha 13: Kanto 13

"Wait, so the psychic ball has to condense, expand, and THEN condense?"

" _Yes. If you just straight on condense the ball, the trap would become extremely unstable because of the spatial energy that is in the ball. When it is put in actual space, the energy comes out and your cage blows up. If you expand it first, you let the spatial energy rush out, which stabilizes your psychic energy._ " Mew waved her tail in the air to help her explain, or just to show her excitement.

" _Think about it like building a wall. When you take a scoop of concrete, you don't just dump it into the foundation. You compress the concrete first to make sure you get the air out. It's the same logic with Prismatic Laser, but the mechanics are a lot complicated, of course._ "

Domino took in the lesson. "So exactly how is this done?"

" _Spoon Method 2 and 7 combined. You create the cage that traps people with 7, but deal with space rules using 2._ "

The girl nodded and her hands waved out. A pink ball appeared in front of her, and it started expanding rapidly.

" _NOOOO!_ " Mew flew over and grabbed her, teleporting off. The pink ball that was in front of Domino exploded.

" _You're supposed to do it SLOWLY! Why else would it even take ME a long time to charge?_ "

"Thanks Mew." Domino sheepishly scratched her head.

" _Let's try this again. Remember, SLOW!_ "

A psychic energy pulsed out again, and another pink ball formed. It began expanding extremely slowly.

Mew rolled her eyes. " _Okay, seriously, you can go a little faster. With your rate, your opponent could have released five Hyper Beams by the time you finished._ "

Domino increased her speed of expanding, and spikes began to pop out of the ball.

" _SLOW!_ "

The blonde girl coughed at the ambiguity of the Mew's directions. She slowed down, and saw a small hole open on top of the spikes. Adding a brief trace of psychic to her eyes, she saw a black gas float out of the hole.

"Woah!"

" _That's the spatial energy I was talking. You can only see it through psychic. At this point, you have to go extremely slow, or else the spatial energy explode from being compressed too much. That's actually why Dad's Judgment is so strong. And he had temporal energy and shadow energy in there as well._ "

"Aren't those all the energy of the Creation Trio?"

" _And that's why they are so powerful. Their powers directly connect with the energies of the world. Now focus on the Prismatic Laser. We don't want another explosion._ "

Domino concentrated. The spikes on the pink ball began to die down. She bit her lip in response to how tiring this was. The ball stopped condensing for a while, and ended up being a sphere with a volume of about one-third of before.

" _Now that you got all the energy out, form a cage with Method 7._ "

She did so, thinking that this would be the easy part.

As she tried controlling the condensed energy ball she just made, she felt a heavy tug at her senses. She looked to her teacher. "Why does this have so much… drag?"

Mew nodded. " _This is normal. The spatial energy is out, so your ball became much denser._ "

The ball was stretched out again, this time a small pink construct with eight pillars on the side, with a top and a bottom.

The New Species Legendary coughed. " _You call that a cage?_ "

Domino blushed in embarrassment of herself. She mumbled, "I'm a bad architect, okay?"

" _Now just fire that at something. The cage will lock on and restrain them for a while if it hit._ "

The blonde girl looked around, and smiled mischievously. "Hey Ashy! Catch!"

Lucario fired a stream of aura into a steel ball Ash bought from a Cerulean blacksmith. The ball flashed blue, but stayed intact as Lucario carried a steady supply.

"Okay. So next part is to bring your aura into a cycle after filling the 'rock' with an amount you wished." Ash looked at Sir Aaron's notes.

"According to Aaron, there are pathways in any pieces of objects formed on this planet. He calls it meridian. You have to find these meridians and direct your infused aura through me to cycle around so that the aura will stay and not leak as fast."

" _So use Aura Sight?_ " Ash nodded, and the Steel Type complied by closing his eyes. The aura flow stopped, and the blue hue on the ball of steel began to move around the ball in a circular pattern. After a while, the flow was steady, and Lucario opened his eyes back up.

" _Holy crap is this hard! Not only did I have to use Aura Sight, I also had to rely on my inner knowledge of being a part of steel._ "

Ash continued with the process. "The last part is to seal a closing. Sir Aaron said to form a projection by compressing your aura into a solid and using it to block the opening you made to fill the object with aura in the first place.

Lucario scrunched up his face, and a big ball of blue energy lit up on top of him. The ball started to compress together. The action went on for about a few minutes, and Lucario began to sweat and grit his teeth.

All of a sudden, he slammed the ball that was now the size of his palm into the place his finger was previously in contact with.

The ball shone, and both trainer and Pokémon jumped back in fear of its blowing up.

To their surprise, the ball sat there, with a blue glow cycling through it, with no indication of an explosion.

Ash highfived his Pokémon. "YES! We got it right!"

A voice came from behind him. "Hey Ashy! Catch!"

Ash saw a pink ball flying his way. He reached out. "Hey, what is this th… WHY CAN'T I MOVE!?"

The pink ball blew up to knock him back and formed a pink cage around him, immobilizing him. Ash slammed a Force Palm into its side, and nothing happened. "Wait what!?"

Domino walked up to the trapped boy, laughing.

"Hey, Ashy! I heard that you like pies?"

Ash looked at her suspiciously. "Yes, I do. And why are you speaking that voice?"

Domino twirled her hair. "It's cute. And I'm about to give you a big gift."

She snapped her fingers, and her Mew came up to her with a present box. The blonde girl lifted up the top, revealing a giant coconut cream pie. "You want it?"

Ash nodded vigorously. Domino shrugged. "Well then, here you go."

She shoved the pie into Ash's face, who screamed in surprise. Domino bent down in laughter, and joined by Mew and Pikachu.

Ash narrowed her eyes. "Pikachu! You traitor! Thunderbolt her."

Pikachu was too busy laughing to comply. "If you don't, I am cutting ketchup for a month!"

Domino picked up the furry mouse. "Don't worry. I'll give you as much ketchup as you want if you Thunder him."

Poor Ash was restraint in a psychic cage, with pie on his face, and was struck by an insane Pikachu whom he helped mutate.

After the psychic wore off, he slid down to the ground and passed out.

A look of worry crossed both Pikachu and Domino's faces. Pikachu stuttered. " _Did I do it too hard? I shouldn't have… I used the same amounts as before._ "

Domino kicked Ash, who didn't move. A look of panic crossed her face, and she kneeled down next to him and put her fingers below his nose.

Her face turned into pure horror to find him not breathing. She shrieked and glomped him, hand reaching for his wrist for a pulse. When her hand near Ash's, his strong hand suddenly grabbed onto hers and flipped the unprepared girl over, straddling her.

"AHH!"

Ash bent down to her neck and ran his tongue from the base to her chin, and the look of horror stayed on Domino's face.

"Gotcha!"

"ASH KETCHUM! DON'T YOU EVER DARE DO THAT TO ME! I ALMOST PEED MY PANTS!"

"Aww, is somebody worried about me?" Ash cooed into her face.

"YES!" Domino coughed. "I mean…"

"I always knew you cared about me." Ash held onto her hand.

"Hey you two!" Brock called from the temporary fireplace, "Stop flirting and it's time for lunch."

The two blushed heavily, especially due to Ash's previous impulsive lick and their current position. The two both tried to get up, tripped over each other in the process and falling on top of each other again, with Domino's face now only a few inches from Ash's face.

"Come on! You have all of Kanto!"

Ash (reluctantly) got up and pulled Domino up with him, both silently cursing Brock for finishing cooking early.

The four finished lunch and Ash looked at his Pokédex. "This is when Bill's Lighthouse thing happened."

"We should probably go there. Oak said Bill knows more than him in certain subjects."

"If we don't go," Misty added, "He would still be trapped in that Kabuto costume."

"Mew, can you get them to the Lighthouse? Domino and I are going to get Krabby first."

Mew nodded, took the coordinates from Dexter and blinked off with the two older trainers. Domino grabbed him, a move she had grown familiar with, and fond of, and zoomed off.

The couple landed near a beach, but since they are in the beginning of winter, no one was there.

The waves crashed onto the shore, and the roaring sounds of nature seemed so peaceful as the two strolled down the sandy ground. Looking at the ocean, Ash had an idea. He motioned to his friend to take off her socks and shoes, doing the same himself. Taking her hand, he ran near the ocean and beginning to trot with the waves at his feet.

Domino let him held onto her hand, and Ash squeezed her slightly. "This is so peaceful."

"Mmhmm." The blonde girl stared at his face, with now the sunset shining down, coloring him into a golden statue. She wouldn't deny the word handsome.

Ash continued as if not knowing her daze. "Stepping on the waves is one of my favorite things to do in Pallet. I used to run to the beach all the time and play with the water."

Domino grinned. "I like this too. It makes me feel calm, something even though I'm not used to, I desperately need."

His grip on her hand tightened, and he turned to her. He pulled her closer to him, while his eyes turned distant as he stood against the winds. He needed to do this, and he can't do it without his girl in his arms, encouraging him.

"I've never told anyone this before." Ash stared at a rock in the distance. "I don't have a father."

Domino reached out from his grip and touched his chest gently, whispering softly, "Ashy, everyone has a father."

Ash shook his head. "I denied his being my father when he betrayed us."

Domino looked at the boy with a complicated expression, as well as confusion. He continued. "In fact, my father was the biggest traitor in all of Kanto. He never left to go on a 'Pokémon Journey'. I wanted to believe so badly. However one day, I passed by my parents' room and I…"

Ash sat down on the beach, hard. "I can't do this Domino, not even with you here."

His eyes widened as he realized his mistake. "Did I just say that out loud?"

Domino sat by him and ignored his previous outburst. "Ash… I'll tell you something too."

"I don't have niether of my parents. Growing up, I lived on the streets. I lived off the streets. In fact, among the dark side of Viridian, all of the crime lords had grown to know me."

"I stole for them. That went great for a few years because I didn't get addicted to the action, or the drugs. I got a reputation of being the best thief in the area, but I just do it to survive."

Ash looked into her eyes. He thought he saw a trace of tears coming out, but she blinked them away. He placed his arm around his girl, and she didn't resist. In fact, she cuddled tighter into his hold.

"One day, a man hired me to steal from the Viridian Gym Leader, whom I later found to be Giovanni… I'll tell you the rest later. I think Krabby's here."

Ash looked at Krabby, and realized that almost four hours had passed since they were at the beach.

"Crap! Misty and Brock must be fuming."

Domino looked at the energetic boy, happy that she made him bounce back quickly from his past. She unclipped a Pokéball from his belt and held it up to him.

"Thanks." Ash went up to the River Crab Pokémon and touched him on his claws. A light flashed off, and his crab turned into a Kingler as he was reminded.

Ash pulled out his Pokédex. "Dexter?"

"On it. If you are hearing…"

Kingler blinked as he absorbed the recording. He spoke, in a surprisingly tenor voice, " _Nice to see you again Ash! I guess this time around a lot more stuff would be happening?_ "

Ash nodded. "Indeed."

The _Pincer_ Pokémon waved his bigger claw at Domino. " _Hi, you're Ash's mate?_ "

Domino rolled her eyes and muttered. "Whatever."

A hidden smile sneaked its way onto Ash's face as he recalled Brock's opinion on the issue. He held on to her waist and recalled Kingler. "Next stop please, m'lady."

Domino blushed a bit from the hold, but flashed away nonetheless.

"Where had you guys been!?" Misty shouted from the door. "Do you know how long I've been standing at the door for you two lovebirds!?"

"Exactly four hours thirty-nine minutes and forty-five seconds when this message finishes."

Misty facepalmed, then lifted her face back up as she realized that the couple didn't have much of a reaction when she said 'lovebirds'. Seeing their close position, she gaped as a thought went to her mind.

"We talked about some stuff, like our past."

Domino added. "Nothing too major, Kingler took a while to surface."

They walked in shoulder touching shoulder. Misty stared after them, noting their transition that even _they_ didn't realize, being in a newly intimate position. She sighed and locked the door, thinking to herself. _They're getting there, even though it's taking forever._

The duo walked in, with Misty following closely. Ash noted the Kabuto costume sitting at the corner, and looked back at Brock and Bill at a table.

Bill stood up and held out a hand. "Hello. I presume you are Ash and Domino?" He looked at the boy, then the Rocket Elite. The couple shook his hand. "Glad to meet you."

Domino started. "We heard from Professor Oak that you are working on a few cool projects, so we came here to see if we can learn something."

Bill nodded and motioned the four to an elevator. "Oh really? I hope Samuel didn't reveal too much of the surprise."

Ash shook his head, pretending like he didn't know. "Nope."

"Come this way." Bill walked into the elevator and pressed a button to take them to the top. "I was conducting some research and I discovered a sound resonating in the ocean that is about the intensity of one produced by a Wailord."

"The fascinating thing is that it wasn't. The pitch was too high. Usually higher pitches belong to medium size animals. Therefore, this might be a previously undiscovered Pokémon."

"Have we discovered all of the Pokémon?" Misty asked beside him.

"Of course not. We humans still have a ton to learn. Way too much. There are yet unidentified species at the bottom of the ocean where very little can get to, or in the high skies that rarely comes down, in the depths of the planet, and in different types of extreme biomes like the Poles."

Domino elbowed Ash and whispered. "Is this the huge Dragonite that you were telling me?"

Ash nodded, and an idea came to her mind.

The elevator door opened, and Bill walked to a giant solar-panel-like device. He explained. "This is what I used to communicate with the creature. It doesn't have an official, scientific name yet, because I just threw it together a few month ago."

"You guys are lucky, because tonight's the night the creature decided to come for a visit."

He started pressing a few buttons, and a soothing pitch was sent out into the ocean.

The process continued for an hour without results.

Suddenly, with Aura Sight, Ash could sense a presence in the far south.

Domino snapped her eyes open at the same time, detecting a large pool of brain waves in the distance.

A dark green Dragonite appeared in the distance and started to push the water against its giant torso with ease.

The group stared at it. Nothing, except for certain legendaries, were this large. The shiny beast was at double the size of Pidgeot after her Mega Evolution, but his was constant and without the help of a Mega Stone.

"He must be coming close at the age of a millennium."

Lucario appeared next to Ash. " _No, he's a lot older. Even though I survived that long too, I am truly only a hundred years old. Same with Spiritomb. We slept or were unconscious through most of the time._ "

Domino's jaw dropped slightly at the thought. She had stars in her eyes as she felt the power within those bulging muscles. "That Dragonite must be extremely strong."

"How do you know it's a Dragonite?" Bill turned to her.

"Welp…"

Ash pointed at the Pokémon that had come close enough to see his silhouette. "He's green, and that's the color of a shiny Dragonite. The wings are relatively small, and the two strands on its head are all signature anatomy of the Dragon Pokémon."

Bill nodded and then pressed another button. Suddenly, the shiny opened its mouth in the distance.

" _Hello Chosen and Queen. It's been a long time since the last Chosen emerged. After Sir Aaron's passing away, there had been few who was pure enough to deserve the title._ " A mental wave swept through Bill's lighthouse.

The scientist gaped, not knowing what was going on.

" _If I am right, that Lucario is in fact the last Chosen's._ "

Lucario formed a hand pose around his chest and bowed. " _Lucario at your service. If I recall correctly, you must be the Slayer of Legends?_ "

A booming laugh came as the Dragon Type was now almost directly in front of the tower, and he stood as tall than the lighthouse. " _Indeed, I cannot believe someone still remember my nickname from a thousand years ago._ "

Domino looked at him curiously. "Slayer of Legends?"

" _Yes, my Queen. A few legendaries thought it was funny to destroy a sculpture that I was working on, so I decided to scare a few away._ "

Lucario coughed. " _By knocking out all three of them in a three-on-one battle._ "

The beast shrugged. "What can I say? I was pissed."

" _Oh yeah, I remember that day._ " Mew popped up in a flash of pinkness. " _I had to come and Genesis Supernova your ass to get you to stop turning Articuno into cold chicken and Moltres into a turkey._ "

" _Hello, Lady Mew. And they already are those things, so..._ "

" _Okay, for real, why are you interacting with the land? You haven't for centuries after you fought Kyogre for a piece of her ocean rights._ "

The giant Dragonite bowed down to the group. " _I sensed a disruption in the continuum, and the arrival of two of the most powerful humans in the course of time, and they had found each other. Remember the prophecy, Mew?_ "

Mew's face turned solemn **.** " _Indeed._ "

" _Yes, so I have come to follow the Chosen and the Queen in defeating this feen to restore the world to balance. If I guessed right, the world was already destroyed once, and you two were sent back by Arceus Himself?_ "

Domino was shocked. "How did you know?"

" _There was a gap in space-time that didn't correspond with the world, and I felt it being a leftover from another part of a timeline. It's complicated._ "

Celebi rolled her eyes. " _Tell me about it._ "

Mew looked to her. " _You're not supposed to appear yet._ "

" _Crap!_ "

" _Anyways, here's my deal to you. I'll help you in your mission if one of you can beat me in a battle with your Pokémon._ "

Domino and Ash's eyes met challengingly with each other. They nodded in agreement.

"Rock, paper, scissor…" They both yelled.

"Shoot!" Domino's was a paper, and Ash's was a rock.

"Aww man!" Ash whined. The blonde girl wrapped her hand around his rock. ( **A/N: I had to do it.** )

Domino then reached over with her other hand and pinched his cheek. "Haha, I won."

She looked to the huge Dragon. "Bring it, big guy."

 **A/N: I know you guys will hate me for leaving you with a cliffhanger, but a Dragonite battle will make this fic go on for way too long. I rather do an epic one, like the one will Lucario and Ho-Oh, and not a five-page crap. And plus, I update everyday in the summer, so it's not a long wait.**

 **So yeah, enjoy! Domino's about to get another powerful Pokémon. Look out world, because here comes the…**

 **Leave comments on what I should name the ship of Domino and Ash. The official name is Skillshipping, but I need a cuter name. Notice how they are transforming to the nickname phase and they are starting to not freak out at people calling them a couple... that much. And they don't mind touching each other, at least with hand holding. Haha, she didn't even object to Dragonite calling her Ash's Queen.**

 **Remember how in the beginning, her first impulse would have been to punch him.**


	15. Cha 14: Kanto 14

Ralts landed next to the Legend Slayer with Shedinja, while Spiritomb floated on the opposite side. Noah was behind him, and Zorua turned into a Pidgeot and was circling above the Dragon Type's head. Mew levitated directly in front of the huge beast many times his size, staring at him challengingly. Domino's Pokémon surrounded the giant, trapping him.

Smirking, she chuckled. " _This feels like a deja vu._ "

" _Sure does!_ "

A pulse of psychic was sent by Mew to her teammates. " _So here's the plan: I'm going to take the blunt of his heavy attacks, and you guys act like sharp knives that cut deep into him while he and I exchange firepower._ "

They all nodded as they recognized it as the best tactic. Knowing that Mew had been around since… no- before the creation of the planet, she was probably the only one capable of restraining the giant creature.

" _GO!_ " Mew disappeared, and she appeared behind Dragonite, firing a Psybeam at him. Before she even saw it made contact, she teleported again, this time on top of him and used Psychic. Sinking ten feet lower, she let out a zap of Psystrike. To finish out the first barrage, she blinked in front of the Dragon Type's face and released a massive Heart Stamp. She then backed off and allowed herself a Rest as her first Psybeam struck its target.

Well, kind of. The psychic attack bounced off Dragonite's tail, which was covered in a silver sheen from Iron Tail, crashing into the ocean instead and forming a three-foot deep wave, showing its original massive firepower. As the second Psychic neared him, Dragonite used Steel Wing to shield itself.

By then, Ralts finished charging an Extrasensory, while Spiritomb fired a mix of Shadow Balls, which spun in an oval direction he learned from Butterfree, making them hard to trace and block. Zorua dove in for a Dark Pulse as she used U-Turn in her bird state to swirl back up. Shedinja waved his own pattern to get close to the Dragon, before firing a series of Signal Beams that spread throughout his body.

" _Keep the attacks rolling. Don't let him boost himself!_ "

Dragonite turned his back on Ralts's attack, allowing his Steel Wing to take care of it. He raised one of his hands to Dragon Claw out the Dark Pulse, and used the momentum to keep going to hit Zorua, who dwarfed her size by transforming into a Pidgey and racing out of his grip. Wiping a drop of sweat off her head, she silently thanked Pidgeot for pushing her through their intense flying course.

Using his other hand, Dragonite charged forward and used a Dynamic Punch to send Shedinja back, who didn't take any damage due to Wonder Guard.

* * *

"Dragonite can't use Fighting moves!" Ash cried as he saw the scene.

Domino sighed. "This must be how people feel when they are fighting us. Let's hope at least he doesn't have a super-move."

" _You mean like my Aura Storm or Pikachu's Galvanic Burst? He does._ " Lucario spoke solemnly.

"Crap."

* * *

Mew's third attack- the Psystrike- hit home as Dragonite was distracted by Spiritomb's Shadow Balls. It created a small pink explosion on the green dragon's chest. Dragonite howled, and released a massive Hyper Beam directed at the legendary. It tore through the torrent of Ghost energy and reached Mew.

A wave formed in front of her, who used Mirror Move to deflect the powerful normal type attack. Dragonite's scale glistened as he used Iron Defense to strengthen his scales. The rest of the Shadow Balls collided with him without enough force to harm the giant beast. Mew's Heart Stamp, however, connected with him and knocked him sliding back, with an imprint of a heart scorching on the points of the impact.

A wave of psychic energy gashed through the ocean as Mew was back in action. She teleported on top of him and fired a Prismatic Laser in the form of a massive pink cage. Dragonite lifted himself into the air with a mix of Acrobatics and Fly, supporting himself with a third Tailwind.

Mew's attack landed in the water. Using this single moment of immobilization, he charged forward at her with a Bug Buzz. A trace of pink appeared in front of him, and Ralts appeared. Mew yelled, " _Get out of the way. That attack will knock you out. You are weak to it._ "

" _You are too._ " Ralts replied, and threw out Shedinja, who raced toward the attack, and was sent back due to the force, but without any damage.

Dragonite's eyes narrowed. " _So that's why Dynamic Punch didn't take you out. I need to deal with you first!_ "

" _Too late for that!_ " A huge pink blast came out of Mew's body, using the energy previously charged from Rest to release a Genesis Supernova. The swirling energy crashed into Dragonite, who was sent back with a cry of pain, stopping him from charging up the super-effective Fire Punch.

" _Ralts, your job is to teleport with Shedinja to block out all of his attacks that aren't super-effective to Shedinja._ "

" _Got it!_ " They teleported off into the distance. Spiritomb phased through Dragonite's barrage of Air Cutters with Phantom Force, then slammed home with a Shadow Punch. Dragonite retaliated with a Dragon Rush, and the Forbidden Pokémon blew part of it away with an Ominous Wind, while raising his own stats, but took the other half.

Noah rushed in on the right with an Assist, which allowed the Pokédex to strike at the beast with Mew's Genesis Supernova. Completely not expecting the high-damaging move to come from the side, he was flung back and stunned. In the sky, Zorua yelled, " _Copycat_." which allowed him to use Mew's signature move again, breaking the anti-psychic barrier of Dark Types. Dragonite crashed into the sea. Mew finished charging a Hyper Beam, and released it at the fallen Pokémon.

The Dragonite, however, was not nearly this easy to take down. He quickly recovered, and lashed out with an orange beam of his own. However, he was clearly strained from the two powerful attacks before, as Mew's pink beam was forcing his orange one back.

The Dragon Pokémon's tail started to move in a certain pattern, and a golden energy traveled from him into his beam, which started to push back at Mew.

" _Stop him from using Dragon Dance!_ "

" _On it_."

"Eat Ice Beam." A stream of Ice Beam came soaring at Dragonite, who looked at it with disinterest. He let out a puff of Flamethrower, which melted the Beam into a ball of cool water, splashing harmlessly against his chest. He pointed at Noah. " _Draco Meteor!_ "

A dozen balls of purple energy came crashing down toward Noah, who formed Light Screens in front of him.

Dragonite laughed. " _You don't think you can get away that easily?_ "

A blue glow formed in front of him, and Ralts appeared with Shedinja, who tanked all of the Dragon Type energy. The irritated Dragon roared. " _You shall not leave! Pursuit!_ "

" _Oh no you don't._ " A pink laser hit Dragonite. The other Pokémon had brought Mew enough time to charge up another Prismatic Laser, which landed and trapped the Dragon Pokémon in place. She then fired out a barrage of Future Sights and Extrasensory. Ralts used a Confusion, and Mew shouted, " _Don't use Confusion or any type of moves that affect brain waves. It won't work. The old dragon has a rock for a brain._ "

A blue light lit in front of Dragonite, blocking out all of Mew's attacks. Spiritomb's Shadow Balls and Zorua's Phantom Force got through, coating the huge Dragonite in a bath of green and purple glow.

" _Hurricane!_ " Dragonite broke out of Mew's barrier, and formed a giant rain cloud with the water of the ocean beneath him. It started to downpour, and he manipulated the water to form a giant whirlpool in the air, striking everywhere in the battleground. He then rose up for a Sky Drop, but was countered by Mew's rushing forward with a Gravity, knowing that he'll be using the distraction for a counter attack.

Dragonite was hit with the Gravity, but split apart into twelve different Double Teams. Mew narrowed her eyes. " _Two can play this game._ "

With a swing of her tail, she separated into a dozen of herself as well, each chasing after one of Dragonite. However, this strategy soon proved to be useless as she ran unto his Hurricane, and her mirror images were instantly popped.

" _Crap!_ " She muttered to herself as she reached out with her Psychic sense. Locking onto a solid projection, she teleported next to the huge beast and chopped down with a double Psyshock.

The solid Dragonite popped, revealing itself to be a Substitute. A horrid feeling rose up in Mew's stomach. At the same time, she heard Ralts's surprised squeal.

Even without the Sky Drop boost, Dragonite still manipulated his way around his Hurricane undisturbed. Most of his Double Teams were popped by Domino's Pokémon, but he reached an unexpected Feeling Pokémon without startling her.

Until he popped out and snatched Shedinja out of her hand. The Shed Pokémon struggled against him, but was useless as Dragonite was many times his size. His mouth charged up in Flying Type energy in the form of a Beak Blast, and struck down at the Ghost/Bug Type. Shedinja laughed. " _Now this is real adventure!_ "

Then he used Phantom Force to faze out of his opponent's grip, and String Shot to attach to his psychic partner, who teleported away in a burst of energy.

Staring at the impossible scene, Dragonite suddenly recalled that Shedinja was also a Ghost type. Sighing deeply, he turned around to find his Hurricane already cleared. He charged after Ralts with a Brave Bird attack, determined to reach her before her next teleport. He hit something, but not his target. Noah had appeared in front of him, stopping the attack without all its energy released.

The Porygon flashed with the lights of Conversion 2, which applied a shiny, metallic glow as he became a Steel Type. Dragonite took a deep breath and lashed forward with a super-effective Karate Chop. Seeing this, Spiritomb fazed before his teammate and took the Fighting attack without damage, being a Ghost Type.

Dragonite yelled to Domino. " _My Queen! Your Pokémon are really cooperative. I thought all I had to deal with was Mew. Boy was I wrong._ "

As he said this, he had to duck a Dark Pulse sent by Zorua. He raised his head back up when he thought the Dark energy had passed, but something hit him hard on the neck. He looked back to see the black colored streak on his wound. " _How?_ "

The Tricky Fox shrugged. " _I just combined Dark Pulse with Boomerang._ "

Dragonite's eyes narrowed, then he suddenly burst up at the Disguised Pokémon with a Sky Attack boosted by Tailwind to four times his normal speed. Zorua shrieked as the attack neared him. Even though Pidgeot was an expert teacher and she was a brilliant student, she couldn't nearly learned all of the flying tricks in a few weeks. Zorua let go of her disguise and closed her eyes, expecting to be the first one to go down, when she felt herself being supported by a warm energy.

She opened his eyes to find Mew next to him, and a giant Light Screen in front of her. The legendary grinned. " _Didn't forget about me, did you big guy?_ "

Dragonite responded by blasting out Dragon Pulses, quickly breaking the shield. Mew teleported with Zorua with a burst of Miracle Eye- even she didn't want to be in the middle of that swirling burst of Dragon Type energy.

Dragonite grimaced, and used the small resting time he had to think of a plan. To win this, he must first take out Shedinja, or else he would go around tanking the majority of his moves. To do that, he must first stop Mew from interfering, then restrain Ralts's ability to teleport, and lastly, the Bug's Phantom Force move.

A plan formulated in his mind. He flung himself toward Spiritomb using Drill Peck. The Dark Type used Feint Attack to get out of the way, while countering with a Shadow Sneak. Using the momentum from the impulse, he threw himself across the ocean dramatically. Dragonite landed with a splash, and the light of the light tower shone onto him directly. Lining up himself with Mew, who was in between him and the lighthouse, he charged forward with a Dragon Rush. Mew blinked out of the way.

However, Dragonite, as if unable to control himself charged toward the light tower.

" _CRAP!_ " She yelled. She knew that her trainer and Ash were strong, but even their energies combined couldn't stop Dragonite from crashing down the lighthouse. Even with all his Pokémon's help, there would be a disaster. Having just teleported, she couldn't again in such short notice. She charges up a pink ball of Prismatic Laser and hoped desperately that she could reach Dragonite and lock him in place in time.

Her jaw dropped at seeing his next move. His body glowed with the light of a Copycat, and he teleported as he used it on Mew's teleportation beforehand. Mew, immobilized for at least another second due to the charging of her spatial attack, could only warn her teammates. " _Be careful!_ "

" _Too late._ " Dragonite appeared behind a completely unsuspected Ralts and used Pluck to snatch Shedinja out of Ralts's grasp. The super-effective Flying move instantly knocked out the Shed Pokémon, who had no time to use Phantom Force and had extremely low health, therefore insanely vulnerable to effective attacks.

Dragonite roared happily. " _One down!_ "

Mew narrowed her eyes. " _You used trickery and deceit!_ "

The Dragon laughed. " _C'mon, how else was I supposed to win?_ "

Mew launched the pink ball she was charging at the green beast. "Taste this!"

Recognizing the Prismatic Laser, Dragonite was about to Bounce away when he was hit in the side by Ralts's Gravity, mad that she couldn't save her partner.

Dragonite was trapped in Mew's device, who began to hammer him Genesis Supernova. The Dragon Type's original glistening scales now popped open under the firepower, as they had already taken too many attacks since the start of the battle to even begin counting. The last Psychic connected dead on without any protection, causing the great dragon to roar in pain that he had not felt since he battled against Kyogre many, many decades ago.

His adrenaline pumped at the feeling, but he couldn't deny the stress that was wearing him off. Mew's spatial trap wore off, and Dragonite decided that it was time.

" _Mew, ever since a thousand years ago when I was beaten by your signature move, I have thought about it for a long time._ "

" _In the past decades, I have spent a dramatic amount of time trying to counter that. Today, you have struck me way too many times with that, so it's time to return the favor._ "

" _Mew, try out my Cofveve!_ "

A massive wave of Dragon type energy rushed out, and it formed a Chinese-dragon-like creature in the air. Time seemed to be frozen, as Mew stared at the giant energy creature in shock. It turned dark purple, and began to fade into the air. The air turned purple with it, and a Dragon Plate dropped out of the sky.

* * *

" _What the absolute crap!?" Arceus stood up. As a result, his Luigi was punched of a cliff by Sir Aaron's Mario._

"What happened, Boss?" Aaron looked at the Original One.

" _You remember that insane Dragonair from your time?_ "

"Yep! He beat out Lucario and Pidgeot in a two-on-one battle."

" _Well, that a**hole just stole my Dragon Plate somehow._ "

* * *

" _This was inspired by Lord Arceus's Judgment,_ " Dragonite roared, " _By the way, Lady Mew, this is Arceus's Dragon Plate._ "

Mew stared in horror as one of the twelve original Plates and the one that had created all Dragon Pokémon in this universe, smashed down at her. Her psychic energy pulsed out to form a smaller, translucent Psychic Plate. Her fake Plate stopped the real one for a few seconds, and then was crushed. Mew looked at the purple construct on top of her head and sighed. " _Well, night-night._ "

* * *

Arceus paced around the room. " _This is insane. Pokémon think they can just randomly steal my Plate?_ "

Giratina looked up from playing with his two younger brothers. " _To be fair, Dad, you're not at their universe._ "

A purple light broke through Arceus's bubble and arrived in front of him. The Alpha Pokémon rushed in front of it and rubbed his mane against it lovingly. " _Thank me you're back, baby!_ "

The Creation Trio, along with Sir Aaron, sweat dropped.

* * *

All of Domino's Pokémon fighting this… monstrosity, Ash's Pokémon watching from the lighthouse and the humans present universally dropped their jaws.

Dragonite fell into the water heavily as the last move burnt out all of his Dragon Type energy. He panted as he sat in the water, barely able to get up, and nowhere near the state to fly. He sat motionless, and Ralts was the first to realize what was going on.

" _Don't you dare Roost!_ " She teleported in front of him and struck home with a Heal Block, stopping his recovering session. Noah followed with a massive Freeze Hammer, knocking the wind out of the now severely weakened Dragon.

He roared in pain. " _How the crap do you know this move!? You're a Normal Type!_ "

"That doesn't define jack!" Noah was knocked back by Dragonite's Oblivion Wing, sucking some health back into the shiny.

"We cannot let him recover. End this quickly, or he will mooch off each of our health. We can't let Mew's efforts go to vain. Explode!"

" _NO!_ " Dragonite shouted as the Porygon came at him chivariously, and blew up. His energy rushed out to form a torrent of massive blow-up and punched deep into his gut. Dragonite bent down painfully, and saw black for a few seconds.

Then he literally saw black as Spiritomb reached him. " _Everyone has a backup move, not just you my friend. Lucario, this is for you! Shadow STORM!_ "

Spiritomb began to shrink in size, as he pumped out a massive amount of Ghost energy. The energy swirled around in a dark storm, and formed a tornado like pattern. It clashed together to form Shadow Balls of all sizes, from ones the size of a Pichu's head to ones as large as Spiritomb himself.

Dragonite's eyes popped out in horror as he registered the potential of the attack.

* * *

Lucario stuttered as he pointed as the Dark/Ghost Type. " _He worked it out, he really did…_ "

* * *

The storm crashed into Dragonite, who felt as if his soul was being dragged out of his body. His limbs and wings were getting numb, as his leftover life forces were getting quickly neutralized by the Ghost-Type energy. He shook and tried to recover, but was instantly stopped by Ralts's previous Heal Block.

The Shadow Storm began to fade, and Dragonite stumbled out and crashed into the ocean. He got back up again, and went down. Thinking back on all of the previous years of his magnificent life, the fierce dragon was up again, showing the power and stubbornness of a millennium old Pokémon.

He panted. " _Do you know why Dragonite became a pseudo-legendary?_ "

" _Because I forced the legends to agree._ "

" _Hidden Power!_ " A green blast of light shot out of him and hit Zorua straight-on. " _I have never been gladder that Hidden Power doesn't require my state to be fit, and that mine is BUG type._ "

Zorua stared at the shiny Dragonite as she absorbed the super-effective attack. With the wear of the battle that demanded her of so much, and the fact that she was still not yet full grown, she sighed and changed back from Pidgey to her Tricky Fox form. She fell into the waters, finally finding the battle too over-bearing.

" _Let's see if you can finish me, Ralts… Let's SEE!_ " Dragonite roared as a new-found energy rushed back into him, from feeding on Zorua. " _Oh, I forgot to tell you, I regain health everytime an opponent goes down. The ability's called Vampiric Pressure. That's how I survived stealing Arceus's Dragon Plate without going unconscious. If Mew wouldn't have passed out right after, I would have._ "

Ralts launched a Psybeam at him, but bounced off his newly grown scales. He panted, as he lifted his fist off the ocean floor, and stood up strong again. He laughed. " _You can't beat me! No one can! Not even Mew can! I am the Slayer of Legends!_ "

Ralts looked around her. Everywhere she saw her teammates unconscious, from her teacher Mew, the great legendary, to baby Zorua. Each and everyone of them had given tremendous effort to this fight. She saw Noah lying in Pokédex form in the water, having Exploded to wear off the great dragon. She looked at Spiritomb, who also sacrificed himself willingly to use his super-move that had drained him. She will not, she will not let this half-dead Dragonite beat her, and waste all of her teammates' effort. She will not bow down to her opponent, even if he was Arceus.

She fired a Psycho Cut, which also bounced off. Dragonite chuckled. " _Give up, as soon as I gather the energy for a Hyper Beam, this battle is over._ "

Ralts's eyes lit up in fire. Suddenly, she saw scenes going past her. She saw her last trainer tossing her into a storm, leaving her to die. She saw herself getting revived by Domino, and resonating with her.

She saw the promise she made to never be weak again, and to never disappoint the girl who had saved her life by re-waking her.

She saw the pact she made with her teammates to always stand by them, to help them.

She would do anything, ANYTHING to get the power to beat this green beast in front of her, because she promised.

To not disappoint.

* * *

Domino covered her mouth and leaned into Ash, with tears in her eyes. "I can't believe she's doing this for me."

Her psychic began to skyrocket as it resonated with Ralts's, both going through a drastic change. Her psychic kept spiking up, going past Ash's Aura capabilities, and passed a normal Alakazam, reaching the level of a Metagross.

* * *

Dragonite stared in disbelief at the light glowing out of Ralts, a bad sensation coursing through his veins. He identified it as panic, something he hadn't felt for centuries. Not even the battle with the Weather Trio, nor Mew, had invoked this.

The way the little Feeling Pokémon was staring at him, her eyes glazing with fire, as if able to melt the world faster than Heatran, startled him. He stepped back unconsciously.

Evolution lights shone brighter and brighter, and Ralts's image was stretched into the size of a normal human. A few minutes passed, and Dragonite even forgot to keep charging his Beam. Not that it would matter, the newly evolved Pokémon could dodge it easily.

Kirlia looked at him, her hands gripped together as a huge psychic ball formed.

" _Hold on! Can I have any last words?_ "

" _No!_ " The Feeling Pokémon gave him a look and fired her mimicked Genesis Supernova. " _You thought you beat my teacher? You are still going to pass out under her signature attack."_

She was right, Dragonite did.

* * *

 **A/N: Holy freaking crap, I think this was the best combat fic I have ever written. I rewrote it, edited it, cut it down, and edited it again. To be honest, I think I'm in love with this chapter.**

 **Domino resonates with Ralts. That's why when she evolved, Domino's psychic spiked.**

 **I hope you do too. Ralts became a Kirlia, as the super-doper ending. Zorua's passing out seemed kind of fake, but I really couldn't find anymore ideas. Just to get you a sense of Kirlia's ability, she is as powerful as a Metagross right now, just like Domino. Ash is about a Gyarados, which is a level lower than Metagross, which is a level lower than Ash's Lucario.**

 **The levels arrangement sucks as of now. I'll probably make this clearer in the next fic, which would be a kind of filler, but look forward to jokes and more romance stuff.**

 **Again, reviews are much appreciated, ESPECIALLY on this chapter. :)**


	16. Cha 15: Kanto 15

"So yeah, this is our background." Noah finished playing the recording. Dragonite was silent for a few seconds.

He then turned to Ash and chuckled. "Never thought the Chosen was once this bad."

Ash muttered, "Blame Satoshi Tajiri."

Dragonite then bowed down at Domino and formed a symbol with his hands across his heart. She recognized it to be the same symbol Mew performed to her on her first day of meeting the legendary.

She still remember what Mew told her. " _It's an ancient symbol that very few Pokémon, even legendaries know of. Only those traced back to the beginning of time know of it. It was the symbol used by the ancients of honoring and worshipping Arceus._ "

" _Queen Domino, Dragonite at you service._ "

The blonde girl swallowed. "How old are you?"

" _I've been around since Mew's creation of the species. I slept for a few millenniums when the Weather Trio recreated Land and Water. And then when asteroids hammered this planet. And when the Creation Trio had redone the matrix of time-space and reality._ "

" _The past millennium had been the only one for which I was actually fully awaken._ "

The Black Tulip whistled through her teeth at the age of the shiny before her. "In this case, I think this ball would suit you very well. Domino held up a Luxury Ball.

Mew floated over and pouted. " _Why didn't I get that ball?_ "

"Well, first of all, you chose your Pokéball. Second of all, you can come out, but there's no way I'm allowing a giant Dragonite wander around with me."

The Dragon Type nodded and gave his consent at that statement. He then turned to the Feeling Pokémon. " _Thank you, Miss Kirlia._ "

The psychic looked taken back. " _What are you thanking me for?_ "

Dragonite smiled. " _It's been such a long time since I was defeated, I need a reminder of the feeling to rid me of arrogance. Thank you for providing me the battle that I needed._ "

" _It's not just me. It's all of my teammates working together. I just provided the last attack._ " Kirlia raised her hand up in emphasis, then smirked. " _Plus, I have to thank you back for helping me evolve._ "

Domino pat the Dragon. "You ready?"

Dragonite nodded. " _I've never been in a Pokéball before, so I'm kind of nervous._ "

Mew sent a Psybeam his way, and knocked him into the ball, which sent out a white beam and pulled him in.

After a few seconds of bouncing around, the ball rang in signal of the capture.

Domino sat down hard on the lighthouse floor. "Now THAT was breathtaking."

"How are you feeling Kirlia?" Domino cuddled her resonating psychic.

" _I feel great! My psychic powers are a lot stronger than before. In fact, I feel like there are just waves of pulsing energy washing over me with nowhere to spend._ "

"That's good." She chuckled. "Are you getting used to the new form?"

Kirlia shrugged. " _Not yet, but I'm working on it. I think I grew to three times the size as before. See, I can even touch your hair now!_ "

The Feeling Pokémon reached up to pat Domino's head, and she laughed at her Pokémon's antics.

"Good. We are going to mess up Vermillion Gym."

" _WHAT DO YOU MEAN!?_ " An angry Pikachu hopped in front of Ash. He repeated the question. " _What do you mean I can't do the Vermillion Gym?_ "

Dexter beeped. "All you want is a rematch with that Raichu. We all know you can beat him, and he hadn't destroyed you this time yet."

" _BUT…_ "

"C'mon Pikachu, give the others a chance. Bulbasaur, Squirtle and Charizard hadn't got a turn yet."

" _Fine…_ "

Squirtle popped out of the ball. " _Did I just hear gym?_ "

Pikachu growled and sent a Thunderbolt his way. " _Squirtle has a Type disadvantage._ "

" _No I don't!_ " Squirtle took off his sunglasses and waved them at the electric attack, and bounced it off.

" _Did Pikachu get a power up?_ " Squirtle nursed his stubby arm, showing it not being completely undamaged. " _I used this move against a Luxray and I deflected all of his Thunders._ "

"Twelve powerups." Ash grinned. "To the point where Pikachu electrocuted himself by touching… himself."

"That was an accident." Pikachu muttered.

Spiritomb and Lucario were together, playing dodgeball. Or whatever you call two Pokémon flinging balls at each other while dodging is.

" _That was pretty good yesterday, your finishing move._ " Lucario leapt through the gap between two Shadow Balls.

" _Thanks man._ " Spiritomb fazed through an Aura Sphere with Phantom Force. " _I learned from the best._ "

Lucario waved off another attack with a Force Palm. " _You're not talking in the formal style anymore._ "

Spiritomb grinned. " _Glad you noticed. If Dragonite, that ancient beast doesn't talk this way, I'm not going to either. Makes me feel WAY too old._ "

" _I especially like the part where you converted the Shadow Energy to neutralize the life energy._ "

" _Thanks. You can probably do the same thing with Aura._ "

" _Yeah, I need to think about it, while you need to find a way to use the attack without passing out._ "

" _Yes, that is a serious concern._ "

"So who are you thinking?" Noah looked at his trainer.

"Shedinja, since he's immune to electric attacks. The Rocket reports suggest that the Vermillion leader focuses strongly on electric and nothing else."

" _Can I give it a try, mom?_ " Zorua poked her head up.

"Sure." Domino held her down and continued to brush her fur. "Don't move."

"Kirlia is probably on the list too. As a gift for her evolution."

"That seems like a nice list. Electric is super vulnerable to Ground. I'm going to come up with a list of Ground moves they can learn."

Domino threw out a Luxury Ball, and the shiny pseudo-legendary appeared. "Dragonite, can you teach Shedinja, Zorua and Kirlia some Ground Type moves?"

Dragonite nodded. " _No problem. How much time do I have?_ "

The girl shrugged. "Doesn't matter. We are way ahead of schedule."

" _So, in that case, can you train me?_ " The Rocket trio looked at the legendary, shocked.

"Hold on. You want US to train YOU?"

Mewtwo shrugged. " _I don't see the problem. Currently I'm just a big pool of psychic energy. I inherited it all from Mew, but I don't know how to control it at all._ "

The trio looked at each other. "Can you let us out first? We need to go visit an expert to plan out a training course.

"Ash, you have one new message from Professor Oak."

"Go ahead." Ash yelled over as he struck Pikachu's Thunderbolt with a Force Palm, deflecting it over to hit Lucario. The Steel Type blocked the super-effective move with a Protect, and retaliated with a dozen Aura Spheres that flew across the clearing.

"He asked you to meet him at the Pokémon Tech Institute. A very good lecture will be given and he said he needed someone to demonstrate for him and Dr. Fuji."

"Fuji will be there?" Ash flipped over a Thunder attack from Pikachu.

"Yes!" A stray Aura Sphere slid in his direction. Dexter blocked it with a Light Screen. "My duties are done. I'm going to get out before I get trashed."

"That's no problem. We'll just send you to the Auto Repair Shop in Viridian."

"What do you think I am? A broken car?"

"Tell Professor Oak that I will be there."

"Roger that."

Noah rang as Domino was meditating, getting used to her new influx of powers. "Who's it from?"

"The caller ID is JJM."

"Who's that?"

Mew popped up next to her. " _Maybe it's those three Rockets we've met. You know, James, Jessie and Meowth_."

Domino shook her head. "Only they can be this ambiguous."

Noah projected their image out when Domino clicked the "Accept" button on the video chat screen.

"I swear, if this isn't important! I'm in the middle of a very important Pokémon battle."

"Don't worry, ma'am." Meowth started. "This is very good."

The blonde girl narrowed her eyes. "Well then spit it out, Scratch Cat. I don't have time to waste on you idiots. Go bother Giovanni, I used all my niceness up on Ketchum. Can you believe this? He was hugging me and crying last night because of some…"

Jessie noticed the young officer's beginning to rant on about her travelmate, and quickly interrupted her with a cough. "We just talked to a very powerful psychic individual, who wanted us to design a training plan for him."

Domino stared at them, and then exploded. "Why the hell do I give a damn about your problems!? You are so lucky you're on the other side of the screen!"

"Said individual is Mewtwo." James continued.

Domino blinked.

She grabbed Noah's body over and pressed "End Call". She immediately dialed in a new number. It got through after five rings.

"WHY the hell hadn't you told ME about Mewtwo?"

Giovanni looked at her pissed-off stepdaughter. He coughed and turned to the admins standing in front of him. "Excuse me guys, can you please leave really quick."

The two lower ranking officers' eyes bulged out and rushed out of the office, scared at the sharp change.

The orange-suited man turned back to Domino. "Dom, you know not to talk to me like…"

"F*ck that! I am your most elite and trusted agent. I even beat up Marauder a year ago remember? Why didn't you send me, but those idiots to New Island!? Don't you know that one wrong move could cause the world to explode? This is Mewtwo we are talking about. All of my Pokémon and Ash's combined won't be enough to overpower him. He is designed to be the most powerful…"

"I will have you know you will not talk to me like this." Giovanni said in a stern voice. "Now, I sent them because you need to watch over Ash. They are my next best option because they knew about the past."

Domino's eyes softened and she let out a heavy breath. "Just to have you know, your 'next best option' is now asking me for help on Mewtwo's training schedule."

Giovanni's eyes opened wide. "He's awake!?"

It was Domino's turn to be confused. "You didn't know that?"

"Blonderella hung up on me!" James looked at his phone. Jessie smacked him on the back of the head.

"Remember, she's psychic. If she hears you, we're all dead."

His phone rang. He picked it up and received the call.

A chilling voice sounded through the microphone of the cell, bringing a chill down his spine. "Why. Didn't. You. Tell. Me. Mewtwo. Was. Awaken?"

A line of goosebumps formed along James's body. "Boss…"

Jessie snatched the phone out of his hands. "Boss, he didn't awaken. He's not finished yet."

"Domino said you told her he was!"

Meowth waved his hands around, as if Giovanni could see him. "No, we ask her ta plan a training schedule for him."

The trio could hear a heavy breath being released from the other side. "You have two minutes to explain."

"You're making him a training schedule." Domino heard him say.

"But…"

The voice reiterated. "You're making Mewtwo a training schedule."

"NO!"

"No Rockets says no to their Boss."

"You're not my Boss." Domino rolled her eyes.

The opposite voice sighed. "Fine. I am hoping to train Mewtwo so he would be thankful to us, and at least help out Team Rocket in its time of need."

Domino narrowed her eyes. "I'm not doing this for free. He wiped my memories. He wiped my memories of ASH!"

Giovanni facepalmed in his office. "If you do this, I'll let you have the GS ball that you had your eye on since you were eight."

The blonde girl's eyes lit up in surprise. "Really? Deal!"

"So, according to this, you are familiar with three Spoon Methods?" James looked at the purple cat in front of him.

Mewtwo nodded. " _Yes, I have received that genetically from Mew's DNA_."

"Great. So step one is to exercise your psychic by forming pulsing waves and extend them out to their maximum limit, then retract, and then repeat."

" _So the goal here is to get used to spatial energy?_ "

Jessie shrugged. "We're just reading this from the paper."

"They are a pair of extremely experienced trainers." Oak explained to the conference room full of Institute directors. "Trust me, a battle with them will be memorable to the students."

The principal looked around and silently gathered his staff's opinion. He finally turned to Fuji. "What do you think, Doctor?"

Fuji answered immediately. "I stand by Professor Oak's statement."

The principal nodded. "Then we will perform a battle. Whom will he fight against though?"

Gary spoke up, holding Violet's hand. "We can."

Principal thought about it, and gave the pair his consent. "In that case, how about a tag-team battle with two Pokémon on each side."

Ash and co. appeared in front of the giant school with a burst of teleportation. Domino scrounged up her nose at the sight. "They seriously think that simulators work?"

Ash shrugged. "They did in the last timeline."

The girl rolled her eyes. "I've operated plenty of simulators, believe me. The grunts who received a victory in those things always were the ones ending up in jail. I don't get why Boss wants to bail them out."

"And then there's 'JJM', who failed in both the simulator and real life."

A kid about their age stepped up to them, and stared at Ash's jacket. "Are those the Pewter and Cerulean Badges?"

Ash nodded. "Good eyesight."

The boy huffed. "You only have two of those things? Even first years here can earn two. I'm a second year, and I currently have enough credits to get three. You must be weak!"

Misty choked, and Brock and Domino were already on the ground laughing. Even a smile escaped Ash's mouth. He did something he would have never done years ago.

"Okay, fine kid. Whatever you say."

He took Domino's hand and dragged her up, beginning to walk away. The boy sneered after him. "Yeah, that's right, run weakling."

Domino fell onto the ground again, and Ash rolled his eyes and bent down to lift her up. "Do you need me to carry you, Princess?"

The Rocket Elite blushed at the intimate position, and struggled to break free. Ash chuckled and decided to continue his prank, pulsing out a blue glow as aura climbed on his arms. She struggled and began emitting her own pinkness.

Ash touched her cheek lightly. "You know that Aura beat Psychic in close combat."

A voice sounded behind them. "Sup!? Why is it that every time I see you two, you are always flirting with each other?"

Ash turned around, putting Domino down in the process, who silently whimpered at the loss, and saw Gary and Violet strolling toward him. The sophomore institute boy behind Ash jogged forward to greet them.

Gary ignored him, while Violet gave a slight response. The kid didn't mind as he followed behind them. Ash's ex-rival placed his hand on his shoulder. "Looks like our battle would be fast-forwarded."

Ash looked at him, confused. "What? Professor Oak just told me to come here for some demonstrations?"

"Didn't Grandpa tell you? You'll be battling Violet and I in a tag-team battle."

Ash smirked at Gary. "Looks like you're going to get your butt kicked early."

Gary wagged his finger. "Ashy boy, let's not speak too soon before our couples battle."

Domino opened her mouth, then closed it. Ash tried to, and Domino clasped her hand over his. "Just shut up."

"You're going to get wreck by Gary. Did you know he even defeated Giselle?" The boy added annoying to the side.

Domino glared at him. "If you don't shut up, I don't mind helping you."

He glared back at her. "Hey Blondie…"

Seeing Domino's face which had turned scarier than a Haunter's Leer, Gary quickly turned to him. "You're a nice kid and all, but please excuse us."

He poked Ash and whispered. "Restrain your girl."

Ash held Domino's hand and squeezed it lightly. "I'm way ahead of you."

"Hello. What a pleasure to have you guys here." The principal stood up and shook each of their hands. "We didn't think you can come this quickly. After all, Professor Oak only notified you an hour ago. Would you like a room to rest after your travels?"

Ash waved off the gesture. "It's no problem Doctor. Domino here can teleport."

Professor Oak appeared on the side. "That's right, I forgot to mention. Domino is a psychic, while Ash is an Aura Guardian."

"Oh, wow, really!?" The principal looked taken back. "How nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you too." Ash replied, then nodded at Oak. "Professor, nice to see you again as well."

Behind Professor Oak came a man of his age. He waved at the two. "Hello Ash, I have heard a lot about you. Domino. Thank you for informing me of his awakening."

Domino looked mildly confused at the reference, then realized that the person in front was Dr. Fuji, therefore the designated person was mostly likely Mewtwo.

"No problem. Those three idiots fail at doing everything."

Oak coughed, bringing the attention back to him. "The demonstration starts tomorrow. I arranged it just in case you guys were in a life-and-death situation, since you all are always in those.

The blonde girl chuckled. "Actually, we just finished a battle with a Dragonite that had been around since the beginning of time, does that count?"

Oak seemed extremely interested. "Excuse me?"

Noah spoke up. "Yes, you heard right. She just defeated a Dragonite who had been around since Mew first created the species. Speaking of Mew, she passed out in the battle with him when he 'borrowed' Arceus's Dragon Plate and knocked her out."

Dexter continued after his fellow Porygon. "I have the recording, if you want."

The principal stared at the two. "Professor… you said these were first-year trainers?"

Gary and Violet sat in front of the TV as Professor Oak inserted the tape. "We'll start as soon as Fuji gets here."

"Then you can start now." His old friend's voice came from the entrance.

Oak swung around as he discovered a girl with him. He recognized her as the star student of the Institute and gestured to her warmly. "Hello Giselle."

Fuji sat down and pat the seat next to him in invitation to the girl. "We discovered that we had a lot in common, like battling, but especially in Pokémon researching. So I decided to take her up as my apprentice."

"Say hi to Oak."

Giselle smiled and waved at him. "Thank you for coming to our school, Professor Oak."

Oak smiled. "No problem, Giselle."

Turning back to Fuji, he remarked. "I guess you have someone to inherit your arts now."

He motioned to Gary. "I still have to wait until he calms down to teach him researching."

"Please?" Domino poked the boy sitting in his room. "C'mon! For me?"

Ash sighed. "I still don't get why. You're the last person I'm expecting to do this."

"Gary and Violet are doing it. Their costume is a pair of Gardevoir and Gallade."

"Yeah, so? They're dating."

"And to show that we're not, I got you a Zangoose one. Zangoose is the biggest enemy of Seviper."

Ash rolled his eyes. "Fine, I'll accompany you in this… absurdity."

Domino jumped up excitedly. "Yay!"

"But I didn't know you knew such a big word Ashy. I'm impressed."

Ash pressed her head against him and nudged her scalp playfully. Domino giggled in response and pushed the Zangoose outfit into his chest, hand lingering there for a second.

She looked up at him and gave a smile. "Sweet dreams. If you have a nightmare, you know where Darkrai is."

Ash released her, pushing away the notice of the cold as he lost his source of warmth. "I'll call you to help me."

Domino turned around and made sure his door was closed, before allowing her smirk to surface. Her eyes were glistening with an affectionate expression as she looked at the Seviper costume. She whispered to herself.

"I guess shooting stars really do work."

 **A/N: Tell me what I should put in the GS Ball. You have a bunch of time to get in your suggestions. I will have it unlocked in between the Cinnabar Gym and Viridian Gym. If I don't get any response, I'm settling with Celebi.**

 **Also for those who didn't get the Zangoose/Seviper reference, refer to Chapter 2: Kanto 2.**


	17. Cha 16: Kanto 16

"Institute students, listen up!" The Principal shouted from the podium, "Today we have for you four amazing trainers. On the left, we have Violet, one of the Cerulean Gym leaders, and Gary, Kanto Regional Professor Samuel Oak's grandson. On the right, we have Ash Ketchum, an Aura Guardian and Domino, a psychic."

"They will test their skills in a real-life, tag-team Pokémon battle, each with one Pokémon. Remember to take notes and learn from their tactics, strategies and composure. Mostly, watch their strong bond with their Pokémon, and attest that to Dr. Fuji's previous lectures."

"We wish the trainers the best of luck." The principal bowed toward the battlefield, and the crowd of students turned to face the four.

Ash wiggled his arm in the Zangoose costume. "This is so uncomfortable."

Domino slapped him lightly. "You know what I'll find if I look under the word 'complain' in the dictionary?"

Ash raised his eyebrow to the question.

"Your face! Now stop complaining and get to it!" The blonde girl pointed into the arena. "You cannot even imagine what I will do to you if we lose."

Ash straightened himself. "If you want to win so badly, you can just send in Dragonite and wipe them all."

"That's not the point of this demonstration!" She pouted, obviously missing the times when she can sweep through weaker enemies.

Ash laughed and grabbed her hand. "Can't believe my princess is finally growing up."

Domino faked gag. They both looked up as a voice called out to them. "You two lovebirds ready?"

Ash had a fierce look on his face as he turn to his rival. "You betcha!"

"This battle would be between Ash Ketchum of Pallet and Domino…" Dr. Fuji shouted from the moderator stand.

Ash and Domino held up their linked hands as emphasis.

"... Against Gary Oak of Pallet and Violet of Cerulean." They did so as well, following the former duo's lead.

"Rules had been explained before, so let us expect a fantastic match and magnificent performances from our trainers."

"Begin!"

Ash Ketchum had never known to be slow. He threw out his Pokédex into the arena. "Dexter!"

Next to him, Domino appeared to have the same idea. She sent out her Pokémon, coincidentally being Noah, who landed next to his Porygon buddy.

The two shared a knowing smile. If the principal want to educate his kids so much, they are going to start the process with a Pokémon never known before.

From the video camera area, the principal stood as the commentator. "What an interesting start by Ash and Domino. Identical Pokémon! Professor Oak, can you identify which species they are?"

Oak took the mike over. "If I am not mistaken, Tom, they are Porygon, Pokémon who can evolve from technology after collecting a giant pool of information and are awakened by an outside source, preferably something dealing with consciousness."

"You heard the Professor. Take notes. Porygon would be part of our midterms next month. Pokémon Tech Institute educate to lead!"

Gary and Violet looked at each other. They knew what Porygon were from Ash's introduction after the Cerulean Gym Battle. And they also knew that they are the least… insane on their opponents' teams, and as a result, least painful, to deal with.

"Come out my starter!" Gary flung his Pokéball, and a giant Wartortle twice the normal size popped out. He landed, then posed and showed his biceps in the sun, poking it.

He yelled in Pokémon. " _Gains!_ " The people on stage who can understand Pokémon, or have something translating, all facepalmed.

From the VIP stands, Squirtle looked at Wartortle challengingly. " _I bet I can take his butt down easily! I ought to talk to Ash for a fight with him._ "

He spit out a mouthful of water as emphasis. Part of it rained down on his seatmate, being Charizard, who moved his Tail Flame to avoid being splashed. " _Hey! Watch it, dude._ "

" _Sorry._ "

Violet sent out her loyal Poliwrath, who landed with a ground-shaking thud, fist on the ground. " _It's time for a re-match!_ "

The Principal yelled out from his seat. "It looks like Gary had decided to go with Wartortle, and Violet her famous Poliwrath. They are both Water, going against two Normal. However, Poliwrath is part Fighting too, which has an advantage."

Dr. Fuji took the floor over. "Students, watch closely and see a situation where type advantage doesn't necessarily matter. This is where simulators could go wrong."

Dexter and Noah both shot out an After You at their respective target. The two Water Type was affected, and reflexively shot out their moves without their trainers' orders.

Wartortle fired out an under-charged Hydro Pump, while Poliwrath charged forward with a Dynamic Punch. Both hit, but their being unprepared as they rushed to attack did not damage their targets nearly as much as preferred, especially when most was absorbed by the white light of their Light Screen.

Both Virtual Pokémon nodded to each other and used Conversion 2.

Wartortle struck Dexter, who transformed into a Water Type, turning immune to all the Turtle's Water-Type attacks, which happened to be the majority of his moveset.

On the other hand, Poliwrath's Fighting Type move transformed Noah into a Ghost Type. He initiated his Water Absorb ability he had gotten from the Cerulean Gym, and tanked a Bubble Beam shot by his opponent without damage.

Dr. Fuji yelled excitedly into the mike. "This has been an exchange of wits I haven't seen in a long time. Ash and Domino used After You to force their opponents, who just landed to attack. The attack, since rushed, must be their most used move from their best Type. Using Conversion 2, they can neglect from now on their best type."

"Doctor, what does Conversion 2 do?" The Principal looked at him, asking a question most of his students had as well.

Professor Oak answered for his old friend. "Conversion 2's effect depends on the opponent's last attack. It convert the user to a type which is immune to or extremely ineffective to the upcoming move. Using it, Dexter had become immune to Water by turning into Water, and Noah turned into Ghost and can now evade all of Poliwrath's Fighting type moves, which was their biggest threat."

"Did you all hear that? Write down their tactics. The battle of wits! I want to see that from now on in your battles. Try to outsmart your opponent and plan out your routes. Don't just rely on raw power."

"And that's why simulators are not fully correct." Fuji didn't wait to support his lecture points.

Giselle waved at her mentor. "Dr. Fuji, why didn't the Bubble Beam take effect on Noah?"

He answered the question after noticing a blue flash. "I believe that was the glow of Water Absorb. He must have gotten that ability somehow in the past. It neglects all Water Type attacks. Most of Poliwrath's moves are Water, Fighting and Normal. I'm curious what Violet will do now that those options are off."

"Even Poison Types shrink in power by half." Giselle looked at Fuji.

"You forgot one thing. Notice how they're not touching the ground because of Levitate."

"So they'll be immune to Ground as well?

"Looks like it." Fuji turned to Oak. "Your grandson and Violet are about to be in a lot of trouble.

In the battlegrounds, Gary and Violet both cursed beneath their breath, lamenting their lack of luck and their already disadvantages in the first cycle of attacks.

No, in fact, the Porygon hadn't even attacked yet.

Their eyes widened. "Wartortle! Surf, get away from Dexter. Use Aqua Ring to heal."

"Poliwrath, use Psychic and fling him back! Try a Hypnosis."

"The Water Types are on a retreat. Wartortle is using Surf to further the distance, but Dexter is quickly catching up because of his new typing. It looks like Poliwrath's Hypnosis failed, and the distance gained by Psychic was being lost quickly as well."

"Ash and Domino counter attacks! What will they do?"

Poliwrath looked back at the Ghost Type Porygon coming at him, riding his wave. He gritted his teeth and unleashed an Ice Beam at Noah. The Virtual Pokémon used a burst of Phantom Force, learned from Spiritomb. Poliwrath raised a Protect shield, but had no effect as the Ghost move traveled through and crashed into the evolved Tadpole.

Poliwrath showed its fierceness through a Payback launched during his flight backwards. The Dark Type energy was super effective on the currently Ghost Typing Noah, flinging him back as well.

Dexter raced forward and used Boomburst, the furious Normal energy spreading out like a wave, crashing into the escaping Wartortle and the immobilized Poliwrath, hitting both hard.

Wartortle soared in the air. Using the impulse to flip around, he unleashed an Ice Beam and froze the water wall formed by his Surf. Dexter hit the wall, unable to breach it because of his loss of momentum due to his previous attack. Using the second of gap, Wartortle used Rapid Spin to pull back, while using Iron Defense.

"What an excellent exchange!" The Principal remarked. "On Poliwrath and Noah's side, first Noah dodged his opponent's attack with a special Phantom Force, a move we rarely see in this part. Yes, it will be on your test."

The students scribbled furiously as they heard his declaration. "Professor, care to explain?"

"Phantom Force is a move similar to Bounce and Sky Drop. It allows the user to be immune to damage by phasing into a Ghost Type energy. It can penetrate Protect and Light Screens, as well as other kinds of shields, which was why Poliwrath was hit through his defense."

"And look at that outstanding performance on Wartortle and Dexter's part. Dexter used the advantage of Noah's launching of Poliwrath to unveil a Boomburst, which was spent effectively, hitting both opponents at once."

"Yes, very nice team work." Fuji remarked to Giselle.

"Wartortle reacted very fast as well. He used Ice Beam to freeze his water wall, which was very important. It manipulates the elements, which cannot be learned through simulators."

"Then he used Rapid Spin to get away. Remember that moves don't always have to be offensive. The Iron Defense was timed well too. A boost is very helpful in this situation."

Dexter stepped forward and formed a yellow cannon with his projection. "Zap Cannon!"

Poliwrath formed a Rock Tomb around himself to block the powerful beams, but was soon blew up.

Through the hole charged a light-coated Noah and Poliwrath was Volt Tackled.

" _How do you know that!? That is exclusive to Pikachu!_ "

Noah shook his head. "Just tackling with a bunch of electric energy. Not terribly hard to fake after being attacked by Pikachu for weeks."

Poliwrath rubbed his head and tried to get up from the super-effective move. He launched a wave of Toxic their way, splashing Noah, who wasn't damaged too much due to type advantage.

Ash smirked at Domino as he was laying back, sipping orange juice. "I guess Type counters really are a thing."

Domino leaned her head on his shoulder. "Just not when it's against us."

Silence overwhelmed their area. Mew teleported back with a bag. " _Popcorn?_ "

"Sure." They both agreed as they reached it. Their fingers met, but was both too used to the feeling to react.

"I'm BORREEDDD!" Domino whined into Ash's ear.

"Shhh! Watch the battle."

" _I can electrocute all of them in one shot._ " Pikachu lied on Ash's head with his eyes closed.

"Now that was great teamwork! The two used Wartortle's distance to gang up on Poliwrath, who is now withering under their electric combo."

"Wartortle better get back, or else he would soon be facing two Porygon by himself.

The Principal turned to the cameraman. "Is this all recorded?"

"Each and every second, sir."

"Good." He turned to Oak and Fuji. "Would you two like a copy of the tape when we're done?"

"Yes, thank you."

"Of course.."

Wartortle exploded into twelve Double Teams and rushed back in, seeing his teammate in trouble. Noah formed a Laser Eye in the middle of his forehead. "Detecting camouflage. Target located."

Noah sent a signal in Dexter's way to alert him of the find. Dexter locked on and fired a Solar Beam his way. Like Butterfree said, the Grass Type energy gained power as it traveled through the sunny air, striking the unprepared Water Type, breaking all his Double Teams.

Poliwrath struck at Noah and used Thief, stunning him with the super-effective move and promptly stealing the Laser Eye on his forehead.

" _Catch!_ " He threw it to Wartortle. Flipping back, the Turtle consumed the item before Dexter can dissipated it, his reflex slowed by Poliwrath's attack.

Wartortle launched himself forward with a Fling attack, successfully sending Noah back with another effective Dark move. Dexter came back with his partner, holding up a Protect shield for further series of offenses.

The two sides regrouped on opposite sides. The Water Pokémon were clearly panting tiredly. Poliwrath was favoring one knee that hadn't been paralyzed in the Volt Tack, and Wartortle, even with Iron Defense, was hit by the Solar Beam pretty hard.

The two Porygon were doing a lot better. Dexter was almost unharmed. Noah had a few scorch marks along his body from the last few Dark attacks, but wasn't severely injured due to their opponents' weariness.

"That was a glorious cycle of attacks! Wartortle's original strategy of saving Poliwrath through hiding in the deceit of his shadows was disrupted by the Porygon's ability to detect Double Teams. The Thief performed by Poliwrath was a demonstration of pursuit as he still not only had the ability to gather himself under severe wear, but also had the reflex to give it to Wartortle so that he can fire a high-powered Fling. Another demonstration of great teamwork."

"From this exchange, we can start to predict the ending of the battle. Ash and Domino's side are only a bit hurt, while Gary and Violet's Pokémon are marked with burns and cuts."

"Of course, it's never wise to judge too soon. Miracles can always happen at the last minute. Remember that students! Never lose your attention span just because you might seem to be winning."

"So my turn!" Ash picked out a card. "Your favorite color… Black!"

Domino clapped her hands together. "Yep! You guessed it right!"

She drew a card from the deck. "Your favorite color is… purple."

"Correct." Ash stuck his face next to hers. "You know why?"

"Why?" Her eyes shone with a glow as she looked into his chocolate orbs.

"Because it's the color of your eyes." He smirked.

Domino blushed, and a hidden smile sneaked its way onto her cheeks. "Aww… Wait, Ash Ketchum! Are you flirting with me?"

"When I flirt with a girl, she'll know it!" Ash said into her face confidently!

Pikachu facepalmed. " _Are you using Brock's Book of Flirts again?_ "

Ash looked sheepish and scratched his neck. "Maybe…"

The Principal turned back from the couple who wasn't paying any attention to the battlefield. He neglected to say, "Don't do that."

Dexter's regathering with Noah was short and brief. After a few seconds of reforming a strategy, they sprint forward again toward the two.

Both used Fly, allowing them to soar in a beeline to their targets.

Poliwrath took a deep breath and used countered with a Giga Impact he was charging on Dexter. The Porygon took the brunt of the attack, not expecting him to still have the strength left over.

A blue glow shined on him after being hit, and a bigger flow of energy came shooting out as Dexter used Counter. Poliwrath watch as the big ball of power came to him and used Endure.

The returning Giga Impact hit him hard, blowing him across the pool. He was still awake, nonetheless, due to Endure's property. An interesting orange light shone on him though, as the Tadpole Pokémon returned the favor with a hard-blown Endeavor.

Dexter's eyes widened as the Normal Type energy crashed in and hit him on the virtual body. His last thought was the ridiculousness of the situation, before the projection popped.

Poliwrath was on his knees after releasing the attack, panting. He never saw the Hyper Beam from Noah passed through Wartortle's water wall and hit him on his swirls, and he passed out from the attack under the heavy strain.

"What just happened!?" The principal yelled into the mike. "That was such a sharp turn of events! Whatever that move Poliwrath just used, it must be insane. It knocked out almost a full-health Porygon in one shot."

"Professor Oak, can you please tell us what happened?"

"Well Tom, the process is actually simpler than you imagine, but I am quite impressed the Poliwrath can think of it on such short notice. Ash and Domino's lack of attention and carelessness probably caused it as well."

"Giga Impact is a high-damaging Normal move, which was which Poliwrath chose Dexter, the Porygon without the Ghost typing. Dexter used Counter, sending it back at double the power."

"After seeing its failed attack, Poliwrath went with an Endure, which allowed him to survive the Counter with barely any health, which combined with his last move was good for the Tadpole."

"Endeavor is also a Normal damaging move. It worked because Dexter had to be in close quarters with Poliwrath to unleash a Giga Impact, so Noah cannot absorb the attack for him. What they should have done instead was fire out long-range attacks, then the victory would have been secured as they gradually weaken him."

"Instead Dexter was hit by Endeavor, which grows stronger the weaker the user is. Since Poliwrath was at the minimum health, the power unleashed was almost to the level of a few Hyper Beams combined in one, which was able to knock out Dexter in a blink of an eye."

The Principal was silent for a while after that explanation. "What is the name of that strategy?"

"Gary and I worked it out a few days before Ash came actually, to specifically counter Ash's insanely strong Pokémon. We decided to call it to call it the Double E."

"See students, this is what I mean by never judging a battle or letting off your caution until the last moment!" The Principal turned the audience. "Remember, even if you are fighting an opponent whom you couldn't seem to beat, you must keep trying and plan out strategies to defeat them, because it might happen. This is the perfect example of unending effort in a desperate situation leading to a sharp turn- around."

Dr. Fuji continued after him. "It is also during this process when the strongest of all bonds form."

"And… I really like your hair. It reminds me of vanilla pudding, but smells like strawberries." Ash cuddled with Domino as they are half asleep.

"Aww… And I don't like your Pokébelt. Who said you can only carry six Pokéballs around? That's insane."

"League rules?"

"No, League specified that you can only _participate_ with six, not traveling with six."

"Hmm, maybe you're right." Ash looked thoughtful. "That would be neat if I can carry most of my Pokémon with me. We got to ask Professor Oak about this.

" _Uhhh, guys?_ " Pikachu's first call went to deaf ears as they leaned against each other. " _GUYS!_ "

"What do you got?" Ash turned to his starter and asked lazily. Pikachu pointed at the battlefield. The Ketchum boy did a double take as he took in the situation. He was back on his feet in less than a second.

"How did THIS happen?"

Domino's eyes snapped open from their previous daze and was beside Ash immediately, and drew in a sharp breath.

"Crap!" Ash blinked. "That's witch magic. It's on you Domino."

"Seriously! They aren't even Jinx!"

"You distracted me from helping Dexter!"

"You wanted to play Best Friend!"

"You're the one who has to be pretty and all."

"How is that my fault!?"

"I don't know! I'm dense, I need someone to vent to."

A psychic pulse reached Noah, the first of the entire battle. "Release the Ghost-Typing, the Fighting type is out. Change to a Water Type, then use Extremespeed repeatedly and ski around the battlefield until you reach maximum speed stat."

Noah fired a Bubble to signal understanding. Using his previous Water attack and Conversion, he turned a dark blue into a Water-Type. Wartortle fired a Scald at him, and was dodged as he burst forward with Extremespeed.

"Agility!" Noah went even quicker.

"Now, Trick Room!"

"What?" Noah thought he heard wrong, but the echoing mental voice tells him otherwise. Doubtfully, he flipped onto Wartortle and released a psychic pulse, forming a Trick Room around him."

Wartortle watched as Dexter became extremely slow. He struck out with a Fake Out to test him out.

"Gyro Ball!" Domino's next direction came, and Noah's eyes lit up with realization. Reaching back, he spun his tail into a sphere and swung at his opponent, knocking Wartortle soaring back, and releasing the Trick Room.

"That was again an amazing exchange performed by Domino. Professor?"

"Indeed. What happened was Noah used Bubble, which was a Water Type attack, and then used Conversion straight after. What Conversion does is turn a Pokémon's typing to the last attack of theirs, which is different from Conversion 2."

The students groaned at the easiness to mix up the name.

"Therefore, he changed to a Water Type. Then, he used Extremespeed with Agility to boost his speed to the maximum, while pulling away from the Turtle and gliding through the Water easily due to his new typing"

"And then came the Trick Room, which made him extremely slow. Trick Room makes the stats of the speed of a Pokémon opposite of before. Since Noah was at his fastest state beforehand, he became extremely slow, which contributed to his Gyro Ball afterwards."

"That smashed into Wartortle hard, since its damage value increases when speed decreases."

"Which brings Wartortle to a very low health."

Wartortle looked at Noah with determined eyes. His teammate used up himself and formed an extremely smart strategy to beat one of the Porygon, and thus creating a chance for this battle.

Now that chance was fading away because of his weakness. Will Wartortle let it do that?

His eyes narrowed and shook his head. He focused on Noah, as if the world was composed of only those two, and the universe formed for this battle right here.

Unknown to him, a glow formed around Wartortle.

"Dr. Fuji, what move is THAT!?" The Principal turned to said Doctor.

"Wow! I've never seen anything like this." Fuji took in a deep breath. "I believe that was the evolution lights of Wartortle. If he can evolve, not only will he have a giant boost, but also healing of wounds from the entire battle."

"Should Noah attack?"

"No. Evolution lights prevents anything from harming a Pokémon. Legend says the lights created Arceus himself."

Professor Oak chuckled to himself, thinking of the amount of times this had happened to Ash, and the irony of its now doing it to himself."

"Now that, luck and miracles cannot be learned from simulators."

Noah looked at the evolving Wartortle and silently groaned to himself. He had heard this happening before from Dexter, but never thought it would ever happen to him.

He watched as Wartortle evolved from a Pokémon his size to a giant towering above him. He sucked in a deep breath and formed a Protect shield. Blastoise launched forward with a Brick Break, his now powerful arms breaking through the shield of the growing-tired Noah. Blastoise, now at max power, roared.

He pointed his cannon at Noah, who silently thanked Arceus for Water Absorb.

What came out was indeed a torrent of water, but was a stream of extremely hot water. The Scald Attack burnt the Porygon severely, his Water Typing not helping at all due to its being a Normal attack.

What followed was a Facade, which hit with the Virtual Pokémon with double damage due to his being burnt.

"What a remarkable turnback. Using his newly evolved cannons, Blastoise distracted Noah enough to hit with a Scald fully, successfully burning him, then with a Facade which hits for extra due to the burning effecting on Noah from the previous Scald. That was truly an amazing combination."

"Noah might lose here if he doesn't think of something soon. It is extraordinary how the tide had turned."

"But again, we cannot judge too soon."

"Lose?" The Porygon looked at the Shellfish Pokémon. He shook his head. "Sorry Dom, I couldn't win this."

Domino watched in shock as her determined Pokémon, who started glowing orange. When he reached the newly evolved Pokémon, he closed his eyes, and used Explode.

Blastoise's eyes widened as the huge wave made of Normal energy crashed into him. He shrieked and tried to escape with an Aqua Jet, but was too late. The cloud of dust engulfed him, covering up the battlefield.

"And Noah showed a fierce determination as he Exploded. Will Blastoise stand again?"

"We know the Porygon is definitely out, since Explode require the user to pass out."

The dust began to clear away, and Domino didn't help it with Psychic. She knew that the best would be a tie, and there was a large chance against that prospect. She held onto Ash's hand tightly, never been more nervous.

Blastoise stood in the center of a giant hole. He was crouching, with one hand on his knee, and the other forming a fist on the ground of the depression to help support him. Sweat dripped down from his forehead, and he was clearly very strained by the entire battle.

Growling under his breath, he remembered his silent promise to Poliwrath. He would not fall. Victory was so clear. With that thought supporting him, he found a new burst and energy and slowly stood up. First he was still bent over, then straighter and straighter, as the sun shone brightly on his face, and he brought out his hands and let out a thundering roar at the crowds.

"This is insane. This is majestic! I haven't seen a better battle in such a long time. The sharp turn of events, the outmatching of wits, and mostly, the demonstration of the greatest bonds from the Pokémon to teammates and to their trainers. That was what allowed them to put more than 100% percent effort into this. Remember that, young trainers!"

"The four trainers had truly grasped the heart of Pokémon training. Learn from them. Marvel them! Thank you for such a wonderful battle." The Principal bowed to the four trainers on the stage.

Domino punched Ash. "What was that for?"

She buried her face into his chest, lightly shaking. "Princess? Are you crying?"

The blonde girl looked away from him.

Ash gently caressed and fixed her hair. "There's nothing to be sad about. This happens all the time. You win some, and you lose some."

"It's just…" Domino looked down at her feet. "I've never lost before. Not ever. Even in the last timeline, I only lost to you, which was acceptable."

Something about her saying losing to him was acceptable brought a smile to Ash's face, and he pulled her in. He lightly pressed his chin on her head, whispering. "It's okay. We'll destroy them some other time. We can even use Pikachu and Mew."

Domino wiggled her head against his chest. "You know you wouldn't do that."

"I'll do it, if it's for you." In the light of dusk, a Zangoose held a Seviper in his arms, not ever letting her go.

 **A/N: Aww… I love that ending. Skillshipping rocks! Not too much said for this chapter. Epic battle between the four trainers.**

 **A reminder to message me what you want inside the GS Ball.**

 **Please review. You know I am always grateful for constructive reviews.**


	18. Cha 17: Kanto 17

Ash shook hands with Gary, who smirked. "Ashy boy, you lost!"

He rolled his eyes. "You know fully well if I would've used Pikachu, and Domino used Mew, you would have been crushed."

Violet pulled Domino away from the bickering boys. "I was so scared in the beginning. I was watching Poliwrath being cornered in more and more disadvantages, and I was like… Oh my Arceus."

Domino chuckled. "You did really well. Poliwrath managed to take down Dexter, didn't he?"

"I can't lose to my sister! If she can take one down, I must as well." Violet grinned. "And I know you were going easy on us. Heck, you didn't even look at the battle until Dexter passed out."

Violet smirked. "Or were you too busy snuggling with Ash?"

"NO!"

The Cerulean gym leader giggled. "You guys were really close to each other in your battle room."

The blonde girl coughed. "That was because we were playing Best Friends."

"Aww…"

"Shut it. That's a coincidence."

"So, you guys got together yet?" Violet teased her, expecting a major reaction.

Instead, Domino stared at a cloud in the sky. "No…"

Violet gaped at her.

"What?"

"You just said 'no' disappointedly and hesitantly."

"No I didn't." Domino blushed slightly.

"Then why are you twirling your hair?"

She looked down to see a strand of blonde locks in between her fingers. "Uhhh…"

Ash and Gary came back and Domino silently thanked Arceus for helping her get out of Violet's cornering.

"So, how's life?"

Violet glared at her boyfriend.

"What?"

"Ughh!" She groaned and drag him away. Ash shrugged and walked back with Domino, of course, extremely close to each other. Neither minded though.

"Ash, my boy! Glad you didn't just so extremely hard on Gary and Violet. You really have grown up." Oak remarked as he approached him.

Ash rubbed his neck. "Thanks Prof. Just so you know, I'm not holding back in Leagues."

Oak laughed and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I don't expect you to."

Ash and Domino's Pokémon huddled over from the stands. Squirtle was the first to speak up. " _Ash! Can I go have a match with Blastoise? I need to teach him who the alpha is of the Squirtle line._ "

Charizard looked at him weirdly. " _Isn't Blastoise the one who is the highest evolved?_ "

" _That doesn't mean anything! If Pikachu can electrocute a Regirock, I don't need to evolve to beat Blastoise._ "

Pikachu coughed. " _I haven't done that yet._ "

Mew bounced over. " _No worries. I can have you test it out tomorrow at the Tree._ "

" _I am Squirtle, leader of the Squirtle Squad and the Alpha Turtle in all of Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, Unova, and Kalos._ "

" _I am Blastoise, ultra defender of the galaxy and protector of the universe!_ "

Squirtle looked taken back, then quickly recovered. " _I shall twist into my hands the strings of time and space, while forming this planet with my strong, undefeatable will!_ "

Blastoise retaliated quickly. " _And my bonds with this world shall tear apart any restriction that dares trap me within their cages of physics and prison of logic._ "

Ash stared at the two. He turned to Gary. "You know, when Squirtle said he wanted a battle, I kind of expected, well…"

"Not an anime-off?" Gary finished his sentence. Both boys facepalmed.

Pikachu sang from Ash's back as they walked into Vermillion City. " _We are on the way to Vermillion, Vermillion, Vermillllion!_ "

Mew looked at him weirdly. " _You're not even fighting though._ "

" _It'll still be fun seeing that Raichu getting wrecked._ "

Domino shook her head. "You must hate that Raichu a lot."

" _Yep!_ " He responded, popping the 'p'.

"So… how does it feel?"

" _Okay. This is definitely working. My unorganized pool of psychic is already forming into loose strands that I can easily manipulate and control._ " Mewtwo responded while twisting his hands.

"Why does dat matter?" Meowth looked up from a magazine in Mewtwo's dream world.

" _This way, I can form more accurate and delicate actions. For example, before, I could only use the energy to attack by just slamming it down, which is not effective. Now, I can control the strands of energy to form, say, a Psybeam._ "

"So you can fire out a Psybeam in here?"

" _Of course. Anything can be done in here. It just won't affect the outside world. It was passed down as genetic information. I think this move is called Psymulation._ "

"Okay. Well, good luck with the training. We are going to leave the island for a bit to run some errands."

" _See you three later!_ " Mewtwo waved his tail, and the three was teleported out of his realm.

"This still feel like a dream."

"Tell me about it."

"Gary, Violet! Wait up." The two trainers turned around to find a brunette girl running after them.

"Hey Giselle. What's up?" Gary waved at her.

She stopped, panting a bit. "Dr. Fuji told me to go on a Pokémon Journey to broaden my experiences and learn the things that they don't and can't teach in this school."

She paused a bit to formulate her thoughts. "Professor Oak recommended me to come with you two instead of Ash because he's 'insane'."

Gary laughed. "Grandpa's not wrong."

"So can I join?" Giselle looked at them hopefully.

Violet pulled her closer. "Of course you can. The more the merrier!"

Giselle smiled. "Thanks guys. I really appreciate it. Now, let's hope I don't become the third wheel."

"Oh you will be." Gary nodded at her. He was slapped lightly by Violet. "Just kidding."

"I have no place to go after this. I am still on break for another two weeks before I have to go back to New Island."

Oak looked at his friend. "You can come with me to Akihabara's meeting. You're an expert in cloning, so he'll probably not turn away what could be a great help in his Porygon making.

"Okay." Fuji nodded, and climbed onto Oak's Dragonite with him.

"Where's all of your Pokémon?"

Fuji sighed. "I let them loose over New Island. I allow them to take their Pokéballs when Anna died. I didn't think I would ever go back to battling. It was a rash decision, I know."

"Anna is revived now, right? You should probably go get your pokéballs back. From what I've heard from Ash, a torrent of troubles is going to come our way."

Dragonite took off in the distance, in the direction of Machta City.

"How much for this Magikarp?" James pointed to the red Fish Pokémon.

The fisherman held out three fingers.

"$300?"

"$3000."

James spat on the ground and walked away, tired of his scams. The fisherman yelled after him. "Come on, man! Think about it. This fish is going to lay ten eggs. Those eggs are going to grow up to each lay ten more. The next hundred will make thousands. You can then sell them all. Pretty soon, you'll be swimming in money, my friend."

The purple-haired trainer looked at him. "Then why are YOU still a fisherman?"

"Well…"

"$500, or no deal." He said with a stern voice.

The vendor collapsed under the pressure. "Fine."

Carrying a huge, red Magikarp, James walked out of St. Anne triumphantly. He said to Jessie and Meowth, "Soon we would have a Gyarados! For only $500."

"What's next after this?" Ash looked at his Pokédex.

"St. Anne."

"Screw that!"

Misty looked hurt. "What's wrong with St. Anne?"

Ash stared at her. "Our ship sunk, we almost drowned, and then we get trapped in a island of giant Pokémon who tries to kill us."

"Ooh! Are you talking about the Pokémon amusement park?" Domino looked at Ash. "YOU were the one who destroyed it last time?"

Ash nodded. "Yeah, why?"

Domino growled and stepped toward him threateningly. "I DESIGN THAT!"

Ash cowered back as the fuming blonde got in his face. "Did you know how MUCH work I had to put in that? And then you came along and decided, 'Oh, I'm Ash Ketchum! I can just do what I want and oooofff...'"

The boy covered Domino's mouth. "Please stop. I'm sorry, okay?"

She licked the inside of his palm. Ash rolled his eyes. "Licking my hand isn't going to make me release you."

"Mmmmffff mmf!"

"What?"

Domino used Bite. Ash screamed and jumped back. "I said, 'What if I bite you?'"

Ash held his hand to his face. He saw a pair of clear bite imprints on his hand. He pouted. "Oww…"

Domino poked her face over, and was angrily shoved back by Ash. "Hey!"

The boy turned from her, not saying a word. The Rocket Elite circled in front of him. "I know you can't be really mad at me. How about this: I shut up about the amusement park and you forgive me?"

Ash turned around again. Domino walked to her original spot. "I never liked the park that much anyways. The design was actually just Pokémon I drew when I was nine. C'mon, forgive me. You know fighting is our thing."

She picked up his hand carefully and kissed her bite marks softly. "Here. I kissed t to make it better. Will you forgive me now?"

The blonde looked up to see what seemed like hunger in his eyes. She yelped a bit, and Ash tackled her, bringing them to the ground. He ran his tongue up from her neck, just like the beach. She shivered as his tongue dragged over her artery, and she laid there, not wanting to struggle. Ash got up soon with a satisfied grin. "Now I will."

Ash pulled her up with him, and the two began to walk into the Vermillion Pokémon Center, forgetting their hands were connected.

Brock stared at them. "Do they even see themselves?"

"And they STILL deny the obvious fact of liking each other." Misty sighed. "Also, don't you dare flirt with Nurse Joy. Crator is sick and tired of writing about your terrible pick-up lines."

"He writes them though."

"Exactly the point."

Misty and Brock pulled Lt. Surge to the side. "Sup Surge. It's been a while."

Lt. Surge did a fist greeting thing with Brock, ending with them slapping each other's shoulders. "I'm well."

Misty rolled her eyes at their antics. "Anyways, Surge, I need to warn you. You see those two trainers over there?"

The Vermillion Gym Leader nodded.

"We travel with them after they completely tore through our gyms. Be polite, don't do your teasing motivation thing. Especially to that curly blonde. They are 100% going to defeat you, so if you don't want your Pokémon to… well, be tortured, don't piss them off."

Lt. Surge looked at his fellow Gym leader unconvinced. "Why don't I believe you?"

Brock coughed. "It's true, Surge. They each have a legendary."

The electric gym leader stared at him. "So… what do they consider as polite?"

"Hello. Welcome to Vermillion Gym. Nice to get trainers who wish to participate in the League challenge!" Surge opened the Gym doors when Ash and Domino knocked. His Raichu posed next to him in a welcoming way.

Domino leaned over to whisper in Ash's years. "This guy is plenty nice. Why did you warn me?"

Ash shrugged. "Don't ask me. Maybe some things became better in this timeline."

He straightened himself. "Hello Lt. Surge. I'm Ash, and this is Domino. You probably met Misty and Brock before."

Lt. Surge nodded. "So, if you are traveling with two gym leaders, you must be really strong yourself as well. Would you like a challenge at my gym?"

The couple nodded vigorously. "Gladly!"

Surge smirked. "Say 'hi' to my seventh badge team."

A door opened next to him to reveal a Luxray, Electivire and Electrode. Raichu jumped next to them.

"Which of you are going first?"

Ash volunteered. "Since you went first for all the other ones, how about I go."

Domino nodded.

"This would be a battle begin Lt. Surge of Vermillion and Ash Ketchum of Pallet." Sergeant Tory stood as the moderator. "Two Pokémon each. Switches are allowed. "The one with a Pokémon remaining at last would be the winner. Let the demonstration of power begin!"

"Electivire!"

"Squirtle!"

Lt. Surge frowned a bit at his opponent's option. He began to doubt his two colleagues' previous assertions of Ash's skill. He looked at them, who had on a look of pure fear. His heart shook for a second, a bad feeling coming to his mind about this Squirtle.

"Play it safe. Light Screen, then Attract."

"Squirtle, just… do what you want."

A pink screen formed in front of Electivire, and her eyes turned pink as Attract was used. Squirtle laughed. " _No shield shall stop the power of the Turtle! No love shall quench the burning will of the leader of the Squirtle Squad!_ "

The Tiny Turtle launched himself into the air with an Aqua Jet. Then he jumped down with Waterfall, instantly flooding the place.

"He's digging his own hole! Electivire, Thunder!" Surge finally determined that this trainer in front of him was a beginner who couldn't even control his own Pokémon, and Brock and Misty were playing a prank on him.

" _Rime!_ "

As the Electric energy struck, the Waterfall was suddenly turned to supercooled water, greatly reducing its conductivity.

" _Now freeze!_ " The surface abruptly froze, dismissing the entire Thunder attack.

"HOW was that POSSIBLE!?" Surge gaped, flipping over his just-established theory.

" _Nothing is impossible if I put my mind to it! Construct!_ "

Electivire jumped over the torrent of water. " _That's not a move._ "

" _It is now._ " He deadpanned, and a fake Water Plate formed in front of him.

" _THIS IS RIDICULOUS! FIRST DRAGONITE STOLE MY DRAGON PLATE, THEN MEW RE-MODELED MY PSYCHIC PLATE. AND NOW, A MERE SQUIRTLE THINKS HE CAN FAKE MY WATER PLATE!?_ "

" _THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE! CLOSE THE ME DAMNED GAP!_ "

A giant flush of space-time energy rushed over to surround the Water Plate on Arceus's shelf. The Creation Trio and Sir Aaron shuddered slightly under Arceus's glare.

Squirtle's fake Water Plate became extremely unstable. Squirtle shouted, " _No space-time energy can block the dominating spirit of this Squirtle!"_

Arceus's space-time shield broke. He gaped. " _What are you fools looking at? Go back to Risk!_ "

Palkia shrugged and made a move.

Aaron facepalmed. "Palkia! You cannot just make a wormhole and jump from Kanto to Kalos."

The Water Plate, now about the size of a quarter of the arena, smashed down on the Electivire. She blinked, then shook her head. " _This is insane. Why me?_ "

As the attack landed, she Returned herself. Surge's jaw dropped open. "What the freak was that?"

Ash shrugged continued to NOT check out Domino. "A Water attack. Why?"

"Lt. Surge, your Pokémon Returned at the moment of an emergency, therefore, she is disqualified."

The Electric Type trainer nodded. "Agreed. That would have definitely taken her out anyways."

"Mr. Ketchum," He began, using a more formal address, "Would you like to keep Squirtle in?"

Ash looked at the Tiny Turtle, clearly strained from the attack. "Squirtle, do you want to…"

" _This fiery will of mine shall light the day after the night passes. Look out, tomorrow!_ " He finished his magnificent speech and returned.

Lt. Surge sent out his next Pokémon, the Electrode. Ash looked at his bored Pikachu. "Disappointed that it's not Raichu?"

" _Nah. Domino's Pokémon can crush him equally as hard._ "

"In that case, Bulbasaur!" The Seed Pokémon landed in the arena, facing the Ball Pokémon. "Fly!"

"What!?" Surge stared in shock as the Grass Type used Fly and soared in the air. "How the heck is that even…?"

Ash shrugged. "What can I say? Bulbasaur have the DNA of almost every single Pokémon in this planet. He's got a complicated family tree." Of course, he skipped out the part of the story where he used the memory lift to uncover the genetic information.

Bulbasaur reached the ceiling, and a wave of leaves started to form a storm around him. He sent the raging Leaf Storm down at the Electrode, who screeched and tried to block with a shield made of Discharged electricity. The Leaf Storm bounced back, which revealed the real attack Bulbasaur was hiding beneath those leaves.

" _Stone Edge!_ "

" _Aww… Crap._ " Electrode looked up at the nearing move.

"This is INSANE! First he can Fly, now he can use Rock attacks!?"

The attack hammered the Electric Type into the floor of the gym, creating a giant hole. Bulbasaur fell from the air and landed with a thud. Using the weight of the fall, he generated an Earthquake, striking more than usual due to Electrode's immobilization in the middle of a hole underneath the ground.

Bulbasaur extended his vines in the air and waved them into a complicated pattern. " _Let's finish this game! Frenzy Plant!_ "

The dust cleared, with Electrode paralyzed in a hole in the center of the gym. A messy spur of greenery popped out of the ground and tangled around the struggling Ball Pokémon. The giant splinters of wood dogged itself on Electrode

Electrode whined a bit. " _I didn't even get to Explode._ " A torrent of Grass Type energy came with plants and knocked him out completely.

"Boy that was… so fun! You have demonstrated an absolute strive for power, the value of this gym! You earned the Thunder Badge."

Ash shook hands with the tall American, and took the lightning symbol over. He clipped it on his jacket and went over to Domino.

She gave him a look. "Don't you dare brag to me? Only I have that right!"

"So I'll be battling against Raichu and Luxray?" Domino called out to her opposite side.

"Luxray and Raichu, respectively." Surge motioned for Tory to start.

"This battle's rules are the same as the previous. Let the best trainer win!"

Domino pointed, and Shedinja popped out. He waved to the Gleam Eyes Pokémon. " _Hi. I'm Shedinja. What's your name?_ "

He was answered by a Thunderbolt, which hit him harmlessly. " _That was rude!_ "

Luxray, obviously not knowing what's going on, turned to his trainer. Lt. Surge gaped at his opponent, his face motion repeating what's during Ash's battle.

"He's not a Ground Type. I memorized every Ground Type there is."

Domino smirked. "He's not Ground."

Shedinja rushed into the air and fired a series of X-Scissor down at his opponent, who turned around and formed an electric shield. He then shot up a series of Spark at Shedinja. The Spark passed through his Double Team, popping it.

" _What?_ " Luxray was confused, until he felt a stinging Shadow Force punching hard on his back. As he flinched back, a blast of Ground Type energy flashed his way as Shedinja used Thousand Waves.

He smirked, " _You know, I was a Ground Type as a Nincada._ "

The attack hit the trapped Luxray as the attack came from all directions, knocking him around with the move. He was stunned temporarily from the super-effective attack. Even though it was a few seconds, Shedinja, being a pragmatic Bug, used the gap in time to fire out an Earthquake. When the dust clear, Luxray was laying on the ground with swirls for eyes.

" _Surge, I want some ice cream…_ "

Tory coughed, clearly not used to seeing his partner getting wrecked this badly.

"The first round goes to Domino. Let the next round start!"

"Pikachu!"

"Raichu!" Surge smirked at the blonde girl. "I think you misplanned it here. Raichu here is my most powerful Pokémon, as well as the evolved form of Pikachu."

Domino licked her lips. "We shall see."

"Raichu! Let's show them how electric REALLY works. THUNDER!" Surge roared with a newfound confidence.

The 'Pikachu' jumped forward and phased through the wave of lightning with a burst of Phantom Force. Using his momentum, she charged through the rest Raichu's attack and slapped him on the head with a close range Dark Pulse.

She then dodged a second attack with Agility, and slammed a Shadow Ball. Jumping forward, the Tricky Fox came down with a Crunch, sending him back. Following her above attacks, she used Shadow Claw, completely paralyzing the Electric Type.

Zorua started forming a huge ball full of Dark energy. Raichu used Endure, his only thoughts being how to survive the next attack as he became extremely scared of this adrenaline-filled, energetic 'Pikachu'.

" _Everyone else have a backup move, now this is mine! Movetacular!_ "

The Dark ball split out to hit Raichu with Stone Edge, Flamethrower, Water Sprout, Grass Knot, Earthquake, Toxic, Drill Run, Aura Sphere, Dark Pulse, Shadow Ball and Dynamic Punch.

Raichu rolled his eyes to the back of his head, with barely little health as he whirled around in dizzy circles.

The Tricky Fox rubbed her hands into circles, and a Spark popped out. He, turned to Ash's electric mouse, still in her Pikachu form. " _This is for you, Pikachu._ "

A loud boom sounded as the electric attack struck Raichu, knocking him clean out. All of the audience, including Domino and Ash stared at the demonstration of power and… something else.

"She knocked out Raichu for me," Pikachu had hearts in his eyes, "I think I'm in love."

"That was just…" Surge sighed as he shook Domino's hand. "Yeah… Here's the Thunder Badge. You fully deserve it."

Domino took it over, went to Ash and threw it in the box. He poked his head over. "Nothing to say to me, Princess?"

The blonde girl narrowed her eyes. "Don't push it."

Lt. Surge looked at Misty and Brock. "I guess I know how you feel when Ash destroyed your gyms like mine. No wonder your guys are so… reminded."

The two gym readers looked at him with pity. "Actually, we didn't get wrecked this bad… and neither of them used their best Pokémon… Or the second best."

Misty added. "Though, he did destroy both of our roofs, so just be thankful."

Brock chuckled. "Good idea building it in wood, not glass, or else someone would have used Solarbeam."

 **A/N: It's nice seeing Domino's submissive side after talking about her dominant aggressiveness. I know the gym battles with Surge are short and one-sided, but again, not every chapter can be OP like Dragonite's or interesting like the tag-team.**

 **Why will Pikachu not be pestering Ash? That's 'cause he's about to get himself a babe to chase after. FYI, Pokémon love is a lot simpler than human love, so forward to a quick relationship to Pikachu and Zorua.**


	19. Cha 18: Kanto 18

"So I really think time has come to organize this chart." Professor Oak stapled the title on the top.

Dr. Fuji nodded. "Especially in this time of distraught. When disasters break out in the near future, Pokémon powers would be referred to by our Chart of Levels!"

"Let's get to it then." Oak stapled a picture of the Original at the top of the board. "Obviously, Arceus is the most powerful. That is beyond undebatable. Let's call her tier: God."

Fuji nodded. "Below Him, I would assume the Creation Trio. They deal with cosmic powers, so they are the cosmic level."

"Are there any other Pokémon with the same level of effect?"

The two men thought for a while, and managed to find nothing.

"Under them, we probably have the Pokémon from the beginning of this world, like Mew, Groudon, Rayquaza, and Kyogre."

"Formation ranking. They are the ones who were involved in the creation of this planet."

"Next up is…"

"Hold on." Oak stopped him. "What about Primal Kyogre and Groudon, and Mega Rayquaza?"

"They are definitely stronger than normal, and can probably match the level of the ones above them."

"There's a Mega Rayquaza?" Fuji inquired.

"Yes. I read a documented recording of a Rayquaza going Mega after eating a meteorite from the Blackthorn Clan."

"So we can set up a general rule that a Pokémon after Mega has the raw power level of the ranking above it?"

Oak nodded, and wrote that down as a starred bullet point at the right corner. "What about Mew?"

"Mew probably has a transformation herself that she just doesn't use unless the world was blowing up." Fuji paused. "That's right, what about Mewtwo?"  
"Hmm, we'll deal with him when he comes out. We have to do a few test for that to be accurate. All of our information about him now was vague encounters in the last timeline from Ash, which technically doesn't count as evidence for the Scientific Method."

"True that. What about that giant Dragonite that Domino defeated? She said he fought Kyogre and even knocked out Mew."

"Mew hadn't unleashed her max powers yet, and probably nor did Kyogre. The Formation rankings are restricted by the rules of this planet. If they used too much of their powers, they will trigger a more sacred power in a higher dimension, and can easily bring disaster to this world. If Mew or Kyogre would have unleashed their full power, Dragonite would be swept off the map. However, if they do, the planet would probably go deformed."  
"Is that probably why the Cosmic level never appeared? If they even arrive, the planet would either distort in shape, folded on time, or be turned to a bare imagination by the Shadow Forces. The Formation ranks probably can't go Mega or Primal unless outside of this planet either."

Fuji went over to the right of the board and jotted that down below Oak's last point.  
Oak nodded. "So I'm thinking Dragonite belong in with a lower group, with the Trio Masters like Ho-Oh, Lugia, Regigigas and so forth."

"The ones who can use their full power without worrying about damaging the fibers of this planet. They sometimes could appear to be more powerful than Formation, because they can unleash their forces completely. What belongs with those are probably freak Pokémon who survived through the beginning of time somehow with them, while being mostly awaken."

"I am hypothesizing that somehow, when creating the world, Arceus left a kind of special energy. Pokémon who got a piece of that energy would mutate from their kind and become extremely powerful, like having a piece of the Alpha Pokémon in you. Let's call them all ancients."

"There are then legendaries who were created by other legendaries. Ho-Oh created the Beasts of Johto. Lugia the three Kanto birds. Dialga made Celebi. Groudon made Jirachi. Kyogre made Manaphy. Regigigas made the three Regi's. So on."

"We should include other cases, such as of Pokémon who lived over a millennium. There aren't a lot of evidence, but using Ash's Lucario as an example, any Pokémon over a millennium of age gains a huge power buff."

"To the point where they can probably battle the former legendaries."

"Since they were made second-handed, how about calling them the Medievals."

Oak nodded, approving of the name.

Fuji counted. "So we have God, Cosmic, Formation, Ancients, and Medievals. That at least takes into account all of the legendaries right?"  
"There is one problem." The regional Professor spoke up. "Phione. She's created by Manaphy, a Medieval.

Fuji shook his head. "We are not getting into the Phione debate. Who cares if she's a legendary? In my experience, she's about the level of a pseudo-legendary."

"So the next category would be pseudo-legendary. That includes Dragonite, Salamence, Metagross, Hydreigon, Goodra, Garchomp, Tyranitar, and Kommo-o.

"If they can Mega, they reached the level of a Class 1 legendary, which is Medieval."

"The next are probably Pokémon who had evolved to their third stages, like Charizard, Meganium, and Alakazam. Then the Two stage ones, and then the one stage ones."

"That's not exactly accurate. Snorlax is insane with power, more than a lot of third stages. Examples also exist with one stage."

Oak rubbed his forehead. "Okay. We still need to flush out the details from Stage 3 to 1, but I think from Pseudo to God, we covered pretty well."

"Wait a sec, we are not done with classifying the last few yet." Oak looked to Fuji. "How would you define Ash's Pikachu?"

Fuji was silent for quite a few moments. "He's… special. Anything involving Ash is special."

Professor Oak and nodded and wrote down a quote next to their last two bullets.

It read: "Any Pokémon who was influenced by Ash Ketchum or Domino, including but not restricted to creation, evolution, training will NOT be categorized on this chart."

* * *

" _The beach is truly nice, after such an adventure._ " Bulbasaur, the least insane of the group, lied in the bright light, opening up his bulb to absorb the sun.

Charizard lied next to him. "I know right. Our crazy trainer just had to do investigation with the cosmic fibers of the universe." He looked over his bright tail flame at Ash, Domino, Mew, Pikachu, Lucario, Dragonite and Zorua staring at Dexter and Noah's projections. Kirlia was sent on an important mission of distracting Squirtle from getting involved at what he might think of as 'a barrier stopping his burning will from executing the orders from the great bonds of Pokémon.'.

Which would be bad. Not an Explosion bad, but a V-Create bad.

"So our official proposal to why evolution lights are so insane, combined with our recordings of Arceus's energy, is that they are of the same material."

Noah continued. "It is proposed that a majority of the material formed Arceus himself, and the rest leaked into the world. Arceus used it to create the Plate and formed different types.

"The natural material are used to evolve a Pokémon, which explains their sudden gain in power and sudden invulnerability. It probably also is attracted to a large amount of a certain energy. Some combine with different types of stones, which had massive type energy in them, to form Evolution stones.

"Is there a way we can use it?" Domino asked.

Mew jumped forward and stopped them with a serious expression. " _Don't even dare to attempt to dissect the material until each and every one of you have reached at least Dragonite's level. It is way too insane._ "

"Ash, you have one new message from Professor Oak. It's in the form of a chart."

* * *

"I can't wait to get Horsea again! I can finally start diversifying, with a Kingdra to start." Misty led the walk toward Hutber Port.

Domino went up to her. "Mist, can I buy a Lure Ball from you?"  
Misty took out three. "Which one?"

Domino pointed at the one on the left, and the redhead threw it over. "Just take it. I have a gym supporting me. I don't need more money."

She smirked at Ash. "Guess you're the only one here broke."

Ash rolled his eyes. "So, what exactly are we coming here for?"  
"The giant Tentacruel, remember?" Misty had stars in her eyes. "They are so cute! I want to capture one this time."

Brock, Domino and Ash all cringed as Misty began her rant about the cuteness of Tentacool and Tentacruel.

Domino sent out Dragonite. "Can you fly us over to where the horde will appear?"

" _Sure, as long as Noah give me the directions._ "

Noah projected a map in front of them. The four trainers got on the shiny's back and soared away.

* * *

" _Why are you stopping me? You are also an old Pokémon. You know what humans are doing to us. They are ravaging our lands, destroying our food source, breaking our eggs!_ " The giant Tentacruel yelled into the face of the huge Dragonite.

" _First of all, respect your elders! You are only a thousand years old, so be quiet._ " The Dragon Pokémon scolded. " _Humans had done much for us. They taught us to train, to get better._ "

Tentacruel scowled. " _No, they do not. Certain ones with a pure heart did, like Sir Aaron from when I was first born. He was the Chosen. I only trust him. Chosens are proven to be pure._ "

Dragonite reached onto his back and grabbed Ash and Domino. " _They are the current Chosen and his Queen. They have asked me to fly them here to persuade you to not stampede the Port._ "

Tentacruel looked at them, and was taken back. He bowed down. " _Hello, Chosen and Queen. Sorry for my lack of manners. I was too outraged. Haven't you seen what humans have done to us?_ "

Domino levitated above Dragonite's hand and teleported in front of the Tentacruel. "I know about them, but please trust me, humans are not all bad. A lot of their actions are influenced by one negative source."

Ash continued, his voice louder due to the increase in distance. "The negative source here is Nastina, a billionaire who wants you all gone. She is the one rewarding money for ways to chase you all away."

Tentacruel raised a tentacle. " _Can I go and crush her head!?_ "

Domino held up her hand. "Let us humans take care of corruptions in our lands. Plus, be the bigger guy and let her live. It shows your superiority."

Ash added. "If you destroy the Port, then Leagues and the Elite Four, if you know what I am talking about…"  
Tentacruel nodded. " _Yes, I have stayed in touch with my network of other Water Pokémon._ "

"Good. If the Elite Four comes in, and they will because of your destruction of an entire island, they will cause more damage and casualties to your tribe, which is something we wouldn't want."

"So please, leave it up to us." Domino sent a Calm Mind his way.

Tentacruel calmed down effectively and grunted. " _If you did take care of it, can you please tell us? We will be waiting in this area._ "

The blonde girl nodded and teleported into Dragonite's palms, who placed the two on his back. The shiny Dragonite unfolded his wings and flew away.

The giant Tentacruel turned to his First Mate. " _Get ready to take control of the tribe. If she can complete this mission and help us out, I shall personally thank her by being her Pokémon._ "

* * *

"Please! Look at what you are doing to these poor, innocent Pokémon." Ash begged the old woman. "Let them live on."

She sneered and folded her arms. "They should have thought about it before they came to tamper with my land."

Ash pointed to the distance furiously. "A giant Tentacruel over a thousand years of age is about to storm this place if you don't stop!"  
"Yeah right, brat. Someone get him out of here!" A man with bulky shoulders came up, and was sent flying by a miniature Force Palm.

Suddenly, eight rifles appeared out of nowhere and pointed at him. He staggered back.

"If you don't leave, brat, I will have them fire."

Ash blew out a breath and turned around.

* * *

"Toldya that wouldn't work." Domino kicked her feet up into his lap. "Now you owe me a massage."

Ash rubbed her feet as he retaliated. "Like you have any better ideas?"  
Domino smirked. "You forgot who I was, Ashy."

She took out her phone and dialed in a number.

* * *

Giovanni's phone rang during his coffee break. He frowned. He had told all his agents to never bother him during his break time, unless in dire emergencies. He growled slightly and looked at the caller ID. His face softened and sighed.

"Hello Domino. What can I help you with?"

"I need you to threaten someone for me. A billionaire."  
Giovanni winced. "That's going to cost so much damage on our economics. I cannot grant that wish."

"What if I told you it was that b*tch Nastina?" A playful voice entered his ears.

Giovanni's face lit up with fire. "Consider it done."

* * *

The filthy rich old lady ran desperately into the Pokémon center. Domino crossed her legs and sat in a couch. Nastina jumped over and kneeled down.

"PLEASE! I'll listen to anything. Please don't take my property rights."  
Domino raised an eyebrow in disinterest. A black tulip appeared in her hand, and extended to become a long staff. A spark of electricity came out and shocked the woman. After a minute, she fell to the ground, her limbs twisting in weird motions and her distorted in pain.

"That was for treating my… badly yesterday." Domino gave her a kick. "Also, I want you to cancel all threats against Tentacool and Tentacruel. Take down all of your price money and other crap. Stop harassing them or deleting their food supplies. If I come back to find the tribe population had shrunk…"

She stuck her face in front of the rich woman's menacingly, "The threats will come true. I promise you they will."

* * *

Dragonite flew back with the two. Domino teleported in front of Tentacruel. "Job done. I promise she will not bother you guys any longer."  
Tentacruel smiled and bowed. " _Thank you for this. Thank you so much. I thank you on behalf of the entire tribe of your great contribution_."

Domino waved her hands. "No need to thank. And plus, I got a foot massage out of that."

She thought for a while and began again. "I do have one favor, Tentacruel."

" _What is it, my Queen?_ "

"I am looking for a Water Pokémon, and I think it would be an honor to have a brave Jellyfish Pokémon to join my team. Are there any who wished to join me."  
The giant Tentacruel smiled and waved to the First Mate, who chanted something using body language. The entire tribe stepped backwards a few feet, popping their leader out, as if a huge Tentacruel isn't attracting enough.

" _Queen Domino, I wished to join your ranks, as a thanks on behalf of saving our tribe from clashing with humans and potentially causing great loss to my children._

" _I shall now give you a chance to capture me, as long as one of your Pokémon is able to defeat me._ "

Domino smirked and motioned. "Dragonite, please do the honors."

The green dragon stepped forward, tossing Ash up to Domino in the process, who caught him with a burst of Psychic. She brought him to her, and Ash used the opportunity to hold her tightly.

"When did you get so strong?"  
"Since Ralts evolved to Kirlia. The boost really helped with a lot of psychic tricks." Domino blushed a bit due to his tight hold, no longer denying to herself of her enjoyment. She almost wanted to send a psychic pulse to Dragonite saying: "Make the battle slower."

* * *

Tentacruel looked at the green dragon. " _YOU're captured? How? You could beat up legendaries by yourself!_ "  
Dragonite shrugged. " _Queen Domino has a Mew, who is currently at the Tree of Beginning taking care of some duties. She and I basically traded life forces until she passed out under my attack, while I was badly wounded. The rest of her Pokémon took care of me after that point._ "

Tentacruel bowed. " _Then it is great honor to fight you, Dragonite!_ "

Dragonite returned the gesture. " _It's a pleasure to fight you as well._ "

* * *

Dragonite started things with a Dragon Dance, while using it to scuffle toward the Jellyfish. Tentacruel started dancing as well, and Rain Dance gather giant cumulus clouds, which started a downpour.

Using the advantage, he fired a Water Sprout. Dragonite's skin shone, and the damage was lessened repeatedly by the Iron Defense, boosted stats from Dragon Dance, and his natural type advantage.

Dragonite retaliated with a Thunder, piercing through the raindrops to hit him. Tentacruel used Surf by smashing down his giant tentacles, bringing a huge water wall to block the electric attack. The ocean absorbed it, leaving Tentacruel unharmed under the shiny's counter attack.

The Jellyfish fired a wave of Toxic at the Dragon, whose strong wings swung up a Gust, which carried both the poison and the Rain cloud away from the battlefield, wiping Tentacruel's advantage.

He then charged in with Dragon Rush combined with a second attack of Dragon Tail. The first was stopped by Tentacruel's reflexive Protect. The enormous Dragon energy was spent to pop the shield, allowing his purple-gleaming tail to smash into the Jellyfish, landing the first critical hit of the battle.

Tentacruel was sent flying. Even so, he didn't forget about Dragonite's weakness, demonstrated by his launch of a Blizzard.

Dragonite, however, looked at the incoming threat with no interest. " _I have counters to the counters to the counters of all Ice Type moves. What else would you think I was doing for the past centuries?_ "

A Hurricane formed on his head, which crashed into the snow cloud. Both were sent in a direction away from the battlefield after the collision.

Dragonite forced his way in for a Giga Impact, followed by two Hyper Beams. Tentacruel gathered himself after taking the immense amount of damage. " _Okay, stop! I surrender._ "

Dragonite shrugged and move back near Domino, who commented, surprised. "Pokémon can surrender?"

The Jellyfish nodded as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. " _Of course we can. There is no way I can beat Dragonite, and also I would have followed you even if you lost. Plus, if you humans were fighting a battle that you know you would lose without a purpose, you wouldn't do it either._ "

Domino shrugged and threw her Lure Ball. She had wanted to catch a normal Tentacruel, but getting their leader seemed as satisfying.

She let out the Water Type after Noah registered the capture. "Actually, Tentacruel, can you do me one favor?"

" _What do you need, my Queen?_ "

"My friend wanted to catch a Tentacruel for her Water team. She's a great trainer, and will definitely treat whoever comes with her with kindness."

The tribe leader nodded at the request. " _Which one of you want to go on an adventure with a human? I know I've told you before that humans can't do crap, but that is not entirely true. A Chosen's friend is trustworthy, and she's probably also really helpful as well._ "

A bunch of Tentacool and Tentacruel stepped forward, in high hopes of seeing the bigger world. Misty picked one of the evolved Pokémon and threw her Lure Ball. The capture registered automatically.

The leader turned back to his tribe one last time and waved. " _Everyone be well, be safe._ "

He then faced his First Mate. " _Take care of them. I shall see you later!_ "

With that, the giant Tentacruel faded back into his Pokéball.

Dragonite tossed the three humans onto his back with Brock, and was about to take off when Misty stopped him. "Wait. I think I see Horsea."

In the corner of the Tentacruel crowd stood a Horsea. Dragonite flew over. " _Hello, fellow Dragon Pokémon._ "

* * *

 **A/N: There we go. Domino gets another powerful, ancient Pokémon. Team Rocket shows its talons. I liked writing about the organization with feeling and connections bigger than crime, and also Giovanni with feelings. Everyone has feeling, just some hide it better and deeper than others.**

 **The beginning of the chapter also details the ranks of legendary Pokémon that I would be constantly referring to in later chapters. If you want to suggest anything about that, please do so.**

 **I love the contrast of Domino being sweet on Ash, and then turning aggressive toward other people, especially those who piss her off.**

 **I just made a poll where you viewers can decide the future of the series. Go check it out and give me an answer.**

 **Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoy the chapter. Review is always appreciated!**


	20. Cha 19: Kanto 19

"Dexter, can you start a scanning of the area? Primeape should here."

"Yes, this is the spot."

"Great." Ash closed his eyes and used Aura Sight. He shot up a few seconds later. "Got it."

Domino poked over and took Ash's hat with a burst of Aura. "I heard that the first time you guys met, Primeape stole your hat just like that."

"Give me my hat back!" Ash rushed at Domino, who danced out of his grip.

"Make me!" She winked.

Ash watched her jump over a rock, and how her ̶v̶o̶l̶u̶p̶t̶u̶o̶u̶s̶ legs swung over the stone. He quickly shook his head and ran after her, knowing he wouldn't catch her unless she let him.

And of course, she did. Pretty soon, they were rolling on the ground, laughing. Domino bent herself over a rock to hide the hat. Instead of circling around her, he decided to stay in place and stared at her backside… which he had to admit, was nice.

"What are you doing?" Domino turned around and asked him knowingly.

"Ummm, look it's Mankey!" Ash blushed and pointed in a direction.

"Sure Ashy…" Domino placed his hat on her head, "Were you checking me out?"

"Uhhh…"

She snuggled into him. "Do I look cute?"

"Yeah… I mean… the hat looks great on you." Ash stuttered as he started blushing.

Domino looked at him with the sun shining in her face. "Can I have it then?"

"Yeah, sure, of course," Ash mumbled, then jolted to his senses. "WAIT! WHAT did you ask?"

Domino tossed the hat around in her hands. "I'll keep it on your head for now though. You're going to be m̶i̶n̶e̶, I mean my wardrobe."

* * *

" _Hey Zorua. How's your day going?_ " Pikachu sat down next to her nonchalantly.

Zorua fluffed her pillow under her. " _It's okay, I guess._ "

Pikachu sneaked a peak at her. " _You look great today. Did Domino brush your fur?_ "

She looked at him lazily. " _So I didn't look great yesterday?_ "

" _No, no, you look great yesterday."_

" _What about the day before._ "

Pikachu lamented at his luck at the Pokémon who was playing hard to get so well. " _You look great everyday._ "

Zorua beamed, turning herself to him and purred. " _Really!?_ "

Pikachu nodded, and kept nodded. An awkward silence befell them, and the electric mouse broke it abruptly by clearing his throat. " _Anyways, I want to thank you for beating up Raichu for me, and finish him using my electric move. That must be stressful_ "

" _No problem._ " Zorua came to him and rubbed herself against him slightly. " _Oh by the way, your 10,000,000 Volt Thunderbolt was pretty cool too._ "

Pikachu's ears piped up, " _You think so?_ "

" _Mmhmm._ " Zorua nodded, and transformed into a Pikachu. " _Look at me! I'm Pikachu! Eat Thunderbolt!_ "

She fired a Thunderbolt into the sky, and Pikachu laughed at her impression.

" _You're pretty good._ " He complimented while holding up a victory sign behind his back.

" _Aww… I know. I am the Tricky Fox!_ " Her tail swagged around happily.

* * *

He looked around. The Mankey had hidden well. He would need everything he got to deal with this situation. Lucario closed his eyes, and was promptly hit by a banana to the face.

" _Haha, sucker!_ " He heard yelling from the distance, and sprinted after it with Extremespeed.

Reaching a clearing, he saw a giant fist coming his way. Lucario twirled around and launched a High Jump kick at him. The Mankey dodged agily, and swung a Dynamic Punch. The Steel Type used Counter, and forced the Fighting move back with a much greater Force.

Mankey charged up a Karate Chop and lunged at Lucario, who placed a Protect in the nick of time.

Swinging his tail around, he used Iron Tail and knocked Mankey back. Using the precious seconds of Pig Monkey's disadvantage, he charged up a Close Combat and smashed him to the ground, ending the battle.

* * *

" _Here._ " Lucario threw the Pokémon down next to Ash. Ash touched him, and he jolted back to consciousness.

" _Ash!?_ "

His trainer shushed him and started Dexter's tape, now getting increasingly longer.

Primeape digested the tape, and then looked up at Lucario challengingly. " _I want a rematch! Now I have the training of eight years in me."_

" _You got it, partner._ "

Ash looked at his two Fighting types and groaned. "Maybe sometime after. Us three and Pikachu can have a mock battle. Right now, we need to hurry our way to Celadon, right Domino?"

The blonde girl sighed. "I'm really turning into a transportation system, aren't I?"

Ash walked over and held her meaningfully. "You're much more than a transportation system."

"Arceus help me!" Misty screamed. "How are these two still not dating?"

* * *

" _You'll have to ask Crator, not me. I have no say in this._ " Arceus said into the phone.

"That's a banana." Sir Aaron stared at him.

* * *

"Remember to not say stupid crap about their special perfume, Ashley!" Brock pat Ash on the back.

He groaned in response. "When are you guys letting that go? It's been eight years."

"First, it's been a few negative hours, and second, you go that in the future as well."

Domino flicked Ash on the back of the head. "I will assure you he will not anymore."

"You DON'T control me!" Ash yelled back.

Domino gave him a look.

"... That much."

The Rocket Elite pouted at him.

"Fine, you control me, Princess."

A voice interrupted their flirting. "Welcome to the Celadon Perfume Shop. What can I get you?"

As usual with woman, Brock spoke up first. "Oh my beautiful…"

And as usual, of course, Misty dragged him back.

Ash cleared his throat. "Erika, I'm looking for a gym battle."

She shook her head. "Sorry, I do not talk about battling in this shop, only in the gym. Therefore, please wait until the gym is opened at noon."

Ash sighed, too afraid to be banned again. "Okay."

* * *

"Are you clear on the rules?" Erika welcomed them into the gym, after making them wait another hour. She is now dressed in a T-shirt and shorts, contrasting the formal dress in the shop.

Ash nodded. Unlike the first time, he came prepared this time. "You must use your highest evolved Pokémon, as well as a Pokémon for each evolution after it."

"Yes, so if you have a three-stage, you need to first use a two-stage and one-stage. If your highest is two-stage, then you must first use a one-stage." Erika approved of his description.

"Who's going first?"

"I'll go." Domino stepped up. She winked to Ash. "I can't afford to lose the chance of bragging to you again.

* * *

"What's you highest staged?" Erika asked the volunteered girl.

"Third-stage. Yes, I have others prepared."

"Great, come this way."

Erika led them through a long hallway to reach her arena. The blue walls were dotted with white specks, and the ceiling was made of glass, with fancy red constructs on the side.

"Erika, did you model this after Gloom," Misty asked her.

"Yes. It took me so long to remodel, but it was worth it when I saw Gloom's face."

Erika sighed happily and went to her side of the battlefield. Ash whispered to Domino, "And she WON'T be so happy when you destroys half of it."

Domino elbowed him. "Maybe I will so that she gets so pissed she kicked you out.

* * *

"Go Tangela!" Erika threw out her first ball, revealing a Pokémon surrounded in threads who landed in front of her.

Domino sent out Spiritomb. A light flashes, and the Forbidden Pokémon Levitated. Tangela began to flail her vine constructs around, and used three different Vine Whip. Spiritomb used Shadow Force to phase through the incoming vines and Fire Punch her.

Tangela lit up on fire and started to run around the camp. As she ran, a wave of Stun Spores poured out and began to cover Spiritomb. The Forbidden Pokémon pulsed out a Shockwave, burning off the spores.

Tangela jumped up from Spiritomb and used her vines as a grappling hook to grab and lock onto the red construct of the roof and pulled himself up. Spiritomb missed his Shadow Claw and used Silver Wind to charge himself.

Tangela burst into a glow of green as her Leaf Storm was carried down to the ground. Spiritomb used Dragon Pulse to vibrate the leaves away from him. Using this distraction, Tangela jumped down with her eleven Double Teams and landed with a burst of a grass type energy. A giant wooden construct burst out of the mud of the arena and formed a tomb around Spiritomb.

The Forbidden Pokémon looked at her opponent's performance. " _Why do you not notice that I am a Ghost type? I can just get out like this._ "

Tangela's jaw dropped as he got out of the trap and launched a Flamethrower in her face, knocking her out.

Spiritomb bowed, and then Returned himself.

"That was… interesting."

* * *

Erika massage the base of her nose as she sent Gloom out. "I'm not going easy this time. She is my starter and she's been through everything with me."

Domino smirked at hearing this. "In that case, I shall use a pretty strong next Pokémon. Kirlia, get ready for your first battle!"

Kirlia's form materialized in front of Gloom.

"Let the battle begin!" The referee announced.

Gloom surrounded himself in Sleep Powder and dashed off. Kirlia turned into twelve different Double Teams. Gloom released a puff of Sweet Scent around him so that if Kirlia appears in a radius of him, she would be detected.

A Psybeam went his way, and clipped him and he dodged partly. The battlefield turned into a field of plants as the Weed Pokémon used Grassy Terrain and Implant himself, regenerating the health loss from the previous attack.

Kirlia sighed. " _This is going to take a while_."

Gloom threw a storm of Petal Blizzard at Kirlia, who teleported out of the way. As if knowing that, the sharp petal spread throughout the entire arena, forcing Kirlia to be unable to teleport again until they cleared.

The Grass Type followed with a Petal Dance, launching straight at Kirlia. She raised a Light Screen, which withstood the attack under being trained by Dragonite's Hyper Beam, Tentacruel Hydro Cannon, and Mew's Genesis Supernova.

* * *

"Noah, can you add to the training list: Ways to counter wide-range attacks?"

"In an attempt to stop teleporting? I'm on it."

* * *

Gloom dodged a Psybeam fired her way, and was hit with the next Psycho Cut. However, her health was immediately regenerated. Kirlia looked at Domino. " _Do you have anything?_ "

Her trainer hummed. "Do you know Heal Block?"

" _Nope. Mew didn't teach that yet._ "

Domino placed out her hands. "Then I guess there's only one way- Destroy the grass."

Kirlia nodded and teleported into close quarters with Gloom, but was immediately pummeled by a storm of petals and leaves.

" _Psywave!_ " A pulse of psychic spread with her body being the center, forcing away the Grass constructs. She looked around to see Gloom occupied with a complicated dance. She started the preparation of a large-area Psychic. Then, she was hit on the side with a Sunny-Day-boosted Solar Beam.

Kirlia yelped and teleported out, but not before retaliating with a Psystrike. The beam spent quite a bit of energy dashing through the Grass Type's defenses, but promptly hit her in the chest. Gloom closed her eyes and used Rest, recovering the entirety of her health. Kirlia was expecting the leaf storm to go down.

A new wave of petals rushed out of his opening at the top as he provided more plants with Sleep Talk.

Kirlia decided to stop that with Dream Eater. Gloom woke up from her Rest, and the Feeling Pokémon recovered to full health. A Razor Blade flew at her, which exploded into the green energy of Giga Drain.

That hit Kirlia on the side, draining her and pouring health back into Gloom.

* * *

Domino shook her head. "This is taking forever."

Ash looked up from his chess match with Brock. "What did you say?"

* * *

Gloom smirked. " _Thanks, Kirlia._ "  
" _For what?_ " A confused Kirlia asked him.

" _For giving me enough time to prepare for this attack._ " Gloom waved his hands, and the storm of leaves and petals sunk into the Grassy Terrain, allowing it to stretch all the way across the battleground.

" _You see, while I was stalling time, I used the opportunity to plant a crap ton of seeds in the ground, and you gave me the time to infuse each of them with enough Grass Type energy to…_ "

" _Extreme Frenzy Plant!_ "

Kirlia watched as giant wooden constructs, vines and a fury of greenery spouted out from the entire arena, leaving her no place to teleport. Massive plants extended themselves over, crashing through her Light Screens in a few seconds, and knocking her out.

Domino's jaw dropped. "What!?"  
Erika shook her finger at her. "Never underestimate a Gym Leader."

* * *

"Gloom come back, great work. Have a good rest for now. Go Venusaur!"

"You just took this to a whole different level, woman." Domino's eyes narrowed. "Dragonite!"

The shiny materialized, towering in front of the Seed Pokémon.

"Let's make this fast. Dragon Pulse." Dragonite fired out a dark purple wave that crashed into Venusaur.

"Use the distance to your advantage. Bullet Leech Seed."

A dozen Leech Seed were fired at the Dragon, but had the momentum as Bullet Seed. Dragonite roared and lit up in Flare Blitz, burning off any Grass Energy that came close to him.

He charged. For such an enormous Pokémon, his was truly agile. He Fly into the air and used gravity to dive down in a furious Brave Bird. Venusaur tried to disturb his flight with a Leaf Storm and Petal Dance, but was burned as soon as the plants reached a radius of three feet of him. Venusaur used the Sunny Day left over from Gloom to launch a Solar Beam.

Dragonite looked at the forth-coming beam, shrugged, and deflected it with Steel Wing. His tail danced in a specific pattern, and his wings waving around as well.

His Brave Bird attack, boosted by Dragon Dance and Tailwind, smashed into the evolved Kanto starter, a super-effective move.

The result is obvious.

* * *

Erika walked up and shook Domino's hand. "Congratulations for the Rainbow Badge. It had been a while since someone defeated my seven badge gym with an outstanding score of 2-1."

The Rocket Elite sulked a bit though. "I could have gotten the battle with Gloom as well if I paid more attention."

The Grass Type trainer pat her shoulder. "You can't be perfect, or else what is the point of training. If you win, battling would be pointless. Learn from your mistakes, and others' mistakes, and improved upon them. That's the key to success."

Domino smiled and took her badge over. "Thanks Erika."

She bounced to Ash's chess table and dangled it in front of his face. Ash opened his mouth. "Yeah, yeah, Princess. You got a badge before me, congrats."

Domino pat his cheek lightly. "Ashy is beginning to know his job."

Ash rolled his eyes and placed the badge in her box. Standing up, he stretched. "Time for mine!"

* * *

"This would be a gym battle between Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town and Gym Leader Erika of Celadon City. Rules would be the same as the last battle."

"Begin!"  
Erika pointed, and a Bellsprout appeared on the spot. Ash pondered his choice, and shook his head. "Why not?"

A ball of water was shot out of the Pokéball he held up, which landed on the ground to form a layer of supercooled liquid. Squirtle landed in the puddle he just made. " _Let the magnificent will of this Squirtle conquer the world and rid it of pests and evils._ "

Bellsprout looked at him. " _Did you just call me a 'pest' and 'evil'?_ "

Squirtle held up his hand. " _It's nothing personal, bro. I just need to do an intro everytime I come out._ "

" _Why are you wearing sunglasses?_ "

" _It's my insignia as the leader of the Squirtle Squad._ "

" _Also, thanks for giving me time to charge up a Hydro Cannon. Take this!_ "

A massive torrent of water went shooting at Bellsprout, who struggled to trudge through the puddle Squirtle made, due to being nearly frozen and now mixed with the dirt of the ground. Vines shot of him and attached to the far wall, as he attempted to grapple himself to the other side.

Squirtle pointed on top of him. " _Nothing shall stop the execution of the pestering spirits whom the Squirtle Squad is in charge of._ " A Waterfall appeared, tearing the vines from the wall and knocking the Flower Pokémon back and into the Water Type Hyper Beam variant.

The Tiny Turtle pointed again. " _Though this will is burning with the desire to unite, it can also cool the world like these shades! I say freeze!_ " He took off his glasses and pointed at the Bellsprout struggling in the water.

The entire pool Squirtle had created froze into a giant ice block, trapping the Flower Pokémon in the center.

Ash looked at Erika. "I think that's my win."

Erika shook her head. "Don't get cocky."

* * *

"Sunflora!" Erika sent out her second Pokémon. "This is a Pokémon from Johto that my friend gave me as a Sunkern."

"Excuse me please." Ash sighed and sent out Lucario. He rubbed his forehead and pointed at Pikachu. "You two are the only two-stage Pokémon I have. Therefore, duke it out for the rights to fight."

Lucario and Pikachu looked at each other, and both yelled. " _ME!_ "

Their eyes both narrowed.

" _THUNDER!_ "

" _FORCE PALM!_ "

Both attacks connected. Pikachu flew into one side of Ash's directing area, and Lucario crashed into the opposite.

Pikachu got out from under the wreckage which was once a table and jumped into the arena, while Lucario stayed down. " _Haha, I won! I love the Paralysis effect._ "

He turned to the Sunflora, whose jaws, like her trainers, were not closed. " _Let's start._ "

She did not answer.

Pikachu shrugged. " _Fine by me._ "

" _Galvanic Burst!_ " A wave of lightning formed around Pikachu, and a pillar made of electricity with a diameter of at least three feet smashed into his poor opponent, sending her straight through the middle of the wall.

Erika stared in the horror of the situation. Misty went over and hugged her. "I know how it feels to see you gym destroyed. Ash did it to me too."

Erika came back to her senses. "I was worried about SUNFLORA! Not the gym walls!"

Brock shrugged. "Nothing to worry about. Pikachu always control his electricity well, even though that might look…"

"Savagely vicious?"  
'Yeah…"

* * *

Lucario sulked. " _WHY!? I'm learning counters to Paralysis starting tomorrow._ "

Ash looked at him weirdly. "You can just pulse your aura through and cancel it out easily."

Lucario shook his head. "Obviously you haven't been shocked by boosted Pikachu."

* * *

"Vileplume!: Erika looked at Ash fiercely. "Give me another great battle!"  
"Butterfree, you're about to leave soon. Want to finish out with a bang?" Ash released him.

The Butterfly flew into the arena. " _Gladly, Ash!_ "

He turned to look at Vileplume. " _I'll apologize ahead of time for the next fifteen minutes._ "

Vileplume fired a Razor Leaf at him. " _Hey! Where's your manners? Don't throw that at me!_ "

Butterfree flew into the air and started flying in the complicated pattern of his own invention of Sunny Day. Rays shot down through the windows, much fiercer than the one Gloom had put up.

Twelve green balls formed next to him. He turned into twelve Double Teams as well.

Vileplume placed up a shield, hoping it would provide safety.

It did not.

* * *

Ash looked at his loyal Bug Type and did a double take. He shot his hands forward to form Protect shields. Dexter appeared and formed Light Screens. Pikachu joined in with his version of an electric shield- a monstrosity using Shockwaves as their yew.

Domino ducked down behind the bleachers. Zorua jumped down from her shoulders and turned her body in Shadow Force. Noah, like Dexter with Ash, helped Domino with Light Screens.

* * *

" _Taste this! Sunplosion!"_ The twelve Solar Beams, instead of shooting down all at once, collided with each other, forming a miniature sun in the arena's roof.

Butterfree flung that massive ball of energy at Erika's third stage Pokémon.

A mushroom cloud rose out of the ground.

* * *

"How close was that to the power of a nuclear bomb?"

"According to my calculations, it has five-seventh the impact of a hydrogen bomb."

"So you're saying that if I'm Kim Jong Un and I just tested out my missiles and found that they can hit Alaska with Donald Trump not being able to do anything, I just need to fill it up with the miniature suns?"

"Precisely."

* * *

Erika slammed the Rainbow badge in Ash's hand, clearly not as pleased with him as his blonde travelmate. "Congratulations, and here's the bill."

Ash took it over, and saw the number. He turned to Domino and sighed. "I can't believe I'm asking this…"

Domino gave Erika a card. She took it over and looked at them suspiciously. "You guys aren't dating right?"  
The couple, even though they weren't, felt an instant rage to the seemingly to their ears offensive statement. The blonde blurted. "Tell me why."

Erika was taken back by her outburst and Ash's same irritated face. "Well, I mean, the girl never pays in a relationship. I'm sorry if I'm mistaken."

Ash sighed. "You're not mistaken."  
Anyone hearing his statement could feel a sense of disappointment.

* * *

 **A/N: A bunch of you had asked me why Domino is getting all of the OP Pokemon. Remember that Ash himself already have pokemon who are OP as crap. Pikachu is self-explanatory. Ho-Oh is a legendary. He's got two Megas, and a bunch of other insane pokemon, like Squirtle who can basically ignore reality. I have to buff up Domino a lot to allow her a fair fight with Ash in the League.**

 **In addition, I'm trying to create the image that the two of them are equal, not just Ash leading their entire journey. It's a romance fic.**

 **Why can Ash and Domino's team wreck everyone? B/c that's the point. They must be OP as hell to save the world.**

 **Oh, also, they transformed from getting mad when people say they are a couple to when people denied their being a couple. Quite interesting…**

 **In addition, Pikachu and Zorua are starting to get it on as well.**

 **There is a poll where you viewers can decide the future of the series. Please give me an answer and choose only once.**

 **Please review, and keep the GS Ball suggestions coming in. I must clarify, it must be a legendary, or an insane Pokémon from the anime that is as strong as a normal legend, like Domino's Dragonite and Tentacruel or Ash's Lucario.**


	21. Cha 20: Kanto 20

"Onward to HopHopHop Town." Ash cringed as the words left his mouth. "I feel like my dignity just fell a level."

Domino placed her hand on his shoulder. "You don't have to worry about that. You don't have any."

"Hey! I resent that!"

Misty groaned. "Do I have to capture Psyduck again?"

"Actually Misty, your Psyduck is unusually stronger than others. It's partly because of his brain waves are so strong that it began to overload his brain, which causes the headache. With Mew here, we can probably figure something out for him."

Misty looked at Domino with a pleading look. "Can you?"

She shrugged. "Probably. If I can write a training course for Mewtwo, I can sort out a headache."

The wall of the dimension shook as a strong beam of Psystrike exploded. Mewtwo turned around and flickered his tail. " _What happened?_ "

"Apparently, you were supposed ta use it slowly." Meowth raised his finger. "That's the nineteenth typo for today."

A wave of nausea hit Ash and co. as they walked down the street. "Oh yeah, there's that stupid group using a Hypno to sleep."

"Domino, can you give us an anti-psychic shield?"

"Yep." An invisible curtain formed over them.

"Dexter, do you have the coordinates of their hideout?"

"Yep. Here you go."

The door slammed open. "Are you guys mad, using psychic moves that have an effect on the entire city?"

The head of them looked back to find Ash walking in. "Do you know how much side effect there is?"

"Hypno! Use Hypnosis on that boy!"

Hypno pulsed, and nothing happened. Ash rolled his eyes and dashed forward, punching the Hypnosis Pokemon with a Force Palm.

"Why didn't you just ask a Grass Type to use Grass Whistle? Yawn? Sleep Powder? Spore? Why didn't you just seek the help of a doctor?"

Misty whispered. "I didn't know there were so many ways to put someone to sleep."

Domino added. "There are other ways, but they are all stuck in the Rocket base."

Misty held out a Pokéball. "I can't believe I'm doing this…"

She threw the ball at the yellow duck in front of her, who was captured easily. She released him, and then pushed Psyduck toward Domino. "Your turn."

Domino caught the duck and sat him down with her and Kirlia. "Now, just relax and not do anything."

Psyduck blinked at her blankly.

The blonde girl sighed. "Mist, is he always this creepy staring at you."

"YEP!"

The psychic sighed and pressed her hand against Psyduck's head. "Let's see, ways to extend a Pokémon's brain capacity. Maybe we can used Calm Mind?"

"Nope. That'll only solve the problem temporarily. Maybe we can suppress the brain wave down to a tolerable level until the Psyduck needs to battle."

Kirlia looked at her trainer. " _How?_ "

"We need something that can suppress psychic energy. Is there any?"

" _Hmm, Reflect?_ "

"No. It'll reflect the wave inside the brain, so nothing would happen."

Ash walked over. "Maybe I can help."

The blonde rolled her eyes. "What can YOU help with, Doughnut?"

Ash smirked. "Dark energy."

Domino and Kirlia blinked, then facepalmed.

"Okay Psyduck, this might feel a bit weird, but just accept whatever energy is going through your mind, okay?" Domino asked him. She shook her head. "Of course you're not giving me a response."

"Hand it over, Ash." Ash placed a TM into her hand.

"Here's Miracle Eye."

Domino pressed the Miracle Eye TM onto Psyduck's head, which decompensated into special energy and rushed into Psyduck's head. The two psychics opened their psychic senses, while Ash charged up Aura Sight.

The stream of psychic energy pressed into the Duck's brain and began to form into a mirror-like structure.

" _That's GENIUS!_ " The Alpha Pokemon exclaimed from his lazyboy. " _Why didn't I think of that when I made the species?_ "

As soon as the hollow mirror formed, a wave of psychic brain waves rushed into it due to a lack of space. The resulting energy was pulses of anti-psychic wave, which resonated off to neutralize the storming psychic waves in Psyduck's brain.

"How does that even work?" Sir Aaron looked over from baking chocolate lava cake.

" _Since Psyduck is constantly filled with psychic energy that they can't control, Miracle Eye is constantly activated by it, which reflect off to form the counters of psychic. It balances the psychic waves that spilled out from his brain, causing them to not have a headache._ "

"What if the Miracle Eye stopped being powered after all of the extra energy is used up?"

" _Then Psyduck won't have a headache. When the extra energy spilled out again, it will reactivate automatically._ "

Sir Aaron blinked. "That's freaking genius. No wonder she's the Queen."

" _No sh*t. Queens are a lot smarter than the Chosen. The Chosen's job is to make the general guide for the rescue of the world. The Queen's job is to figure out the details and stop the Chosen from making rash decisions._ "

"I've never got a Queen…"

" _And that's why you died after your dealings with the Tree of Beginning. I didn't plan to give Ash one originally either. Then Crator came and overpowered me._ "

"Psyduck?" Domino pet the Water Type. "How are you feeling?"

He blinked. " _Wow. That felt… It's neat not to have a constant headache._ "

Misty pumped her fist in the air. "YES! He's cured!"

Domino stopped the happy trainer. "Hold on, something you two should know is that when you use the psychic energy to battle, since you can do that because you are a lot more different than the others of your species due to your overwhelming amount of brain waves, you must turn off Miracle Eye manually. That means that the headache will be back until the move re-activates.

Psyduck shrugged. " _I'm greatly enough that 99% of my day isn't full of a raging headache._ "

Misty nodded. "Fine by me. Thank you Dom. So much."

The Rocket Elite smirked. "That's what friends are for, right?"

Misty smiled with her and grabbed her hand. "That's right. Friends."

Domino gave her a happy sigh. "You know, the feeling is interesting. I don't have a lot of friends in the Rocket headquarters."

"Now you do."

" **A good place to find Keystone is within the depth of the Kalos Terminus mine. It contains many rare gems, including a ruby mine. Small pockets of Keystone can be found dotted along the cave under 3000 ft."**

"What's that?" Gary looked up to find Giselle peeking over his shoulder at his research journal. "What's a Keystone?"

"Keystone is used to Mega-Evolve a Pokémon that is held by the trainer."

Giselle fell into silence. Gary looked at him expectantly and asked. "Aren't you going to ask me what Mega-Evolving is?"

Giselle shrugged. "Isn't it obvious? Evolving beyond a normal state to become more Mega."

"Wow, you're smart." Gary nodded. "It's evolving beyond the normal stages of Pokémon. You'll need a stone with an enormous amount of life force, which corresponds to each Pokémon who can Mega-Evolve."

Giselle nodded. "You already started the research process? How did you get the time?"

Gary rubbed his neck. "I'm… complicated. Let's just say in truth, I've been researching for a while."

Giselle looked down. "Too bad I still don't have a research topic. I mean, Pokémon cloning is cool, but there's not a lot of material."

"You'll get to it. Interest will come gradually." Violet said next to her. "When I first started with Pokémon, Daisy forced me into Pokémon battling to help her with the gym, after our parents disappeared. Now I love training Pokémon."

Giselle nodded. "I guess. We'll have to see. Definitely."

Ash and co. found themselves on Scissor Street, the famous Lane of Breeders. Brock went in a beeline for a beauty parlor for Pokémon. A woman came out, carrying her Eevee, decorated with light fur styles and a blue bow on her head.

"Are you all going to Suzie's salon? Let me tell you, she's amazing. She can transform anything into a piece of art."

Brock nodded vigorously. "I know. She's the best."

Misty dragged him into the shop, followed by Ash and Domino.

A voice spoke up. "Hello, how may I help you?" Suzie stood in front of them, smiling.

"Hello, my name is Brock." He said maturely.

WAIT! HOLD ON! Brock? Mature!?

He continued. "I'm looking to be a Pokémon breeder, and I hope you can give some pointers.

Domino whispered to Ash. "Why doesn't he think Suzie is cute?"

Misty sighed. "He does, but his love for breeding and his respect for her overwhelm the other… sexual desires.

"I would love to!" Suzie led them over to a few chairs. "But first, I have to ask. Do you guys have a Pokémon that wants to be remodeled?"

Zorua popped out of her Pokéball. " _Oooo! Me!_ " She hopped onto a table next to Vulpix.

Suzie chuckled and placed a small curtain over Zorua. "People can't see my work process until I finish. Having people stare at my makes my design worse."

She picked up a pair of scissors. "Okay. I can work on her and talk. So in my opinion, breeding…"

"You guys ready?"

They nodded furiously, curious to see Zorua's finishing results.

( **A/N: Link to the picture I had in mind: 396b/f/2011/239/a/c/rq_aurora_the_zorua_by_kawaii_** )

She flipped open the curtain, revealing Zorua in all her glory. Pikachu's jaw crashed down onto Ash's shoulder and started drooling. Zorua winked at the Electric Type and motioned him over with her paw. Pikachu mindlessly stepped forward, then crashed to the ground, forgetting that he was standing on Ash.

He quickly jumped up with Agility. Zorua covered her mouth and started to giggle. Pikachu trotted toward her. "Pika…"

Ash turned to Domino. "Did he just say Pika?"

"Don't know what that means either."

Misty coughed. "This reminds me some other scene… like, for example, their trainers."

Pikachu glomped Zorua, and the two rolled around the table happily.

Brock came over and looked at the mouse and the fox, shrugged, and placed a pot of the Pokéchow he just cooked on a nearby table. "How's this? I use your recipe."

Suzie came over and examined the food. "Hmm, not sure. We should get a Pokémon to try it. Since you said you understand Pokémon, we can then get its opinion"

Vulpix jumped over and wagged her six tails. Suzie's eyebrows raised up in surprise. "You want to try this?"

She looked up at Brock to clarify her previous statement. "It's not that I don't think it's good, but that she never ate anything that I didn't cook."

Brock motioned the Vulpix to the bowl. "No problem. It's your recipe anyways."

Vulpix took a bite, and tilted her head, as if judging the taste. She took another mouthful, and nodded furiously. " _I think this is somehow better than yours, Suzie._ "

Ash translated that in disbelief. "Suzie, I think he just said he liked Brock's more than yours."

Suzie looked at Brock in skepticism. "You used my recipe?"

Brock nodded. "Maybe he's just hungry?"

Suzie shook her head. "No, this had happened for a while. I'm a breeder famous for my insanely good recipe, but my cooking skills are only mediocre. I'm assuming that you are an outstanding cook?"

Brock chuckled. "I have a bunch of younger siblings, and good cooking was part of the key to keep them happy."

Suzie nodded. "My cooking skills had been the thing dragging me down. I really wanted to go on a journey to learn more about it, but I can't find someone who can take care of Vulpix… Until now."

Suzie smiled at him and held his hand. "Brock, can I ask you a favor."

Brock was in a daze. "Sureeee."

"It's okay if you say no, because she is a lot of trouble to take care of. I want to ask whether you can take care of Vulpix while I go on a journey."

Brock stuck his finger in front of her, betting that she wouldn't use Bite.

Vulpix licked him lightly, and then curled back up.

Suzie grinned. "I think she likes you. So, what do you say?"

The Rock trainer smiled and nodded. "Of course I'll do it. Who doesn't want to be with this cutie?"

"In that case, Vulpix is yours." She picked up the Fox Pokémon and dropped it into Brock's lap.

"Suzie, I cannot thank you enough."

"No problem. Vulpix isn't mine. She can choose whoever she accepts."

Ash looked over at the Electric and Dark Types pressed against each other on the desk. "Hey, lovebirds. It's time to go."

Pikachu stuck out his tongue. "Lovebird himself says who's a lovebird?"

Ash and co. walked out of the salon, Brock cradling Vulpix. He looked at Ash. "Want to do the honors?"

Ash chuckled. "No one else can. Try to control her so she doesn't Flamethrower me."

"You've been through way worse anyways." Ash laughed with him and touched Vulpix with a blue-hand. At the same time, Dexter materialized.

Domino sat by Sableye. "So yeah, that was the story. What do you think?"

Sableye looked at her with his eyes of gems. " _I think I need to train a lot harder and master at least one technique that is not supposed to be possible._ "

Kirlia nodded. " _That's a good start. But eventually, we want to work our way slowly up to three or four. Also, manipulating the battlefield environment is very important too._ "

Zorua turned to her. " _When did you say we are going to start the science lesson?_ "

Domino thought for a while. "Maybe after the next gym."

Spiritomb nodded. " _That sounds fair._ "

Sableye cleared his throat, and the attention was back on him. " _So what should my thing be?_ "

" _Hmm, I would think something Ghost and Dark Type related._ "

Zorua rolled her eyes and poked Pikachu. " _No really, Sherlock!_ "

Pikachu glomped her and wrapped his yellow arms around her. He stuck his nose into her purple hair wrapped around her head. The Tricky Fox purred under the touch and rubbed her nose against the Electric Type.

Kirlia raised an eyebrow. " _When did you get here?_ "

Spiritomb shrugged. " _Do you expect him somewhere that Zorua isn't at?_ "

" _Good point._ "

Domino coughed. "Back to Sableye. I can suggest a bunch of stuff, but I would say to follow your heart. You can get a lot of motivation in battle, when you are super-concentrated and when an opponent had trapped you or given you an opportunity to knock him or her out, but you don't have the move."

" _Or you can watch some anime. I'm pretty sure that's how Squirtle get his ideas._ " A pink fluffy cat materialized next to Domino.

She jumped. "When did you get back?"

Mew replied coolly and hanged herself by the tail a tree branch on top of them. " _The Tree is good, so here I am. Did I miss anything too important?_ "

"Yeah, one thing. I got a giant Tentacruel probably over a millennium of age."

" _Cool._ "

"Ash, a reminder that the Butterfree flock will start their migration in three days."

Ash sent out Butterfree. "Did you hear that?"

Butterfree nodded. " _I'll miss you, Ash._ "

Ash waved a hand. "Don't worry about it. I'll call you back constantly. Remember that Crator is writing this, so he wouldn't just wipe you out like Satoshi Tajiri."

Dexter held up a miniature device. "Put this somewhere after you have made a home. It'll allow teleportation into your Pokéball if you sense Ash calling. Remember to visit the ranch if you have any problems. Oak would love to help and take the chance to do some research on the Butterflies."

Butterfree nodded. Ash continued teasingly. "Do you need any help with getting you your mate?"

Butterfree rolled his eyes. " _Of course not. I am the strongest Butterfree probably in Kanto right now. On the other hand, do you need any help with getting yours?_ "

Ash coughed. "I have no clue WHAT you are talking about."

Ash and friends arrived at the ridge of the cliff that would lead onto Saffron City. A flock of Butterfree can be seen in the distance, flying their way.

He took Butterfree in his arms. "I really am going to miss you, Butterfree. I can still see that little Caterpie that I first captured eight years ago."

Butterfree smiled lightly. " _We've both grown. We aren't going to cry. You know I will come back frequently._ "

Ash nodded. "I know. Take care of yourself, buddy. Really."

" _You too. Try not to die… too many times._ "

Ash took a deep breath, and launched his Pokémon into the air. "Good luck!"

A drop of tear escape the Butterfly's eyes. " _You too._ "

Pikachu waved into the air, holding a peace sign.

" _Try not to get into too much trouble with Ash, alright_?"

Pikachu sparked, showing his emotions. " _Yep. Bye, friend._ "

With that, the Bug Type soared into the air, toward the incoming group. Misty, Brock and Domino waved together.

A beautiful cloud of pollen fell down around them. When Ash looked back up, he's gone, leaving only a scent of the sweet, comforting smell.

Like it was on him.

Ash looked at Primeape and Lucario. "Which one of you want to go for the P1 Grand Prix?"

" _ME!_ " The two Pokémon echoed.

Ash sighed. "I knew you two weren't going to make this easy, so Domino and I came up with something."

He pulled out a coin. "Heads or Tails."

Lucario deadpanned. " _You are not going to choose using Head or Tails._ "

"Of course not. I was involved in this decision." Domino put her hands on her hips.

" _Heads._ " Primeape said.

Ash tossed the coin into the air, which came down to reveal a Tails.

"Okay. Primeape would be entered as my Pokémon. Lucario would be entered as Domino's."

Lucario gaped. " _That's genius._ "

Domino coughed. "Again, I was involved in this decision."

Noah spoke up. "I shall warn you that the Winter Festival starts tomorrow."

"This place is truly amazing." Domino looked around. "I can't believe someone hadn't made Maiden's Peak into a tourist place yet."

"I know." Ash remarked. "Summer Festival is tonight. This is going to be so fun."

Misty pinched Brock. "Try not to fall in love with the Ghost of the Maiden."

He shrugged. "We have a crap ton of Dark Types right now anyways. The Gastly wouldn't be a problem."

Night soon arrived, and the streets lit up with lanterns and people rushed out. There were stores almost everywhere, selling random items. Fireworks exploded in the air, draping the colorful lights over the Peak.

Domino walked, abnormally close with Ash, shoulders touching. They had separated with Misty and Brock, who left to give them some time together. They, of course grumbling at the time, silently thanked their travelmates for the decision.

They walked through the crowded streets, to reach a secluded lake. Ash sat down on a bench at the side, with Domino following his action. She leaned into him, placing her head into the natural fit of the crank on his neck. She stared into the peaceful land and listened to the crickets chirp in the forest, not wanting to move at all.

Ash watched the blonde hair cascaded over him, feeling as if his skin had just been brushed by smooth silk. He tilted her head up at him, her amethyst eyes twinkling with a spark lighter than the stars. Purple met brown, they each got lost in a trance as a serene music played in their ears from the Festival. The sound of the slight echoes of the lake became a drumroll for them.

Ash started leaning in, letting his brain completely shut down and heart take over the following actions. Domino started to lean as well, but a abrupt consciousness enter her mind, making her turn her head and pulled out of Ash's grasp.

He stared at her, confused. "What's up?"

Domino sighed and looked up at the stars. She could see the Zangoose and Seviper hanging directly over them, shaped so similar to a mistletoe.

"Sorry," Domino didn't know why she was apologizing, or whom she was apologizing to. "Team Rocket taught me to never shut off, to never obtain tranquility."

Ash wrapped her to him. "Don't worry Princess, you're safe. You're with me."

Domino smiled and leaned into his hold, still looking at the clear water that seemed to reflect her heart. She snuggled deeper into him, as if there were any closer.

His grip tightened. "You want to go for a dance?"

"No, I'm fine." Domino yawned lazily, as the thought of sleep took over, lying in her Ash's arms. "Don't feel like moving."

Ash ran his hand through her hair, his eyes twinkling with a soft glow. "Okay. We'll stay here." A delight washed over both of them, being in each other's hold, as their eyes closed and listened faintly to the wave of the water, chirps of a nearby Kakuna, and each other's breath.

 **A/N: There we go. Some sweet scenes at the Festival. Primeape and Lucario are about to enter the fighting tournament.**

 **Link to Zorua's picture: art/RQ-Aurora-the-zorua-255265504**

 **We just broke 10k views on this fanfic! Woohoo! Go us!**

 **Don't forget to do my poll.**


	22. Cha 21: Kanto 21

A Hitmonchan stood firm a few feet in front of Ash and his friends at the line for registration. Ash pointed. "That's probably Anthony's Pokémon. Brock, are you entering your Geodude this time?"  
Brock nodded. "Yep."

A voice echoed out behind Hitmonchan as Anthony appeared. "Am I hearing about the P1 Grand Prix? Are you competitors too?"

A bulky man, whom Ash had identified as Anthony appeared in front of the group. Ash waved. "Are you the fighting type gym leader?"

"Yes, I am, trainer. I'm Anthony." He stuck out his hand.

Ash took his hand. "Ash Ketchum. She's Domino. I think you already met Misty and Brock before."

"Indeed, long time guys. Here, I'll make a deal. If we will face each other in the tournament and you beat my Pokémon, I'll offer you the Boxer Badge."

Ash smirked. "Deal. Get your badge ready, Anthony."

He laughed. "Spirit like fire! I like it. See you at the tournament."

Ash looked at his walking away, and then sent out Primeape and said to the man handling the reception. "Hello, my name is Ash Ketchum. I'm here to register for the P1 Grand Prix with Primeape."

He nodded and started filling out a form. Brock sent out Geodude and Domino sent out Lucario and went to some other guys manning the desk, and began the same process.

* * *

"Welcome to the P1 Grand Prix, ladies and gentlemen, where the true mastery of the Fighting element is demonstrated for the world to see. The winner shall be awarded the golden champion belt, signaling the Pokémon as this year's Fighting Master. So let's get to it!"

"Our first round is Pallet Town Trainer Ash Ketchum's Primeape vs. John of Commerce City's Machoke. May the best fighter win!"

Primeape hopped into the octagon and punched the air, letting out huffs. He looked at his opponent who had just stepped into the rink, and burst into motion.

Domino whispered to Ash. "You don't have a lot of type specialist. Is Primeape one of them?"

"Yep. After I left him to train with Anthony last time, he told me he had invented a style based solely on speed, to become so fast nothing can hit him. He can even hold this state for an hour."

"Oh, and also, Kingler is a water specialist. Don't forget about Pikachu. Lately, he's been solving more and more by just zapping it."

Domino nodded. "Kirlia is probably the most focused of my Pokémon. Her move set is almost entirely psychic. Spiritomb focuses on Dark and Ghost, but we'll see how long that'll last with his hanging out with Lucario."

"Lucario specializes in aura."

"That's not a Type." Domino rolled her eyes. "Just like I can say you specialize in being dense."

"Hey! And you specialize in… in…"

"In what, Ashy?" Domino poked her face below Ash's and stared at him playfully with her purple eyes, corners of her mouth lifting up in a teasing way.

"Uhh, beauty." Ash's eyes widened in horror at his outburst. "I mean…"

"Awww… That's sweet." Domino squeezed his cheek turned back to the field.  
Ash let out a breath seeing that she didn't get mad.

"My Zorua is probably the most diverse Pokémon, which suits her Disguise ability. Imagine this: She learns every move there is, and then use Imprison."

Ash winced. "That's… cruel and unusual."

Domino licked her lips and said in a seductive tone. "I know."

Ash felt a shiver down his back, and he forced himself to turn toward the arena. "Speaking of Zorua, Pikachu is also really specialized."

He felt a questioning glance from Domino, and continued. "He's been just zapping his problems away more and more. The twelve Thunderstones really helped him."

"Until you meet Arceus with Ground Plate on." Domino chuckled. "Knowing our luck, that'll probably happen."

They looked to the direction of the two Pokémon. Zorua sat with Pikachu on a bench down from them, cuddling with each other. Ash shook his head. "They're so in love with each other. Why don't they just go out?"

Domino agreed. "I know right. Some people are just so oblivious."

Brock facepalmed. "Do you even hear yourselves!?"

* * *

In the arena, Primeape had just finished applying Agility, Shell Smash, Shift Gear and Rock Polish. Within a second, he had disappeared into a roaring wind that was overwhelming the stadium. Ash caught a glimpse with Aura Sight of the glow of Harden, Bulk up, Withdrew and Iron Defense. He reckoned it to be how Primeape's body was able to move so fast without straining.

Lucario winced at seeing his speed. " _Wow. Even I can't go this fast, and I'm a Steel Type! It's going to be a pain fighting him._ "

"If you make it there." Ash added.

Lucario threw a look at him. " _Please, don't insult me._ "

* * *

Machoke stared at the shadows of his opponent, not knowing what to do. His trainer said unsurely, "Quick Guard."

A fist appeared out of the air and a Dynamic Punch arrived. Machoke managed to cross his arms in front of his face to block part of the hit. But then, he felt a shooting pain almost instantly on his back as the familiar Fighting energy of Cross Chop slammed against him. He turned around, and his opponent disappeared instantly. His four arms waved around frantically, but caught nothing in their grasps.

He then felt himself hit for countless times in less than a second by Primeape's Karate Chops. He managed to use Close Combat to glance something, but he didn't feel anything too solid make the contact.

Using his opponent's fallen defense to his full advantage, Primeape picked the unsuspected Superpower Pokémon up and Seismic Toss him across the ring. He smashed into the ground and rolled to collide with the side.

"And the amazing battle ended with Machoke fainting! The skills, the power of the Primeape had been truly magnificent. Timer, how many seconds did the battle take?" The moderator shouted from his stage.

"From the whistle's start, exactly eight seconds."

"Ladies and gentlemen, did you hear THAT!? The battle took eight seconds! That is our new record for the P1 Grand Prix for the single fastest battle. May we have a round of applause for Primeape and his trainer, Ash Ketchum!"  
The Pig Monkey walked back smugly and looked at Lucario. The Steel Type huffed. "Your opponent was too easy."

Primeape laughed in response. "That wasn't my best either."

Fire emitted from mid-air at the two Pokémon's glares.

* * *

"Our next battle would be between Brock Slate, Gym Leader of Pewter City, against our own Anthony, Gym Leader of the local Fighting Gym. May Brock's Geodude and Anthony's Hitmonchan take stage."

The Rock Type and Fighting Type jumped up together, each checking out the other's bulky shape.

Anthony ordered. "Hitmonchan, let's start strong with a Mach Punch."

The Punching Pokémon moved fast to lash out the attack. Geodude formed a barrier of stone, which was shattered but absorbed the most of the damage. Geodude rolled to dodge the rest. Before he could get up, his opponent had already closed in and began a new round of assault.

Hitmonchan raised his right fist for a Bullet Punch and his left for a Ice Punch. Both effective moves closed in, and Geodude quickly used Bounce to dodge back further.

Using the distance, Hitmonchan punched the ground and charged up an Earthquake. Geodude levitated to avoid the damage, and used the height to launch an Ancient Power at him. The Punching Pokémon raised his hands up, and a Protect shone on him.

Using the time Geodude needed to recover, since he wasn't as insane as, say, Pikachu, Hitmonchan used Focus Blast to struck the Rock Type straight in the chest, sending him crashing to the ground.

Brock yelled. "Endure."

A yellow light shone on his Pokémon, who got back up and swung at his opponent with a Counter.

"Focus Punch!"

Hitmonchan, taking this opportunity of when Geodude is attacking him, used Focus Punch. The two moves collided in midair, and a loud _THUD!_ can be heard echoing from the arena.

The Punching Pokémon shook, and staggered back. Geodude stood firm for a few seconds, unmoving. Then his levitation cancelled out, and sunk to the ground like a rock. ( **A/N: No pun intended.** )

"What a finish! The contest of two Pokémon's raw strength, and Anthony's Hitmonchan certainly won out. He will progress to the next level. A round of applause for Hitmonchan please!"

* * *

Ash sent a pulse of Heal Bell into Geodude's body, waking him up.

The Rock Pokémon shook his head to clear it and then lamented. " _If that wasn't the FIGHTING tournament, I could have definitely beat Hitmonchan. Just manipulate the rocks to encase him until he runs out of strength._ "

Brock pat his loyal Pokémon. "I know, Geodude. You're a Rock specialist, not a fighting. It's okay to lose to a Fighting type.

* * *

"And now, we have a visitor from Johto, Crok of Jubilife City, represented by his Infernape, against Domino of Viridian City, represented by Lucario. Both are Pokémon are native to Sinnoh, so it'll be exciting to see which tops out!"

"May we have the contestants take to the stage."

Lucario and Infernape hopped on, and Crok smiled cockily. "You're going down. Fire counters Steel."

Ash shook his head. "He better change that mindset in the next ten seconds if he wants to have a bare chance of winning."

Domino laughed at his statement. "He's not winning."

Lucario paid no attention to Crok's statement, besides uttering out, " _Type advantage doesn't mean jack!_ "

The Steel Type burst into motion, much like Primeape, and launched forward for a Force Palm. Infernape met punch with punch, his own Fire Punch. The fists collided, sending out a wave of fire out toward Lucario. A coating of aura flashed over him, completely neglecting the type energy.

Infernape, whose power was much weaker than the ancient Aura Pokémon was knocked back. Lucario advanced with a Flying Press, while continuing his previous statement, " _Unless it's with my opponents._ "

The effective Flying move struck Infernape back further. Crok cried, "Ember to cover his sight, then Flame Wheel away and use Double Team."

The Flame Pokémon spat out a wall of fire toward the Steel Type, who raised a Protect shield in response. He waited for the Ember to pass, and twelve Double Teams of Infernape appeared in front of him. Lucario smirked and closed his eyes. " _Sometimes I am so glad for Aura Sight._ "

The twelve Infernape used Flare Blitz to charge at him and lashed with a Brick Break. Lucario sighed. " _Why are you still using the type advantage logic?_ "

He snapped his hands together and launched an Aura Sphere in the direction of the real Infernape whom he identified with the Aura technique.

Ash's eyes bulged out. "Did Lucario really just fired out ONE SINGLE Aura Sphere!? Not fourteen hundred?"

Domino shrugged. "Why more when you can deal with less?"

The Sphere exploded when it made contact with the Flame Pokémon, interrupting his attack run. Pressing his advantage, Lucario struck with a Hammer Arm. Infernape's leftover Flare Blitz burned him slightly, while his target was in much worse shape, after taking many of Lucario's Aura-instilled attacks.

Sweat dripped down his face, and was evaporated before reaching his brow. Infernape gripped his arm, then used Drain Punch to hopefully recover some health.

Lucario used Vacuum Wave, stopping Infernape before the attack could land and feed on his health. A fire lit up on Infernape, as his Blaze ability activated from his low health. As if receiving a new burst of energy, the Flame Pokémon rushed forward for an Arm Thrust.

Lucario looked at the fast move and initiated Quick Guard, blocking his series of attack. Infernape yelled, frustrated. " _How many moves do you know!?_ "

The Steel Type chuckled. " _A millennium is quite long for you to learn a diverse set of moves._ "

Infernape blinked, and was flung into oblivion by a Sky Uppercut.

Ash muttered. "You were asleep for most of that millennium."

"That was an amazing battle from both Sinnoh Pokémon. Congratulation to Lucario, who will proceed to the next round."

* * *

Zorua lay snuggled into Pikachu, a happy smile floating onto her face. Pikachu touched her furry tail lightly with his lightning-shaped one. She purred and rubbed her nose against his pouch, feeling the wave of energy rolling inside. Pikachu moaned slightly and sparked.

Zorua smirked. " _So that's your special point?_ "

Pikachu looked at her, and pressed himself tighter against her body. A wave of warmth poured into him. " _Special point?_ "

" _You know, the place where I can really make you use Harden._ "

Pikachu stared into Zorua's light blue eyes, seeing the mischievous glint. He blushed.

" _You're so cute!_ " Pikachu blurted out, and Zorua tossed a look over.

She flung her tail proudly and scratched her ear. " _I know, Pikachu. You don't look too bad yourself._ "

Pikachu let out a contented sigh and sparked. Zorua shifted her attention back in the arena. " _Hmm, a Medicham. They're pretty challenging to deal with. I mean, I can, but I don't know too many Fighting moves to be in the tournament._ "

The Medicham in the rink smashed a Focus Punch into his opponent, ending the battle. He pumped his fist in the air, and his trainer rushed into the arena to hug her Pokémon.

Pikachu shrugged. " _Just zap him._ "

Zorua rolled her eyes. " _That's your solution to everything. How to catch Ho-Oh? Zap him. How to wake Ash up? Zap him. How to beat a Ground Type gym leader? Zap them._ "

Pikachu chuckled. " _Not everyone is as talented as you to be so diverse._ "

* * *

"Our next battle would be Ash's Primeape against Anthony's Hitmonchan. Which of these two powerhouses would end out on top? Let's find out!"

Primeape jumped onto a post serving as a vertex of the octagon. Hitmonchan climbed over as well and prepared himself in a fighting stance. Primeape sprinted into action, boosting himself with a series of speed and defense buffs as before. Hitmonchan burst into twelve Double Teams and waited for the Pig Monkey to strike.

The wait wasn't long. One of his shadows disappeared on the far side of the arena. The Punching Pokémon jumped to corner him, and unleashed a barrage of Dynamic Punch, Fire Punch and Thunder Punch.

Primeape was forced out of his speed by the attacks, and retaliated with a series of punches back. Hitmonchan was sent back by his overwhelming power, but successfully paralyzed Primeape with his Electric attack. He conjured up a Facade, sending Primeape crashing back in the moment of his immobilization.

Ash winced. "Primeape is about to unleash himself fully. No one, I mean no one, injures him first in battle."

Primeape stood up slowly, and his eyes flashed in pure red as Anger Point triggered. He roared, and launched forward for a series of Cross Chop. Hitmonchan saw black as he was hit by a massive assault of attacks from all different sides. He could barely see Primeape due to his speed, and could only manage a Quick Attack.

The increased Priority of it hit Primeape, but did relatively no damage with his Iron Defense on. Primeape retaliated with a Counter, flinging the Pokémon back.

Domino giggled. "Look at how useless Anthony feels right now. He can't think of a single way to counter Primeape."

Ash shook his head. "To be honest, if I was going against him myself, I couldn't counter him either, unless I spammed Aura Spheres to lower his speed. He's a killer with that speed."

"Actually, I know how to counter the speed." Domino placed her head on Ash's shoulder. "I'll show you with Lucario's battle."

"Revenge!" Anthony shouted.

Hitmonchan lashed out with Revenge, but hit nothing but the air. He felt a stinging pain in the back as a Focus Blast hit home. He saw black. Primeape pressed his advantage and lifted him up and sent him flying out of the arena with a Seismic Toss.

The referee held his hand up. "Hitmonchan is knocked out by Primeape, which means Ash advance to the Finals. We can see that tremendous speed in action again with this battle, and I can't wait to see the result of the next!"

Anthony walked over to Ash and shook his hand. "That was the best battle I've ever had. Hitmonchan and I still have a lot to learn. How did you train him?"

Ash smiled. "To be honest, Primeape developed the style purely on his own. I do not specialized in Fighting at all."

Anthony shrugged. "Nonetheless, you had earned my respect, and my Boxer badge." He tossed a badge shaped like a fist in a boxing glove over. "I'm guessing you are taking the League challenge?"

Ash nodded. Domino pouted beside him. "Now you have one more badge than me."

She turned to Anthony. "I have to fight you after the tournament, or else he will mock me until Leagues."

The Fighting Gym Leader laughed and began to walk off into the distance. "Of course. I'll go prepare my gym up for another amazing battle. And I want to see if I can find my matching gym badges for you two."

"There's a matching gym badge?" Ash questioned. "I've never heard of something like that."

"I do."

Domino shrugged. "That'll be pretty cool, actually. Matching gym badges."

* * *

"The next battle would be between Lucario and Medicham. One is from Sinnoh and one from Hoenn. Let's see which would top out!"

"Begin!"

Lucario flashed with the metallic light of Gear Up, and flung out a dozen of Aura Spheres across the field. The Meditate Pokémon placed a Light Shield in front of him, which was shattered by a Force Palm.

The Steel Type smirked. " _I have plenty of experiences dealing with psychics._ "

Medicham retaliated with a Psyshock, and Lucario blocked with a coating of Aura, and formed a Dynamic Punch. The Psychic dodged with a Detect, and followed with a Fire Punch.

Lucario chuckled. " _Still with the Type advantage?_ "

His palms lit up with a Fire Punch of his own. The two punches collided, sending Medicham back, while Lucario lit on fire. A burst of aura quickly extinguished it, and Lucario rushed forward with Extreme Speed and landed a High Jump Kick, sending him to the air.

A series of Aura Sphere rushed out on the field to stop him from teleporting, and a Hyper Beam shot out at the Meditate Pokémon. The Psychic Type placed a Reflect Screen, and shot the Beam down, much to Lucario's surprise. He used Bounce to dodge away, and Medicham landed and pressed his advantage with a Focus Blast, which Lucario took and used Counter to smash back immediately.

The two Pokémon pulled apart, each panting.

Ash asked. "Why is Lucario struggling against a Medicham?"

The blonde girl remarked. "He said he wanted a challenge, so he's using only a fifth of his Aura."

Lucario moved again, and decided to go another route. He sent a wave of water off using Surf. The referee sighed to himself. "I really hope the drain system works well."

Medicham was left with two options: Either teleport off or be trapped in the water. He took the first option and levitated, but greatly restricted his speed. Lucario's feet glowed blue, and, to the amazement of the audience, balanced himself on the water and ran toward Medicham.

"Woah! Did that Lucario just walked on water!? As a Steel Type? How does that work? Ladies and gentlemen, we are witnessing a miracle here!"

Ash chuckled. "To normal people, aura is kind of a miracle."

Medicham obviously did not expect Lucario's action, and paused for a second. In that second, the Steel Type reached his target, and launched a Giga Impact. The Psychic managed to put up a Protect. The shield was shattered on contact and the attack carried the rest of its momentum to strike its target, knocking him clear back.

Lucario followed with a Foce Palm, but was stopped by Medicham's fist, bringing a Round attack. Using the moment, he danced out of Lucario's grip and retaliated with a Counter.

The Steel Type flipped himself clear over him and pulsed out a Focus Blast while Medicham wasn't able to retract his fist, which sent him flying out of the arena.

"And Lucario WON! Medicham was knocked out of the arena by the powerful finishing Focus Blast. What a potent Pokémon! Domino advances to the next round. We will take a short break, and be back for the Final battle for the title of Fighting Master and the champion belt!"

* * *

Ash poked her. "What's your strategy against his speed?"

The Rocket Elite smirked. "You shall see, Ashy."

"This is the final battle of the P1 Grand Prix, where our two finalists, Ash of Pallet Town and Domino of Viridian City face off for the title of this year's Fighting Master. Please take to the stage Primeape and Lucario!"

Primeape gripped the side of the arena and flipped himself in. To his opposite, Lucario jumped in and landed in a crouching position, two Aura Spheres already in his hand.

He smirked. " _We both know we haven't used our full power. Let's offer the audience a good show now, shall we?_ "

Primeape raised a palm in response. " _We shall._ "

The Pig Monkey burst into motion and disappeared. Lucario flung out a series of tracking Aura Spheres that can sense life forces to chase after him, but instead crashed into each other, unable to follow his speed.

A sense of danger overwhelmed the ancient Pokémon's heart, and he raised a Protect in response. A furry shape bounced off the blue shield, which shook violent at the blow.

He tried to close his eyes, using Aura Sight. What he saw was a giant red glow of energy just circling him. Even the powers of aura were unable to follow the speed of his opponent.

He shouted into the crowd. " _Domino! What's the strategy?_ "

Ash looked at her as well in question. Domino spoke up. "I learned a long time ago from an experienced Rocket agent this trick. Lucario! Back up against a wall, and stare at one spot. Use your peripheral vision to sense him. The illusion he is creating right now using his speed will disappear."

Lucario followed her directions, and placed his back in a corner of the arena. Then he saw it. Primeape was rushing in from the side with a Mach Punch. He turned his head toward him, which was when the image disappeared. The Steel Type lashed out at the air with a Force Palm, and hit solid.

" _Holy crap! This works!_ "

Primeape was sent back, and Lucario launched a bunch of Aura Spheres after him, which encircled him, trapping him in a space.

Primeape roared, and moved. A sudden shockwave formed outside of his body, which radiated out and knocked all of the Aura Spheres around him into the opposite direction.

Ash's jaw dropped. "He's going over the sound speed! Only Pidgeot can do that!"

Lucario saw a giant foot coming at his face, and managed nothing else but a Protect. Primeape launched himself off the shield, and grabbed a stray Aura Sphere that hadn't exploded and flung it at him using Circle Throw.

The attack and shield collided, blowing it up. Primeape rushed back in at near sonic speed and used Boomburst. Lucario covered himself with Iron Defense and tanked the damage, and kicked back with a Low Sweep. It caught Primeape on the side, bringing his speed down.

Lucario stepped forward and used a Rolling Kick, which stuck Primeape on the chest. He blinked, didn't expecting the hit to land this easily. Then he realized what Primeape was planning and jumped back hurriedly.

The Pig Monkey's eyes lit up in a bright scarlet, far redder than when Anger Point was used in the last battle. The glow of Counter initiated, and he struck at Lucario with his own Rolling Kick.

Lucario was hit on the chest by the attack, staggering him back. A sickening _CRACK_ was heard, and the Steel Type clutched his chest in pain. Primeape followed with a Superpower, which caught Lucario as well.

The Steel Type growled, and Bide finally conserved enough energy. He formed a blue staff with aura in one hand with Bone Rush, and stuck back forcefully.

Primeape wasn't prepared for the boosted attack, and was sent flying back by his opponent's new weapon.

Lucario launched out a wave, trying to use the same strategy as with Medicham. The light of Camouflage flashed on Primeape as he switched to a Water Type, and soared through the water which was to pose the trouble of drag.

He neared Lucario, who used Arm Thrust. Primeape matched fast move with fast move, striking each of his attack with a Triple Kick. Using the momentum, he backed off again and began charging himself with a Bulk Up.

Lucario unleashed a Hyper Beam in his direction, which he countered with a Focus Blast. The two powerful attacks collided, and the friction from it generated a massive amount of heat which evaporated the small pool the Steel Type had created.

Both Pokémon was taken by surprise at the steam. Lucario closed his eyes to search for a life force, but only found a blurring red across the field. He yelled. " _Domino! Mega-Evolve me!_ "

Domino shrugged. "I can't. Ash has your Mega Stone."

" _Crap!_ "

On the other hand, Primeape couldn't see Lucario either. He managed a Defog, and split up into twelve Double Teams.

As the steam cleared up, Lucario was embedded by the sight of twelve Pig Monkeys rushing at him. He roared and sent out a Boomburst, instantly popping the fake ones. The solid one continued at him with a Close Combat, and Lucario used a Seismic Toss to launch him clear out of the arena.

He dusted his hands. " _Done! You lost by ring out._ "

Then he felt a giant rattling of a Shockwave from being supersonic hit him, stunning him in his current position. Then a fierce fist landed on his back, knocking the wind out of him.

Lucario felt himself sink to the ground. The last thing he heard was, " _I call this the Master Punch!_ "

* * *

"And Ash Ketchum's Primeape won! That last blow was truly a great showcase of the spirit of a Fighting Pokémon's will! I present to you, this year's FIGHTING MASTER!"

Ash and Primeape leapt up to the stage. The moderator handed over a golden champion belt. Ash took it and wrapped it around Primeape's waist, and pat his back. "Nice job Primeape. You did it again, I'm so proud of you! The last move was amazing. Was that your super move?"

Primeape beamed at his trainer, and then asked. " _What's a super move?_ "

"Well, every Pokémon on my and Domino's team has a super move that they invest in that serve as the backup move that can unleash a torrent of extremely strong energy. Besides Sableye, but Domino just got him. He's trying to figure out his style as of now."

Primeape nodded. " _In that case, yes, Master Punch is my super move. It drains so much of my energy though. Going past sound speed is really a challenge. The resulting shockwave is extremely overbearing._ "

"I can hook you up with Pidgeot. She deals with the problem of the shockwave on a daily basis."

" _Wait, what's Lucario's super move?_ "

Ash chuckled. "It's called Aura Storm. He didn't use it in this battle because it's a Fighting tournament, not a League battle. Moves other than those making direct impact are not restricted, but frowned upon."

Primeape thought for a while, and then went over to the waking Lucario and took his hand. " _Nice fight, buddy. I may have beaten you in the Fighting field, but I know you can beat me in a real match._ "

Lucario laughed. " _I kind of expected the defeat somewhat. You're a fighting specialist afterall. Oh, nice belt, by the way._ "

The two Pokémon walked back to Ash, and both bowed. Ash smirked at Domino. "I guess I beat you in a Pokémon battle."

The blonde girl rolled her eyes. "Get over yourself Ketchum. Your own Pokémon beat your own Pokémon in a restricted battle. Just wait until Leagues."

Ash clutched her hand and squeezed her lightly. "I can't wait, Princess."

* * *

 **A/N: There you go, P1 Grand Prix. A few small things went along with it, like deciding Domino's from Viridian.**

 **A fic with a Fighting tournament was actually really hard to write. I had to actually get up and act out the motion.**

 **I hope you would enjoy! Don't forget to do the poll on my profile page. Again, reviews are much appreciated.**


	23. Cha 22: Kanto 22

"Ha! I have a Boxer badge, and you don't!" Ash pinned his new badge on his jacket and sang to Domino.

She covered her ears. "Please shut up. Your voice is worse than Screech."

Ash pouted and Domino continued. "Therefore, I need to go get the Boxer Badge from Anthony."

"Sure. We can go visit him tomorrow. But for today," Ash stretched, "How about we end the day? I'm spent."

Domino rolled her eyes. "You didn't give a single command in the tournament."

"Nor did you." Ash shot back.

"Actually, I told Lucario the technique, remember?" Domino had on a sly grin.

Ash sighed. "Fine, you gave one command, Princess."

Domino batted her eyelashes. "You know it, Ashy."

* * *

Sableye hummed. " _I think I know what my super move would be after seeing Primeape's._ "

Kirlia swallowed her dumpling and turned to him. " _Really? What would it be?_ "

" _I think it's going to be manipulating the Dark energy to overtake someone's mind. It would be kind of like a psychic attack, but a lot more straightforward._ "

Kirlia sweatdropped a bit at the mention that psychic wasn't 'straightforward', then asks, " _So what's the effect?_ "

" _The darkness would swallow their mind and render them unconscious. The brain is a lot more vulnerable than the body, even for psychics. If I can create this move to target the brain directly without having to waste energy on the body, it could be a masterpiece._ "

Kirlia pondered the prospects of such an attack and nodded. " _That seems overpowered, a direct attack on the mind. You should go talk to Mew. Maybe she can give you a few suggstions._ "

She then turned to Shedinja, who was chewing on her sushi with extra wasabi. " _What about you? Figure something out yet?_ "

The Shed Pokemon nodded. " _Not the details, I still have to do some research. The general outline is to go with the ninja route. I can form a really flat blade with my Bug energy and implant it into a pokemon's body. Instead of it being a one-hit super-powerful move, it feeds on the pokemon gradually._ "

" _So a status move?_ "

" _In a sense. It acts like vampiric, so it can grant me energy as well. I had already asked Dragonite for some help since he has the Vampiric Pressure ability. My plan for a final form of the attack would be to knock out an opponent within ten seconds._ "

"Sounds cool." Domino pulled her marshmellow back from the fire. "If you need anything research in the scientific field, we can go to the Pokemon Tech Institute. The Principal there had opened its service to us for free."

"As for Sableye, Giratina actually has a very similar move. It's in the form of trapping its opponent in a Shadow illusion. He's very hard to get to, but I think Ash has a few recordings of his using it when he saved the world. I can probably ask Noah to dig it up from Dexter's transfer of information."

" _Oh yeah, speaking of Noah, what's his super move?_ "

"I am working on this thing called the Overload. I discovered when I was infusing Pikachu with Thunderstones that my power could connect to many different Types of energy, at least Electric, Psychic and Fighting. I'm thinking about combining different types to achieve the result of a modified Hyper Beam, but a lot stronger."

* * *

Tentacruel wrapped one of his arms around a bowl of rice and emptied it in his mouth. " _Brock, this is insanely good. This alone is worth being captured._ "

Brock laughed. "Thanks, Tentacruel. The first time Mew ate my food, she exploded in pinkness."

Tentacruel asked, " _What does that mean?_ "

Brock shrugged. "I don't know either, but it happened."

"You know, keeping up with you guys' eating rates is pretty hard. If Ash and Domino catches more pokemon, we might need to send some back to Oak's ranch. You know whom Professor Oak is, right?"

Tentacruel nodded. " _Yes, Domino has informed me. That wouldn't be a bad decision. I can train more freely if I have a ranch of space._ "

"Charizard, can I have some more fire?" Brock said to the large dragon whose tail he was a fire.

Charizard grunted. " _Liechi Berry?_ " Brock threw one into his mouth, and he chomped happily.

Tentacruel asked the Fire Type. " _Domino was talking about super moves with us earlier. Any idea what yours is?_ "

 _"I'm currently trying to modify Blast Burn, which is the second most powerful Fire move, to become basically a plasma gun._ " Charizard tilted his head. "I _can give an atom so much energy that it will lose its electrons, so it'll just become a stream of extremely hot plasma that can smash through anything with its energy, if not burn through._ "

Brock coughed. "If you can give the fire a little more burn, that'll be great."

Charizard sighed. " _I feel like my talent is going to waste being a stove._ "

"You're feeding dozens of pokemon, including legendary and huge pokemon. I wouldn't call that a waste."

* * *

Zorua's fur toinged out and she growled in front of her. Her eyes focused, her muscles tense and her jaw tightened. One wrong move, and she could lose her precious waffle to Pikachu.

She looked around her to see where Pikachu was hiding, and a metallic flash caught her eye. Pikachu lunged at her, using his Iron Tail as a spring to bounce off a tree. Zorua tried to pounce away, but the force of the spring really added to Pikachu's speed.

The Tricky Fox bit her lip, and decided to use her backup plan. Her image changed suddenly to a… ketchup bottle.

Her favorite yellow ball of fur stopped dead in his tracks. Pikachu's eyes blurred in hallucination as he stuttered. " _My favorite two things coming together into one… This is too much!_ "

He crashed to the ground. Zorua blushed as she realized that she was one of the two 'favorite things'. She trotted over and placed the waffle on his head and remarked. " _Nice hat, Pikachu._ "

The electric mouse's eyes re-opened, licked the waffle and started to munch on it. Zorua started chewing on the other end. Pretty soon, the waffle was reduced to a small circle, with their nose touching each other.

Pikachu, finally unable to control himself, threw the waffle to the side and glomped her. Zorua responded by snuggling her head into his shoulder. Pikachu licked her ear, and the Dark Type shook abruptly and moaned with delight. Pikachu smirked. " _That's your special spot?_ "

Zorua rubbed her tuft of fur on her head on Pikachu's pouch, and the Electric type sparked with pleasure and lost his grasp and her, who flipped over and lay on Pikachu.

* * *

Misty coughed. "So you two are a thing now?"

Pikachu nodded, and Zorua rolled over and giggled.

Misty looked over at the two pokemon's trainers. "How fitting."

The Electric mouse smirked. " _This calls for a special celebration._ "

He lit up in crackling electricity, and a Thunderbolt the size of a small house went soaring up into the air, forming a giant explosion with its energy flowing for miles.

* * *

Raikou raised his head in surprise from the Tin Tower. " _Father! What the hell was that?_ "

Ho-Oh opened one eye, then closed it. " _Don't worry about it. That's Pikachu._ "

The Thunder Legendary stared at him in shock. " _A mere Pikachu?_ "

The Rainbow Pokemon's eyes shot opened and used Steel Wing to knock the wind out of Raikou. " _Don't EVER say 'mere Pikachu'. Do you remember a few months ago when I came back to the Tin Tower, scorched?_ "

" _That was Pikachu._ "

" _But he's not even a legendary!_ " Raikou protested.

Ho-Oh shook his head. " _Doesn't matter. Nothing matters for the pokemon of the Chosen and his Queen. Pikachu is Ash's starter._ "

Raikou drew in a sharp breath, then paused for a while. " _I want to train with the Chosen. If he can make Pikachu this strong…_ "

Ho-Oh nodded. " _Just find someone to take over your duties, and remember to come back occasionally to check up on the rest._ "

* * *

Zapdos opened his eyes and soared to the air. " _The power of electricity had finally given me the hint! This is my chance to take over Shamouti!_ "

Lugia soared up from his underwater coven and Aeroblast him back to his Lightning Island. " _No you aren't, fool!_ "

Moltres and Articuno were rolling around, laughing on their respective islands.

* * *

Ash glared at Pikachu. "How many times do I have to tell you!? Are you TRYING to bring us trouble?"

He counted on his hands. "Let's see. Team Magma, Aqua, Galactic, Plasma, Flare, Skull, Phantom Pirates, not to mention individual villains like Hunter J and Lawrence!"

He held his forehead. "This is ridiculous."

Domino pat his back. "C'mon Ash, stop worrying for a bit. I feel like you're getting more and more pressured. Remember that we have legendary pokemon with us, Megas, and insane others."

She continued softly. "And I will always stand by you, Ash."

Pikachu picked his head up. " _Sorry Ash. I just want to do a firework show for Zorua._ "

Ash rubbed his temples. "No, I'm sorry. The stress is getting real. After I saw the amount of power that criminal groups will hold in the future, I'm just worried about their attacks. You know losing you will be just…"

Pikachu climbed onto Ash's shoulder and rubbed himself against his trainer. " _It's okay, Ash. I know the feeling. It's exactly how I feel when I see you go rescuing the world all the time, and in the process dying._ "

Ash held Pikachu in his arms. "Buddy, promise me that you're not going to die. Promise me."

Pikachu sparked. " _Only if you promise the same thing._ "  
"Yes." Ash hugged his starter to him.

Domino took Zorua and walked away. "We should give them some alone time."

* * *

Professor Oak placed a blueprint of the Pokedex in front of him. "And here's the design for the creation of the Porygon."

Dr. Akihabara stroked his chin while examining the paper in front of him. "And you said this worked through an awakening of consciousness?"

Oak nodded. The computer expert continued. "By no offense, Professor, but this Pokedex design and its relatively small collection of information has no chance of developing a consciousness."  
"I've worked in this field for many, many years. I would say that my computer is one of the highest ranking technology on this planet, trumped only by perhaps the Mossdeep Space Center or LaRousse's controlling computer. The information on here is counted with terabytes, and it just developed a conscious a few months ago, on strangely the same date with the ones in Mossdeep and LaRousse. It couldn't even project itself out of the computer yet!"

Oak coughed. "Actually, two Porygon had appeared using this format, and both can move around freely, as long as they carry their original device."

The other man stared at the regional professor in shock. He continued. "Through ways that must be kept under wraps, I found the key to developing a Porygon isn't to overload it with information, but instead with a memory chain. My friend, the ex-head of the Elite Fours, is a cloning expert, and he deals with memory chain on a daily basis. I hope he can explain it better than I.

* * *

Mewtwo pulsed out a series of Psystrikes into the air, and then released another dozen of Hyper Beams which caught up to the previous psychic attack, blowing them up. A beautiful white and pink firework show appeared on top of the Rocket Trio.

Mewtwo placed down his hands nonchalantly. " _How was that?_ "

The three stared in amazement. "That was… AWESOME!"

The Genetic Pokemon chuckled. " _And that's the power of the world's most powerful pokemon. To be honest, I want to find Arceus and challenge him to a battle._ "

* * *

Arceus sneered. " _Mewtwo said he wanted to test himself out against me. Little does he know, he's only the world's most powerful Ancient Pokemon._ "

Dialga questioned. " _Ancient?_ "

Arceus nodded. " _A human, in fact, the Chosen's ex-teacher, decided to make a scale to rank the raw power of legendaries. I have to agree, it's quite good for all of the Pseudo-Legendaries and up. Check it out._ "

A chart appeared in the Bubble realm. Sir Aaron laughed when he saw the bottom. "Wow, Pokemon associated with Ash Ketchum and Domino are out of the list."  
Arceus chuckled. " _I don't blame him. Even I couldn't figure out their full potential._ "

Giratina looked thoughtful. " _I wonder how good Mewtwo is? I could travel back to the reality and test him out._ "

" _If he's out of the reality plane, then he would lose to you. But in the plane, you couldn't use your full power, while he can. So you would lose._ "

"What about Mew?" Sir Aaron questioned.

" _Before, Mew couldn't either, unless she is willing to combine with the Tree of Beginning and unleash her power that way, without destroying the balance of the world._ " Arceus said. " _However, she is now Domino's pokemon, so nothing is certain. I have to say, she's extremely smart in that sense._ "

The Alpha looked to Giratina. " _You should have went to follow the Chosen, but you couldn't let down your pride._ "

The Renegade Pokemon laughed. " _I know. Pride gets in my way too many times._ "

Palkia piped up. " _So dad, would you win against a battle with Mewtwo on the planet?_ "

The Original One thought for a while, then responded. " _If I was fighting him in the reality plane, then it would end in a tie. He may have an advantage over me the entire time, but he couldn't knock me out if I have all of my Plates._ "

Sir Aaron laughed. "What if Dragonite decided to steal your Dragon Plate again?"

Arceus used a Fire type Judgement into the distance. " _Then I would lock the Plate into the Hall of Origins._ "

The Aura Guardian looked at him weirdly. "But the Hall is destroyed."

" _Oh yeah._ " Arceus sighed, then picked his head back up again with a new-found glow. Aaron and the Creation Trio stepped back carefully.

" _That's right! The Hall is destroyed, which means… We are going to start rebuilding it! I want a hot tub!_ "

"Uh oh." Sir Aaron sighed. "This is going to be bad."

Arceus continued. " _And you four are going to help me build it._ "

The series of grunts and groans echoed through the Bubble. Arceus pummeled them with Judgements until they were quiet. " _You think you can just get away with my building it, and then you just move in without rent?_ "  
Sir Aaron coughed. "I kind of did."

Arceus gave him a look. " _And now you're repaying me for the last thousand year._ "

"But I don't have Cosmic energies like you all do!"

Arceus glowed, and a bright blue shone on Aaron. " _Now you do. You can now control the powers of parallel universes. Now get building!_ "

Palkia whispered to his brothers, " _Did Dad really just give away a cosmic power like that?_ "

" _Yep!_ "

* * *

"How long do you have to completely materializing?"

Mewtwo hummed. " _Probably another month. I can already project my powers out of this machine to cover the entire New Island. But that's also largely thanks to your training._ "

The Rocket Trio was about to reply, when Mewtwo interrupted. " _You guys should go back out. The head scientist guy is back._ "

They found themselves back on the solid ground, and looked to find Mewtwo back in the tank. A door opened, and Dr. Fuji emerged. "Hello, fellas."  
The Rockets muttered a greeting and Fuji continued. "I heard that he had awakened?"

"Yes." James said. "In the mental state."

Dr. Fuji nodded, and then bowed. "Hello Mewtwo. I know you can hear me. I hope our agents had already cleared everything up with you. I would like to reiterate that you are free to go whenever you want."

Silence filled the room for a second, and then a mental pulse broke it. " _Hello, Dr. Fuji, I believe that's you name. I've been informed. But I have one question._ "

There was a pause before he continued. " _If I am not wrong, you work for a massive organization that stretches its hands into not only crime, but also other fields and network of this world, which granted you the resource to create me. My question is, why did you create me if you didn't plan to have my serving you?_ "

"I think these three can explain it better." He looked to them and said something that only they could understand. "I haven't been reminded."

His phone rang, and he looked at it, and back at the trio. "Excuse me, I've got an important phone call."

Fuji left, and a Mewtwo sent a psychic wave out. " _What's a phone?_ "

* * *

"We psychology scientists agreed that everything had some sort of conscious that was formed from the creation of the universe. We do not know where it came from specifically, but from decades of research we had agreed on that theory. Humans and Pokemon awake easily, which is why we exist."

"On the other hand, something, say, berries, have a wave of conscious, but would rarely awake. As a result, they are plants, and pokemon feed on it. A more abstract object would be like fire. They almost never awake. But for those that did, they become something extremely powerful, like Heatran."

"In fact, legend has it that Arceus is an awakened form of the mysterious substance that is evolution lights, but was never proven. My point is, to awake a conscious, we must find the mental rules of every substance. They each have a different rule though."

"Something that I've found was that information increases the potential of awakening, which is why storing information in technology have a chance of forming a conscious. However, that is not the key point."

"Information allows for automation. Automation is what allow a conscious to wake up. Automation is its way to get used to the world. Samuel's pokedex collects information on pokemon, which is the definition of awakened consciousness. They are used to processing information on an awakened consciousness, so they automatically will run the same process in their systems.  
"As a result, this already brings them to the brink of awakening, much like your 'Porygon' Doctor. However, it's not a true Porygon because he must stay in the device. Sam's pokedex underwent a powerful force's meddling, which allowed them to develop and create a form outside of their main ports. It's not my right to tell of the force though."

"Your computer, even though it has one of the most massive data collection on this planet, failed to zoom in on one single topic. I do think that half of everything in Sam's pokedex is in your computer, but it is also mixed with a hundred times more info, which in a sense dilute the collection."

"It also lacked the said force's help, so your Porygon still cannot exist its device."

Dr. Akihabara soaked in the long speech Dr. Fuji had just given. "So everything rests on this force that you cannot tell me about?"

Professor took over the floor. "I can give you a little bit of the background, but it's up to you to believe me. As you know, I give trainers who are just starting a starter pokemon. One of my trainers, in fact, my best trainer, is a boy by the name of Ash Ketchum…"

* * *

Domino nodded at Anthony. "Do you have time for a gym battle?"

Anthony gestured them into the door. "Of course. I have been expecting you all."

Since I had offered Ash a special deal in the P1 Grand Prix, I figure I would do the same with you." He led them through a locker room into an arena shaped much like the octagon. "You have two choices for this gym. Either fight me with one pokemon and use all Fighting moves, much like the tournament, or I'll give you a normal three-Pokemon battle in which you can use anything."

Domino pondered the choice. She looked at Noah. "Do I have any Pokemon specialized in the Fighting type moves?"

Noah beeped. "Indeed. You are, in fact, looking at one."

The girl tilted her head, then a look of realization crossed her face. She smirked at the Fighting Gym Leader. "I'll take the first choice."

"Very well." He turned to his daughter. "Rebecca, can you give us a call?"  
His daughter walked up to a mike at the referee table and spoke into it. "This is a battle between Domino of Viridian and Anthony of the Fighting Gym! Each side would battle with one pokemon, and the only moves allowed are Fighting. Begin!"

"Go, Hitmonchan! Ready for another challenge?"

" _Of course!_ " The Punching Pokemon punched.

Domino threw out her Pokedex, who flashed with a Light Screen as he landed. Hitmonchan rushed forward with a Mach Punch. The shield rattled, but stayed intact.

The Rocket Elite smirked evilly at the Gym Leader. "Noah! Conversion 2."

"My pleasure." Noah absorbed the leftover Fighting energy, and sparked with the signal purple light of a Ghost Type.

Anthony gaped. "What just happened!?"

"That move was called Conversion 2. Basically, it changes the user's type to be immune or resistant to the last move the opponent uses."

The Black Tulip continued. "Since this battle is all Fighting Moves, there is no way he'll be able to do damage to Noah. Therefore, you lost."

Anthony facepalmed and shook his head. "I walked into that one myself, didn't I."

Lucario remarked on the sidelines. " _If it were my fight, I could still beat a Ghost Type with purely Fighting attacks. Just balance their Ghost energy with plenty of my aura life forces._ "

Ash coughed. "That's not really a Fighting move."

" _No biggie. I'll just condense the aura into Aura Spheres._ "

Hitmonchan used Dynamic Punch, not believing in Domino's explanation. His fist went clear through Noah without any damage. Anthony sighed. "Show me one Fighting move and I will give you the badge."

Noah swung a Brick Break on his own Light Screen, shattering it. Anthony Returned Hitmonchan and tossed the Boxer Badge over at Domino. "I'm so thankful no one turned up with a Ghost/Fighting Type for the tournament. Can there even be that typing?"

"Indeed. Marshadow is an Alolan Pokemon with that. However, no specific details were identified yet due to Ash's never being there." Dexter beeped.

Domino tossed Ash her Boxer Badge and stuck out her tongue. "Hah! I got mine without even hitting the other Pokemon."

Ash rolled his eyes and caught the badge. "Let's see if you're this lucky with Fuchsia.

* * *

 **A/N: Pikachu and Zorua got together. Like Misty said, how fitting.**

 **I officially established the idea of the super move.**

 **Arceus started to build the Hall of Origins, which would prove to be an extremely important plot in the future.**


	24. Cha 23: Kanto 23

"I don't wanna go to Gringey City!" Domino whined as she repeatedly pushed Ash.

The boy sighed. "I know it's gross…"

"GROSS!? It's upright filthy, mucky, grimy…" She threw her hands up for emphasis.

"Grimy like a Grimer?" Ash poked her.

Domino gave him a death glare. "NOT FUNNY!"

Pikachu spoke up. " _Just put a Light Screen around yourself._ "

"That's just a waste of psychic energy."

" _So is fighting with Doughnut. He's going in there no matter what._ "

"Don't call me a doughnut!" Ash yelled. "I need to go get Muk. After that, we'll get out. I promise."

Domino scrouged into a puppy Growlithe face, pouting at Ash. Ash massaged his forehead. "Not going to work this time, Princess."

The girl punched him and then started walking. "I could use my favor, but that'll just be a waste."

Ash chased after her, followed by the group, into the city of pollution. "Domino, maybe you can catch a pokemon in the city."

"Like what? A Grimer?" Domino's face turned into that of disgust when she even thought about the possibility.

"Last time, there were some Magnemite and Magneton at a power plant where I originally got Muk. Maybe you could catch one of them."

Domino thought about the prospect of that and then nodded.

* * *

"Ash." Domino called the boy. Ash looked away.

"Ash." She repeated. He whistled and kept pretending to not hear her.

"ASH!" The blonde finally exploded. "How do you expect us to lure Muk out from the sludge!?"

"Umm…" Ash scratched the back of his neck.

Misty sighed. "Trust me, he's gotten a lot better with the denseness. You should have seen last time."

"Well, I do have one idea, but let's do that after we catch you the Magnet Pokemon."

Domino glared. "You better. I'm not coming in here for nothing."

Pikachu pulsed out a yellow glow and pointed. " _I can feel a strong current of electricity in that direction._ "

Ash nodded. "Very well. We shall head on there first."

* * *

Domino bent down to a group of Magnemite and Magneton and spoke gently. "Hello, guys. My name's Domino. I'm currently on a Pokemon journey, and I'm wondering if any of you would like to go on an adventure with me."

The Magnemite and Magneton murmured among themselves. Ash whispered to Misty. "When did Domino get this soft? I mean, didn't she used to just solve problems by punching?"

Misty rolled her eyes. "She's getting soft since she met you, Ash. Think about it."

The discussion in the Magnet Pokemon tribe stopped, and a few Magnemite stepped out. A Magneton spoke up. " _Hello, human. We have discussed about your offer, and some of our young ones wanted to go with you. We Magneton cannot go, for that we are the guardian of this city. If you are going to take one of our Magnemite, please treat them well._ "

" _Many of them are curious about the process of having a trainer train them, and seeing the outside world. We will not stop them from doing so. You may choose one from those who had stepped forward, Domino._ "

Domino nodded. "Thank you, Magneton, and thank you to all of the Magnemite who want me to train you. I can only pick one of you though."

She scanned the ones who had stepped forward and settled on one who had a yellow shade over him. She held out her hand toward the one who had caught her eye. The Magnet Pokemon levitated into her hand and rubbed his head on her palm.

Domino chuckled and took out an Oran Berry. "Hey little guy. Want to come with me?"

The Magnet Pokemon swallowed the berry in one gulp and flashed happily. Noah remarked. "Data added: Magnemite enjoys Oran Berry."

The head Magneton lifted his head up in surprise. " _What was that? It felt in a way… similar to our species._ "

Noah projected himself in front of the group. "Hello, Magnemite and Magneton. I am a Porygon. You feel familiar probably because I am, like you, powered by lightning. Both of our lightning were changed when we awake. However, I am based off of information, while you use electricity to awake."

The Mageton nodded. " _Sorry for my outburst. I've never seen a pokemon who has a similar build to us. We are rare, since electricity rarely wake compared to others._ "

"No problem. We do have another favor to ask."

" _Ask away._ "

"According to my collection of scientific data, the two main dominating species in this city are the Magnet Pokemon and the Sludge Pokemon. Do you have any way of communicating to them, such as calling one of them up from the sludge?"

" _Of course. That's easy. We just let out a signature shockwave, and they'll know._ "

Ash facepalmed. "That's a lot easier than my way."

"What's your way?" Domino looked at him suspiciously.

"It may have involved your being in a SCUBA suit, an oxygen pipe and some other equipment."  
Misty supplied. "In fact, that was James, Jessie and Meowth's plan to trudge through the sludge last time, but backfired when the city ran out of power."  
The blonde's face went blank, then glared at Ash through gritted teeth. "You were going to make me execute the same plan as those three idiots!?"

Brock coughed. "Don't forget about te backfiring part."

Ash backed up nervously. Domino seethed. "I really should just spend one of the favors to make you jump in the sludge right now."

* * *

The head Magneton appeared through a pipe of the power plant and landed in front of the group. A giant glob followed him, and more goo emerged from other pipes around them. The blobs joined together to become a giant Muk, who growled at them.

Ash stepped forward. "Hello, Muk. I'm Ash Ketchum. This might sound weird, but we've met in the future. To prove it, I can transfer my memory to you, if you let me touch you really quick."

The Sludge Pokemon looked at him suspiciously. He burped, and Domino scurried away, holding his nose, with Misty following her. Pikachu fell off Ash's shoulder and went unconscious. Kirlia chuckled. " _Well, now I know how to beat Pikachu._ "

" _This is the strangest thing I've ever heard, but I'll let you. Don't try to harm me. As long as Gringey City doesn't run out of sludge, I don't weaken._ "

Ash held out a blue-glowing palm. Muk snuck back a bit, but let Ash touch him. The glob blinked, and his mouth closed for the first time here. Dexter hopped forward. "If you are listening…"

" _My job here is done, so I guess I'll see you around._ " The Magneton turned back to the group and began to float away before turning back to the shiny Magnemite. " _Enjoy your adventure, little one._ "

* * *

Brock placed his hand on his chin as he flipped through his recipe book. "What do you eat?"

Muk shrugged and chomped down a piece of the tree stump. " _I'm made of a core, with mass floating around the core. As long as I get fed with living things, the core will turn anything into sludge, so it doesn't matter._ "

Ash raised an eyebrow as he tried to stop Domino to stealing his dumplings. "What if I give you a rock?"

Domino hit him on the back of the head and used psychic to levitate a dumpling into her mouth "Is a rock a living thing in your world?"

"Ow! And that's mine!" Ash snatched her sushi with Covet. "Anyways, what if I just feed you aura?"

Muk nodded. " _I think that would work._ "

"So technically, you can eat the entire Tree of Beginning?"  
" _Wait what!?_ " Mew flipped over. " _Who's eating my tree?_ "

"Calm down, Mew. Think about it like a trimming."

The entire group facepalmed, while black lines formed on Mew's face. The pink cat then pummeled Ash with a dozen Psybeams.

After that incident, Mew finished her lunch and formed a pink sphere around herself. " _See you guys later. I need to go check on the Tree again… to make sure no one ate it._ "

Domino nodded, and the pink cat teleported off. Kirlia bounced next to the Sludge Pokemon. " _What's your super move, as in a super powerful move that you can use as backup?_ "

Muk thought for a while. " _I'm not sure. Usually, I just eat the attack they sent at me and overwhelm them with sludge. It's not like they can hurt my mass, unless someone uses something like Stone Edge a bunch of times or wash me with Flamethrower._ "

Spiritomb hummed. " _Maybe you can do something like Lucario and I. You can make your body into a tornado of poisonous sludge, and literally eat through the other pokemon's defenses until they faint._ "

Muk looked at him weirdly. " _Wouldn't that be too violent?_ "

The Forbidden Pokemon shrugged. " _We've got a world to save._ "

* * *

Pikachu was playing Flash with Magnemite, where each was taking a turn sparking a pattern and the other had to copy it. Vulpix and Zorua were watching with interest.

" _How do you have so much energy?_ " The Magnet Pokemon questioned after half an hour of the game. " _I'm almost spent._ "

Pikachu grinned. " _I had twelve Thunderstones infused in me, so my power reservoir is a bit strong._ "

Magnemite lost his levitation and flopped onto the ground. " _TWELVE!?_ "

" _Yeah. Otherwise, I would run out after a minute of full-burn or releasing my Galvanic Burst once. I could do a lot more now._ "

" _Galvanic Burst?_ "

" _Yeah. It's one of my best moves to reach said full-burn release rate. Thunder is way too weak. The other guys call it the 'super move', but there's really nothing super about it. I'm working on a second similar move now._ "

Zorua's eyes buldged out. " _What!? Why?_ "

" _Because I need it._ " Pikachu walked over and nudged her. " _Is someone upset that I'm not spending enough time with her?_ "

" _Now that you mentioned it, yes._ " Zorua pouted and rubbed her tuft of fur against him.

* * *

"Hey Professor! This is Domino." The blonde girl said into a 3-D hologram, courtesy of Noah.

Oak waved. "Hi! How's the journey? How's Ash?"

The Rocket Elite looked to the side, at Ash trying to wrestle a ketchup bottle out of Pikachu's hands. "It's going fine. Ash is… fine. Anyways, we've both captured a ton of pokemon, and Brock is having trouble keeping up with cooking everything. We might need to send some back to you."

Professor Oak typed something onto his PC. "Of course, this is what the ranch is for. Send them over, I have the teleporter ready."

Domino coughed. "Not so fast, Professor. I need to warn you about a few things."

Oak laughed. "Nothing will scare me, Domino. I had to provide shelter to thirty of Ash's Tauros."

A look of horror then crossed his face. "Ash didn't capture thirty Tauros right?"

"No, not yet." Ash poked his head over with a ketchup bottle in his hand. Oak could see sparks flying off in the distance. "We still have a few place to get to until the Safari."

"Anyways, I'm sending you back a giant Dragonite, giant Tencruel, a Spiritomb. They wanted to settle down and work on their moves. The rest of my team still want an adventure."

"Giant?" Oak chuckled. "Gary sent back a 'giant' Krabby just a few days ago. I am impressed that you got a Dragonite though. Very few of them are actually wild."

Domino warned. "Seriously, they're actually _large_."

"Sure."

Ash spoke up. "I'll be sending Kingler, Primeape, Muk, Lucario and Pidgeot. They're all specialists, and they want to go back on work on what they left off before the world ended. Pidgeot want to watch over the Viridian Forest, so you can let her run free."

Oak nodded. "Got it. You can transport their Pokeballs over."

* * *

Samuel Oak's Dragonite looked at the green Dragon in front of him, and his mouth hung open, much like his trainer's.

Oak stuttered. "What the hell?"  
Domino's Dragonite cleared his throat. " _You must be Professor Oak. Tentacruel and I would like to live in the water, if that's okay with you. All we need is the meals, and that's it._ _We wouldn't mind your doing research on us, but just schedule ahead of time. I'm personally free on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays._ "

Oak looked down at the translations. "That's no problem with me, Dragonite, but just don't terrorize the citizens of Pallet Town… That said, please stay at the north side of the sea, where my ranch is enclosed so others couldn't get in."

"I would take you up on the researching offer, right after I finish my current small project. Arcanine, can you lead them to the sea?"

His Fire Type barked a greeting and led them off, Oak's Dragonite still staring. " _How is he bigger than me!? That's insane!_ "

Oak coughed. "According to Domino, he's been here since, well, the creation of the planet. His nickname is Slayer of Legends. The Tentacruel is a millenium old."

Lucario coughed. Oak turned to him. "You are too. Where do you want to be?"

The Steel Type shrugged. " _Anywhere is fine, but one question: Do you have a choclate fountain?_ "  
Oak sighed. "No I do not, but seeing Ash and Domino's spree, I better install one soon."

Primeape spoke up. " _I would like a pretty sturdy mannekin. That'll be good._ "

The Professor looked to Kingler. "Any request from you?"

Kingler tilted his head. " _Just the beach. I'm building myself a sand castle._ "

"Muk?"

" _Maybe an underground cave?_ "

"Sure, why not. I'll hire some Digletts to dig you a hole."

* * *

" _I see, so I am actually the second creation?_ " Mewtwo spoke, a lost glint in his confused eyes.

"Yes." Dr. Fuji said. "In fact, all of the humans and pokemon here are a replica of the one in the last timeline, except for the two I had told you about. So in technicality, we're all clones."

" _So it doesn't actually matter what I am, but finding what I want._ "

"Indeed." Dr. Fuji nodded.

Jessie poked James. "How come he just made Mewtwo realize what we've been trying to tell him for the past month?"  
James shrugged. "He's a Doctor afterall."

* * *

"Here's your hot tub." Sir Aaron placed the final brick that had materialized out of nowhere.

Arceus shook his head. " _There's no water._ "

Palkia sighed and used Hydro Cannon. " _There you go, Dad._ "

" _What about the 'hot' in 'hot tub'?_ "

Palkia drank the water back down and instead released Scald and topping the pool with a layer of Steam Explosion. " _Dialga?_ "

The Temporal Legendary used Roar of Time and locked the time in place, so the water would forever be hot.

" _We're done for today, gentlemen. Giratina, tell me when tomorrow starts._ " Arceus jumped into the tub happily. " _Actually, now that I think about it, we should really get some beds…_ "

The four cosmic human/Pokemon had already fled to the safety of reality, parallel universes, space and time. Arceus pouted. " _Was it really that bad building with cosmic energies?_ "

* * *

"Sir, you have to understand, if you keep building this, the entire forest and the pokemon's ecosystem would be destroyed." Ash said to a man in front of him.

The man yelled. "I did NOT call you here to tell me what to do, young man. You're either here to get rid of the Diglett, or you're going to get out of here, or else I will sue you for trespassing."

Domino pulled him back, careful not to tip over Zorua, whom she was using as a hat. "Watch me, Ashy. I know how to deal with stubborn cocks like these."

She gestured to the man. "May we have a talk, you know, privately?"

He looked at her suspiciously, before turning to walk with her behind a rock. Misty sighed. "And the threatening begins."

Pikachu sparked. " _I could have zapped him. It'll work._ "

* * *

Domino pulled out a card and smiled sweetly. "Do you recognize me now?"

The man took over the card, and did a double take at seeing the name on the front. "You're... You're the mastermind designer behind the Pokemon Land! That means, you're Tulip!"

"Glad that someone remember me. Now, you should know the power behind my company?"

"Yes, ma'am." The man bowed. "What do you need?"

"I would like to buy this piece of land from you. I'm sure you wouldn't disagree, after seeing the massive failure at stopping the Digletts by the trainers."

Silence followed as he weighed his options. Domino added. "Of course, you can choose to finish it, but just keep in mind, that would greatly slow MY business. Therefore, a bit of _competition_ would be in action."

The construction manager paled, knowing that the prospects of the dam after having a superpower company like her backing 'compete' with it would be totally wiped out. He'll probably lose the dam in a week.

"You're threatening me."

The blonde winked. "I know. I'll offer you twenty grand for this piece of land rights. Of course, you can always wait until the dam is finished for the _competition_."

"I'll take the twenty grand please."

* * *

"Done!" Domino dusted her hands as she walked back to Ash. "And that's how a real Rocket Elite does stuff."

Ash cradled her to him and squeezed her lightly, whispering in her ear, "And I am so happy you're on my side this time."

Domino, not minding the intimate position, chuckled back, "You better."

* * *

"So that's about everything on mental link." Fuji said. "Did you get them?"

Dr. Akihabara nodded. "Yes, I've received the files. Do you mind sending them to Mossdeep and LaRousse?"

"Of course not. Part of the scientific method is peer review. However, it would be hard to explain to them the time travel stories."

Oak spoke up. "Then we won't. We tell them that the memory link is performed by an ancient power that I accidentally found. It's the truth anyways."

The computer scientist decided that was the best route as well. "Is there any way I can meet with this Ash and Domino?"

Oak entered something on his Pokedex. He said after a while, "They should be here in a week or so. Everything is happening a lot faster this time… except for Leagues."

* * *

" _How many chairs again?_ " Palkia raised his head from his carpentry shop.

" _Fifty. Alolan legendaries hadn't gotten my approval yet._ "

"Make that fifty-three. Myself, Ash and Domino, when they choose to arrive, wouldn't want to sit on the floor."

Arceus nodded. " _Approved._ "

"So you approved Mewtwo?"

" _Yep._ "

Dialga sighed. " _I still don't get why we are making chairs before we made the conference room._ "  
Arceus shrugged. " _You're the Temporal Pokemon. Just switch the time slots._ "

" _That's not how this works!_ "

* * *

Giselle picked up a folder labeled, 'Biology of Pokemon' and started sifting through her notes. She pulled out one sheet and handed it over to Gary. "You need a self-sustaining system if you want to turn Dee."

"Wouldn't he work with his current Pokedex format?" Gary scanned the paper quickly.

Giselle shook her head. "No. You don't have the memory link open yet, nor telebytes after telebytes of information. Therefore, we have to start working through the body of Dee. If we can convert him, or even make one for him to transport to, the process would go a lot smoother."

"Okay. In that case, we can start with the skeleton. I'm thinking of making this out of steel?"

Violet shrugged. "Why not something even harder, like diamonds?"

"That's actually a great idea. I'll call granddad right now." Gary then winked at Violet. "And yes, I got your hint."

* * *

" _So… how are we going to…_ " Mew said to another pink cat in front of her.

Her sister sighed. " _I don't know._ "

" _Dialga's gone. Palkia's gone. I lost Giratina's trace in the main sensor of the Tree a few weeks back. Dad's off maintaining the last thread of reality. We're the only ones left._ "

" _No, we're not. We still have the Chosen and Queen with us. How are they?_ "

" _They're fine. Domino still hadn't noticed that it's just my Substitute yet. We don't have much time though. They're progressing nicely, but we still have to round up the Ancient Pokemon and legendary._ "

" _Already on it. They're near._ "

* * *

 **A/N: And this is where the story begins to take a huge turn.**

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	25. Cha 24: Kanto 24

_**Chapter 24:**_

"Dexter, may I have the coords to the Fuchsia Gym?"

"The weird, ninja place?"

"Yep."

The Porygon beeped for a few seconds, and a map with its latitude and longitude was pulled up.

Domino nodded and teleported off with Ash. Kirlia took Misty and Brock off. She had a huge enough psychic reservoir after evolving that she wouldn't need the help of Mew anymore.

The four appeared in front of a large, slanted house built on a cliff soon after. Ash closed his eyes, and then pushed Domino to the ground, falling on top of her in the process. He yelled to Brock and Misty, "GET DOWN!"

A boomerang flew at them out of nowhere and swooped on top of their heads. Ash jumped up at flung an Aura Sphere at it, shattering it to pieces. Domino released a Psybeam toward the direction and blew a giant hole through the trees.

A girl was staring at them in shock, while clutching her shoulder which had been pierced by some splinters. Ash roared, "Why did you attack us, Janine!? That's not part of the test!"

A man landed next to Janine, whom Ash identified as Koga. "I'm sorry for my daughter's bluntness. She was just testing you. Nothing would have happened even if you stayed in place."

Ash's face softened. "Hello, Koga."  
"I assume that you are here for my Soul Badge?"

"Yes." Ash pointed to Domino, "Both of us, actually."

"Okay, in that case, please come in, we can discuss the prerequisites."

* * *

"Prerequisites?" Domino asked.

"Yes. Each gym has its own test of character. Most is built into the fight, but mine is before. My test is of focus. I would be sitting in a room in the middle of the gym, which is a giant maze with traps. Each of the challengers must find their way through the maze without the use of Pokémon."

"Misty and Brock, you may come with me. Challengers, you may not smash through the walls, or teleport. Good luck." With that, a wave of smoke emerged at his feet. By it had cleared, he had disappeared and the door behind him opened, leading to what must be the maze.

Domino sniggered. "I bet there's a Pokémon hiding in this tile that can use Smokescreen."

A burst of psychic lifted the floor up, revealing a Koffing with smoke still oozing out of his pores. Seeing that he had been discovered, he scurried down a secret tunnel, which closed right after his entering.

"That's probably the tunnel Koga went in." Ash pointed.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious."

"You can call me Captain Ketchum." Ash winked and tipped his hat.

The Black Tulip smirked. "Ay, ay, Captain."

* * *

"This is so hard!" Domino whined.

Ash sighed. "We've been walking for thirty seconds. I bet you do this all the time at the Rocket base, and you're making me, a guy with no sense of direction, do the leading."

She giggled. "It's fun seeing you struggle. I want to see how you look during the times of your noviceness, if it's like what Misty and Brock said."

"And how do I look."

"Cute." Domino coughed and passed him to lead the way. "Follow me, Captain."

Ash stared at her backside. "Of course, Princess."

* * *

"Watch out, five o'clock."

Ash spun around, staff in hand, and swat a Voltorb out of the way. Domino flipped over in a handstand and pulse a Psybeam out at three shurikens that were flying at them.

Koga sighed from the control room, watching the cameras. "Why didn't you tell me they had super powers?"  
Brock shrugged. "Won't matter anyways, unless you restrict them from using BOTH aura and psychic. Ash spars with an ancient Lucario over a thousand years old constantly, and Domino is as powerful as a regular Metagross."

"Plus, we already hinted that you have to ban destroying walls and teleporting. That's already a big enough favor." Misty reminded him.

Koga sank back into his chair. "Aya, let's up the challenge. Remember the mask."

"Got it." A shadow disappeared silently at the corner of the room.

* * *

Ash turned around, his eyes closed, and kicked at the ground. As if to have her face in close contact with his foot, a Venonat chose this moment to spring out of the ground. "Aura Sight is so convenient."

Domino was about to reply when a figure dropped from the roof and swung a blade at her. Her tulip staff appeared in her hand almost instantly and blocked the attack. Her assaulter slashed at her feet, and the blonde girl jumped over and at her, slamming her staff down. As it came down, the light of Cosmic Power washed over the gym. Her boosted Counter broke the sword and flung the ninja down, revealing her to be Aya.

The staff continued going and slammed on the floor, breaking through a large hole. Aya bowed and sank back into the shadows. "Very well, contesters. You've passed my test."

Ash finished wrestling the Venonat and sent it flying off into the distance. He nudged Domino slightly to go forward. The Rocket Elite shook her head and pointed to the ground. The boy stared at what she's pointing to. "What? That's the hole you just made."

The blonde slapped him lightly for not getting her point. "Remember what Koga said. We can't teleport or smash through WALLS."

Ash looked at her blankly. "I don't get it."

She facepalmed, and used Psychic to throw Ash down the hole. "Just get in."

Ash landed with a burst of aura, and held his hand up to help her down. After this many months of being abused by her, he got immune, just like to Pikachu's Thunder.

Of course, not immune to her face though.

Domino looked at the wall and back at him expectantly. "What are you waiting for? Punch the thing."

"I still don't get it."

"He said we can't break through the wall, and the ground isn't part of the wall." She explained impatiently. "Therefore, we can just dig a tunnel to him."

"Ahh." He said with a look of realization. Ash raised his shirt up and scratched his biceps. "Like what you're seeing?"

"Believe it or not, you're ten now." She shot him a look. "Seriously dude, aura isn't omnipotent."

Ash pouted, and then lashed at the wall, as if to vent his frustration, with a Giga Impact.

"He's this way." Domino pointed in an opposite direction. Ash checked with Aura Sight, and sighed. "Fine. Force Palm!"

* * *

Misty winced. "How much will this be?"

Koga looked at the boy. "Probably thirty grand. Too bad we can't charge challengers for damages."

The redhead grinned. "Now you can. I specifically asked Lance to make the rule a thing before Ash challenged my gym. Don't worry. Domino is rich, and so will Ash be in the future."

The Fuchsia Gym Leader shot her a confused look. Brock sighed. "Just believe us. Don't question it."

* * *

"Now, aim a little to your left. There. This should be the last foot."

The couple used Rock Climb, smashing through the ground and flying up into the room on top of them, in the process knocking away the few throwing knives that were released at them.

Koga looked at them, and then back at his floor. "Please, don't use Earthquake during the battle. I don't want the gym to slide down the cliff… At least not before I become an Elite."

"What does that mean?"

"There are many different rankings of trainers. Maybe you've never heard of them because your path is so… unorthodox. Generally, there is the Champion, of course, to start the chain. Under that is Elites, then Masters, Veterans, Sr. Trainers, Jr. Trainers and the lowest rank, Rookie."  
"Normally, one who first starts the Pokémon Journey is a Rookie. After earning four or more gym badges, they become the Jr. Trainers. If they were able to make it to Leagues and the Top Sixty-four in a League, they earn the rank of Sr. Trainers. If they become part of the Top Eight, and could fight with all six Pokémon, they become a Veteran. To be Masters, they must win a League in any regions, which is probably why there is a big gap between Veterans and Masters."

"Sometimes, becoming a Veteran would only require a few years, while becoming a Master may take up to decades. ( **A/N: Literally.** ) After that, if you were able to beat at least one of the Elite Four, you earn the title of Elite, however, don't get it confused with the job of the Elite Four. Same thing with Champion."

"Anyone who is a Veteran can apply for Gym Leaders, after completing a character test and defeating one of the Elite Four in tactics. There are others, more simplistic and fast ways of applying though, which I do not approve of." He shot Misty and Brock a look. "Currently, I am a Master. I won the Lily of the Valley Conference a decade ago. My goal is to become an Elite, so that I can apply for the Elite Four. I'll probably pass my job to Janine next year and have Aya help her while I go to Hoenn and battle one of their Elite Four whom I never got a chance to fight with."

Ash coughed and looked at the ground. "Well, we're sorry about your…"  
He then stared in shock at the place he had popped out of, now as brand new as the other tiles on the floor. The giant hole disappeared. "What?"

"They're ninjas for a reason. We've dealt with Aura Guardians for a long time. An ancient samurai invented a special type of hat to turn off their radiation of life forces. Aya was wearing the hat when attacking you. Too bad she went for Domino instead of you, or else you might as least be surprised."

"Anyways!" Koga bounced back from the destruction of his floor immediately. "Now that both of you had passed my test, you may proceed to the battling. Who's first?"  
Ash shrugged. "Princesses first."

Domino giggled and stepped forward. "I guess we're battling in this room?"

"Yes. It's small, but part of the point. It is a challenge of deceit and evasiveness, not raw power." Koga nodded and then added as a thought came to mind. "No, you may not battle yourselves or blow this room up."

He then coughed. "Or other options of destroying it."

* * *

Janine stood at the corner of the room and became this match's referee. "This battle is between Koga of Fuchsia Gym and Domino of Viridian. Each is allowed three Pokémon, and the last one with Pokémon still standing is victorious!"  
"Switches are allowed. Ring outs are anywhere out of this room. Destruction of terrain is not. May the best trainer win!"

"Go, Venomoth!" The Poison Moth burst out of his Pokéball and did a dance in the air, before disappearing from the room.

"In that case, let's make it a Bug vs. Bug battle. Shedinja!" The Shed Pokémon emerged for a second, and then immediately disappeared with a Feint Attack.

Koga smirked. "Not a good idea to have a test of patience with ninjas. We're trained to do that."

Domino shrugged. "He's a Ghost, which should explain itself."

"It really doesn't." Ash interrupted.

"Use your brain." She shot back immediately.

* * *

(One eternity later)

"How can this get longer than the Celadon battle?" Domino groaned, holding her head.

Koga smirked. "Looks like someone is losing her patience…"

Ash spoke up. "Princess, why aren't you using your ability to sense psychic pulses?"

"You think I haven't thought of that!?" Domino glared at him. "Koga must have trainer his Pokémon to somehow contain their brain waves with some sort of anti-coding."

"Doesn't Miracle Eye counter that?"

Domino blinked. "Uhhh…"

Ash gave a triumphant laugh. "Miss Smarty-Pants got beat by a Doughnut."

"Glad we both agreed on the Doughnut part." Domino retaliated, and her eyes wavered in pink soon after.

A psychic pulse was sent to her Pokémon. "Shedinja! Create a Double Team of yourself and send it to the upper right corner of the room from my perspective."

'Shedinja' emerged from his hiding spot and charged at the place Domino had given. A sudden layer of Toxic Spikes appeared, and Poison Powder engulfed the Double Team. He was then pierced by a Venoshock, the three attacks having been planned and laid almost seconds after the other.

The Double Team popped, and Koga blinked in confusion. Within a second, he realized that he had been discovered. Acting quickly, he commanded. "Venomoth, Gust to blow the Powder across the room."

Domino silently complimented the man at such good tactics, no doubt coming from a Master level trainer. The trainers she had beaten before was at max, Sr. Trainer. However, he had forgotten one minor detail.

"Shedinja has Wonder Guard. He doesn't take any damage except for super-effective moves."

"I know." Venomoth started to dance, using Sunny Day.

The Black Tulip had no idea what he was doing, but she knew it would be a bad idea to have him finish. "Shedinja, Shadow Sneak!"

Koga smirked. "Exactly what I wanted. Energy Ball! Use the Sunny Day to power it!"

Venomoth released a modified ball of red, glowing energy taken from the sun's power. It went straight into the cloud of poison. Before it impacted, Ash had a sudden realization of what the Master was planning.

The ball lit up on fire as it entered the cloud, and the entire room was set ablaze by the explosion, with Shedinja being in the dead center of the modified Fire Type attack.

Domino screamed, "NO! Shedinja, wake up! Please!"

The stunned Pokémon was still too in shock at the super effective move, and stayed in place for Venomoth to hit him with an Aerial Ace, then a Thief attack. Shedinja crashed out of the fog of fire, unconscious.

Domino rushed to the side of her Pokémon and picked him up. Ash tossed her a Burn Heal, which she applied on her Shed Pokémon. After she was done, the blonde glared at Koga. "I thought you said we can't destroy the room?"  
The Gym Leader pointed. "Do you see any burn marks?"

She looked around to find the wall unscorched. Even the door, which was made of paper, didn't have a single hole. She stared at him disbelievingly. "How did you do that?"

Ash touched her on the shoulder. "The Poison Powder he used was flammable, in fact most poison is. Since Venomoth is already Poison Type, he can control the fog very well."  
The boy looked at Koga in the eye. "Since he used Sunny Day to charge Energy Ball, it turned the energy into Fire Type, which is super effective toward Shedinja, breaking though his Wonder Guard."  
"It wouldn't have as much effect. It definitely wouldn't stun him if you hadn't ordered Shedinja to charge into the middle. However, he made it out so it seems like you must make a move, or else something else bad would happen. Since you failed to take in the environment, you were successfully lured in by him, which is something anyone without much experience would do."

A serious glint appeared in Ash's eyes that Domino hadn't seen in a long time. "The trap hadn't been set after you noticed. A Master level wouldn't be that late in his actions. Therefore, it must have been before."

"This takes me into my next point. You shouldn't ever underestimate a trainer, even if they just started off. Never ever." Ash squeezed her hand in comfort, but his words kept flowing out. "If you had suspected Koga of scheming when you first noticed the Poison Powder instead of mocking him of not knowing about Wonder Guard, Shedinja might not even be hurt."

"Lastly, know your Pokémon. Once your opponent gets passed the Wonder Guard ability, it is relatively easy to drain Shedinja's little health."

Koga looked at the two and spoke to Domino. "He is right. I can see that you have extremely powerful Pokémon, but your tactics and maneuvers are still quite bland. Normally, I don't make my battles this hard. However, the gym leaders before me had made this Gym Challenge way too easy for you. I feel that it's my job to actually teach you something."

"Your skill is quite impressive, though to get to the top without relying only on your Pokémon's strength, you must reach a higher level than your current, what seems like, Sr. Trainer level."

Domino lowered her head. She thought back on the experiences in the past. Most of the time with Team Rocket, she had decided to rely on herself, her trusty tulip and her martial arts training. She had never actually established a relationship with any Pokémon, except for Giovanni's Persian. She also didn't have as much experience with Pokémon battling as she made it out to be. After all, being Giovanni's daughter had its perks, like cutting through a giant chunk of preparatory training, which never bit until now.

As a result, Pokémon battling tactic had never been her strong suit. Even after meeting Ash, all she was doing was crushing everything in her path with the sole strength of her Pokémon, first using Mew to gather all of the powerful Pokémon, and then using them to rush through gyms.

Consequently, she ended up having no definite style of her own, which showed as a harsh drawback in a battle with someone Koga's level. She breathed out a deep breath, and then looked up with a look of fire.

"Thank you. Thank you so much. May we continue?"

He nodded. "Very well. I wouldn't expect any less. Remember, this is my main team, not just normal gym Pokémon."

The Poison Trainer then looked to Ash. "You seem like you have a lot of experience and confidence, and you saw through my last battle right away. Have you been to any Leagues?"

Ash chuckled. "Not necessarily in the strictest sense. But trust me, I have a lot of experience with battling."

"Then I look forward to battling you, young man. For now, Miss Domino, are you ready?"

"Ready when you are."

* * *

A steady gaze settled in Domino's eyes, and she pointed. "Kirlia!"

"Gengar!" Koga smirked. "I still don't get why you young trainers like to yell the Pokémon you're sending out. Don't you know I can just use that to choose his? It's probably because of that Pokémon Origin anime Cleavon made."

"Everyone else does it." The Shadow Pokémon landed in front of Kirlia, and Domino thought fast. If he could beat her Shedinja without even type advantage, one with it would be a lot harder.

"Psychic Terrain." She ordered. "Use your teleportation to your advantage."

"Gengar, get in a corner and repeatedly use Dark Pulse." The Ghost duly did so. Since the attack travels outward, and covered the whole room, Kirlia was forced out of her hiding spot and was bombarded by the Dark attack.

"Did Mew teach you Hyperspace Hole yet?"

" _Yes._ "

"Use that, and then wait for the gap to send a substitute over to Gengar. Charge up in the process."

A pink pulse emerged in front of Kirlia, and a wormhole appeared in the middle of the room, eating away the Dark Pulses. Her substitute jumped in, the same time she use Feint Attack to hide herself.

Another space hole opened in front of the Ghost Type, and 'Kirlia' came out.

"Torment! We can't have her use that move again!"

Gengar flashed with black energy, and it flashed over the Substitute, which was not absorbed and had no effect on her.

"What?" Koga blinked, then immediately realized Domino's plan. "Quick! Protect."

The Shadow Pokémon's Protect screen came at the nick of time and deflected a Future Sight that Kirlia had took the last moments to charge.

Koga complimented. "Now that was a good strategy. It would've hit, but my use of Torment to identify the Substitute was completely lucky."

"It didn't hit you though." Domino sulked. "Kirlia, Magical Leaf."

A swarm of leaves filled the room. Koga remarked, "Interesting choice. Gengar, lay some Smog around you, and use its disturbance to see if you are getting sneaked up on." Gengar followed his trainer's order and released a poisonous cloud. "Then wait until the distraction is over, and…"  
A small voice had started to penetrate the cloud in which Gengar was staying. It was quiet to start with, but got louder as Koga finished his directions. The Poison Leader blinked. "Gengar! Cover your ears."  
"Too late." Domino smirked. Kirlia finished playing the Perish Song, and Gengar looked back at his master.

Koga thought quickly. "Haze."

An Ice type energy rushed over Gengar's head, and started to sink in to remove the song's effects.

The Rocket Elite muttered something under her breath, and a purple beam rushed out to hit the Ghost the second after Haze took effect, but before Gengar was able to regain control of his body after the Haze move refreshed his mind.

The Destiny Bond started with a small purple dot on Gengar's chest, which extended to become a chain within seconds that wrapped around the Shadow Pokémon.

Domino didn't bother using psychic to communicate to Kirlia. "Hide for the next minute. The battle's going to end in a tie."

Kirlia blinked away in a flash of pink, disguised by her leaf storm. Koga smirked. "That was very impressive indeed. The strategy of taking down a Pokémon who is potentially stronger than you by using Perish Song and Destiny Bond to end in a tie is very interesting."

"Using Magical Leaf was crucial to your strategy as well. It allowed for Kirlia to be camouflaged and made me think to naturally defend. This bought her enough time to use Perish Song. What I admired the most was your second preparation, in case Perish Song fails, like it did with my Haze."

Koga looked at his watch, which told him that the minute is about gone. He then looked back at the girl. "But there is a few mistakes. For example, don't hide against the master of ninjas."

He waved to Kirlia, on the roof. "And the second mistake… Gengar! Use your ability!"

A pulse of purple washed through his Ghost Type. When it faded, Domino's Destiny Bond was terminated. At almost the same time, Kirlia fell down from her hiding spot, unconscious from the Perish Song.

The blonde stared in shock. "Why didn't Gengar faint?"

Ash sighed. "Gengar has Cursed Body, which allows him to disable a move used on the Pokémon. I'm guessing he used it on the Destiny Bond, and waited until the last second to point out so that Kirlia would have no chance to retaliate. That's why he wasted time by complimenting you in the middle of battle, to make sure you don't remember."

"It's a battle of wits." He finished.

Koga chuckled. "Very well, Ash. What would you've done?"  
"I'll show you after this." Ash smirked.

"Indeed, I still have a gym battle to finish." He turned back to Domino. "You ready?"

Domino was silent. Never had she suffered a defeat this bad. She left a lot of her powerful Pokémon at Oak's ranch, thinking that she wouldn't need them.

Boy was she wrong.

"Yes, I'm ready."

* * *

"You can start whenever. I'm letting Gengar stay in since he took almost no damage."

Domino reached up to her head and pulled Zorua down. "Do you want to try?"

The Tricky Fox nodded. " _I won't disappoint, mama._ "

"Of course you won't." She pat her Pokémon and pointed. "Now let's show Koga a true battle."  
Zorua hopped into the room, and immediately changed to a Vaporean. Her eyes flashed as she released a Dark Pulse, which was blocked by his Protect. She fired a torrent of water into the room with Hydro Pump, and used Agility to dodge a Focus Blast. Gengar looked at the rising water levels and shrugged. " _I'm a Ghost._ "

"Hypnosis!" A pink beam shot of his eyes. Zorua changed into a mirror. The pink beam was reflected back by her Mirror Move and hit Gengar instead.

"Sleep Talk!" Gengar released a wave of Ghost Type energy at Zorua, despite being asleep.

The Dark Type pounced forward for a Dream Eater. She hit Gengar as he stuck out his tongue to Lick her. Zorua was sent back, paralyzed, as her attack woke the Ghost up.

"Sh*t!"

Koga smirked. "Use the paralysis to your advantage. Curse, then Hex!"

A dark glow appeared over Zorua, and the extra-boosted force sent her crashing into the water. Gengar waited, and she didn't seem to come up. Koga looked to Domino in question, and she nodded. "Zorua's still conscious."

"In that case, she must want you to go down there." He commanded. "Thunder!"

Gengar released a massive electric attack that reached the water. A yellow light flashed through the small pool the Dark type had created. After a while, Zorua floated up with her eyes closed.

Koga looked to Domino. "I guess…"

A massive _BANG_ sounded as he looked back to find Gengar tackled to the wall. A hole closed around him, as Zorua used Black Hole Eclipse. She smirked. " _Phantom Force is so useful sometimes._ "

Gengar fell out of space a while later and hit the ground with a thud. Koga walked over and checked on his Pokémon, finding him to be unconscious. He nodded his approval. "Very good. The use of the water to distract and mislead, and striking when a Pokémon isn't paying attention. Now that, THAT is good tactic."

"Thanks." Domino thanked him and looked at her loyal Pokémon. Zorua was panting and favoring one leg, consequence of being hit by the Hex attack. "Do you want to keep going? It's fine if you want to come back."

The Dark Type shook her head. " _No, it's fine. I said already I wouldn't disappoint._ "

* * *

Koga sent out Venomoth for the second battle with Zorua. Before the Moth could disappeared like the first battle, Zorua let out a cry and turned into a Wailmer, filling up the room and instantly squashing the Bug against the wall.

( **A/N: I know that's not how Disguise works, but just bear with me.** )

Venomoth was dazed at the sudden change, and didn't flop back up for a few seconds. Using the precious seconds, Zorua changed back and leapt to the right of him and fired an X-Scissor, which hit him, who then used Bug Buzz to get away and an U-turn to sneak attack her back.

Zorua flashed and changed to a Joltik, the Bug energy rushing over her. She shook as the Curse took its toll on her. Sweat dripped down her neck. She wiped it off on her shoulder, making her look up to see her opponent perched on a beam on the roof. The Fox said, " _You're nothing without wings._ "

Venomoth zoomed down and exchanged a Signal Beam with her Shadow Ball. He said sarcastically, " _Thank you for pointing that out._ "

A light suddenly flashed in Domino's head at what Zorua said. She grinned as a plan formed in her head. She sent a psychic pulse over to her Dark type, and Zorua rolled away from the explosion and looked up to face the Poison Moth who glided over her.

" _Let me ask you something. How do you fly?_ " Zorua looked up and used Shadow Claw to block an Acrobatics.

" _By flapping my wings?_ " The reply came in the form of a question.

Zorua smirked. " _No, that's wrong. Let me show you why._ "

She winced as Curse bit deep into her again, and knew that she had to end this battle fast before her health ran out. She turned into a Venomoth and used Attract. Koga shouted, "Lay down Stun Spore and ingested some of it as stimulation. Don't let her get to you."

Pikachu pouted slightly as he saw Zorua flirting with another Pokémon. Of course, he became happy again when he saw her used Overheat on him.

The Fire attack completely burn through the spores in a second, and Venomoth dodged with relative ease, since Zorua was never trained in Fire type moves for too much.

Koga raised an eyebrow, not sure of what she's doing. He decided to regard her previous attack as a distraction and asked his Pokémon to strike back with a Silver Wind.

Both he and his Pokémon dropped their jaws at what was happening in the next second. The Poison Moth flapped his wings, but nothing came out. At the same time, his began to use up his previous momentum and started to drop straight the ground, wings useless.

Venomoth had apparently never been in a similar situation. He struggled uncontrollably in his downward descent, deaf to Koga's calls. He hit the ground inevitably after free falling for a few seconds. Zorua changed out of her Venomoth form and into a Snorlax, before Heavy Slamming the Bug less than three percent of her weight into the ground.

The wooden floor creaked ominously at her weight, which was added on by momentum of the previous few seconds of falling.

Zorua changed back to her Tricky Fox form, and stepped off an unconscious Venomoth.

* * *

Koga recalled his Pokémon and turned to the girl. "Woah! You have to explain that."

Domino smirked. "According to what I had learned before in a very top-notch program, a flying Pokémon flies due to Bernoulli's Principle. It states that when they press their wings down, air soars past the wings. However, what allows them to fly isn't the motion of pressing down."

"There is a certain bent in the wings so that the top is more curved than the bottom. Air will break in two currents when it hit the leading edge of the wing. The air will try to 'get back together' at the same time, but the top air must be faster because it is traveling a greater distance due to the curved surface."

"This allows the top to be less dense, which lowers the pressure. The bottom air will have more pressure to push up than the top, which makes a Pokémon fly up. This concept is also used in planes, which the Left Sisters invented when watching Pidgey."

"When I use Overheat, I was able to balance the top air flow with the bottom air flow's pressure due to the heat. Overheat isn't the most powerful attack, but definitely releases a lot of heat."

Koga smiled, and it grew to a grin. "I think I've done my job of educating you to find your own style, Miss Domino. You've proven to me great knowledge of Pokémon, despite your first mistakes, your great bond between your Pokémon and the great training methods you have that allowed them to be this powerful."

"This is the team I used ten years ago to win the Lily of the Valley Conference, and they've been training rigorously ever since. Very impressive, especially for a girl who just started her journey."

He paused. "Even as a Rocket Elite."

Domino was taken back as her identity was revealed, but Koga waved his hands to signal peace. "Now don't freak out. I don't want my gym destroyed. Are you really shocked though? Unlike the other gym leaders, I am a Master, and I have so much networking around the regions that hearing about you is not really stunning."

"Besides, Lance did come to me after his encounter with you and vented for hours. I guess that's what I get for being his cousin."

"Surprised that something this big wasn't involved in the Rocket reports?" He chuckled when he saw her face. "We never tried to conceal it, but it never came up."

He dismissed the topic as fast as he mentioned it. "But anyways, enough about me. Back to you. Here's your reward for showing me your immense skill: Soul Badge."

"Wait!" Domino looked at him. "The battle isn't over yet."

Koga pointed. Zorua shook, and fell over from the Curse hitting one last time, draining her of her remaining health. "Take care of her. She's a very loyal and strong Pokémon."

"But… I lost." Domino said confused, and sad. She leant into Ash slightly. "Why are you still giving me the badge?"

Koga laughed. "You're mistaken about this impression that a challenger must beat a gym leader to win the badge. If a challenger did beat a gym leader, it is required by League rules to give the badge. However, a badge can be given by a gym leader if he or she decided that the challenger had passed the test of character."

"My test isn't of deceit or patience, but of improvisation. Your last maneuver with Zorua cancelling out the air pressure is very impressive, which earned you the badge."

Domino, for the first time, bowed to someone who was not Giovanni. "Thank you, Koga. Thank you for the lesson."

* * *

 **A/N: I just want to say, their pet names for each other are SOOO cute.**

 **Hmm… A battle where Domino struggled with. She actually did learn something from this battle, instead of crushing through. Ash's battle would come in the next chapter. Tell me if you want more of these types than straight on destruction. For Movie chapters, there will definitely be more of these.**

 **Also, who's the strongest Pokémon on Domino's team besides Mew? Not Dragonite, not Tentacruel, not Shedinja, but Zorua. Why? 'Cause I said so. I am not making Zorua evolve, just like I'm not making Pikachu evolve, because she's too cute in her form. She's actually in my opinion the cutest Pokémon yet.**

 **Remember that Fairy Type would not be created until Gen VI, which is Kalos. Therefore right now, Kirlia is pure Psychic, therefore resistant to Poison.**

 **A reminder of the poll on my profile page. Be sure to vote.**

 **Remember to review.**


	26. Cha 25: Kanto 25

**Chapter 25:**

Domino tossed her Soul Badge into the box Ash had just handed to her. "Why is it called the Soul Badge? And why is Sabrina's the Marsh Badge? Shouldn't they be switched?"

"Nice that you noticed. Most trainers just go on without questioning it." Koga replied while waiting for his Pokémon to return after Aya took them to the healing station. "A while back, almost nine years ago, Agatha was the one managing the assigning badges to gym leaders. Obviously, Sabrina chose Soul Badge and I chose the Marsh Badge. Her glasses broke the day before in training, so she delivered the wrong ones out."

"By the time they got to us, she decided to go to the Orange Islands with Lorelei on a vacation. As a result, we had to wait a few weeks to talk with her. When she came back, Sabrina had already turned crazy, so we never did sign the documents needed to trade badges. When the third year got around, the League refused to change them anymore because trainers had gotten familiar with them already."

"And that's how Agatha learned to wear contact lens ever since." Koga took the three Pokéballs that had been thrown at him out of the shadows. "Now, Ash, are you ready to battle?"

The boy nodded fiercely. "Ready as ever!"

* * *

"Okay, let's see." Ash looked at his collection, and decided to call upon the most balanced of his Pokémon. "Bulbasaur!"

He was released as a beam of light, and jumped in front of his trainer. Koga chose his. "Venusaur, come out!"  
The gym Leader threw his Pokéball to reveal the last evolution of the Seed Pokémon line, who landed in front of Bulbasaur. The third stage Pokémon stood at almost three times taller than his Ash's Pokémon.

Bulbasaur looked up and sighed. " _Why do I never get a fair fight, like against a Squirtle?_ "

Ash coughed. "You said you want to fight Squirtle?"

" _You know that's not what I mean!_ "

"This is a battle between Koga of Fuchsia Gym and Ash Ketchum of Pallet." Aya announced. May the best trainer win!"

"Bulbasaur! Leaf Storm to hide yourself! Avoid exchanging firepower with him directly."

"Very good notice." Koga complemented, and then said to Venusaur. "If he wants to hide, let him. Use Growth."

"Bullet Train!"

Koga looked up, confused. "That's not a move."  
Bulbasaur sent a torrent of Leech Seed, Razor Leaf, Bullet Seed, and Petal Dance toward Venusaur. The room was instantly filled with Grass Type energy. "Protect."

The evolved Pokémon raised a Protect shield, and used Cotton Guard.

A Seed Bomb came at him and blew the shield to pieces. Inside the bomb came an Ice Beam, which reached Venusaur since his vision was disturbed by the leaves. The super effective attack hit, sending him back with frozen traces on his petals.

The leaves rested alongside Venusaur, and Bulbasaur sent out a Fire Blast and lit them on fire, engulfing his opponent in a sea of flames.

Two vines appeared out of the fire and gripped onto the ceiling, pulling the evolved Grass Type away from the fiery pool. He sent out an Energy Ball at Bulbasaur, who rolled to dodge. Another was sent, followed by another.

Venusaur's attacks were purposely aimed to force Bulbasaur into his own fire, and Ash knew that as well as Bulbasaur.

"Leaf Storm!" Bulbasaur stomped the ground, and out came a tornado made of sharp, frenzy plants that wrapped itself around Venusaur. He maintained a Protect to block the attack. Bulbasaur, using his immobilization and his loss of sight due to the massive amounts of leaves, rolled away from the fire.

Ash's Pokémon then pulse out a Mega Drain. Koga yelled, "Roar!"  
Venusaur did so, and Bulbasaur was hit with an alto sound as he came up. It did no damage, but delayed his focus long enough that Venusaur sensed where he was, and turned around to block it.

He then released himself from the ceiling, dropping onto the ground of the room. Bulbasaur fired a Leaf Flare at the other Seed Pokémon, who flung his head in a Skull Bash motion. It sent the attack back at Bulbasaur, who yelped as he dodged.

Venusaur, as if planning it on purpose, fired a Solar Beam toward the falling Pokémon. Bulbasaur, unable to dodge it, took the attack without much damage, being Grass Type. The green light of Synthesis flashed over him, and quickly raised him back to full health. Opposite of him, the fire he had created burnt out.

A glint flashed over in Ash's eyes, and he ordered. "Bulb, Bulba saurba Bulbsaur. Bulba!"

Ash and his friends smirked as they understood his Pokémon language. A glow flashed over Bulbasaur, and a massive wooden collage of trees, wood and splinters were raised to almost the roof.

Ash closed his eyes and yelled out a direction. Bulbasaur pulsed out a Heal Block and flung it over the wall.

On the other side, Venusaur grunted as he was hit on the flower with the Psychic energy. Koga shouted. "How can you see?"

"Aura Sight." Ash replied, and then pointed to the ground.

Koga yelled. "Break down this wall! Hyper Beam."

Bulbasaur took Ash's hint and used Dig. With a powerful beam, his wall was shattered by Venusaur. The evolved Pokémon waited for the smoke to clear, and saw… nothing.

Then a super effective Psystrike came behind him and flung Venusaur straight into a wall. He tried to use Synthesis, but the Heal Block stopping him instantly. He was then pummeled by a series of Air Cutters to unconsciousness.

Koga's jaw fell open as the massacre enfolds. Raising his head back up at Ash, he complimented. "Great work! That was a great strategy. Very well trained. Let's see how you'll do in the next battle!"

* * *

"Drapion!" The Dark/Poison type landed in front of the Gym Leader and pointed its stinger at Ash.

"Kingler!" Ash withdrew Bulbasaur and sent out his Water type. As he burst out of his Pokéball, he released a Surf attack, completely flooding the room in a few seconds, putting Drapion at an inconvenient environment.

The Ogre Scorpion released a wave of Toxic into Kingler's water, turning it black in a few seconds. Kingler had gases escaped from his feet and his eight legs landed on the surface of the poisoned water.

The liquid below his feet turned solid, as Kingler released a torrent of Brine at Drapion without touching the poison. The Scorpion used Whirlwind and brought out a torrent of water which surrounded him and blocked the Brine attack.

However, as soon as they touch, Kingler's supercooled water froze, along with Drapion's wall, trapping the Poison Type in it. Taking this time, the Water Type used Mist, and jumped down into the poisonous mixture, no longer able to take damage.

The Scorpion smashed through the wall with an Iron Tail, and was met by a Crabhammer to the face. He was launched back, then blown with Bubble Beam. The Poison Type narrowed his eyes and used Thunder Fang into the water…

And nothing happened. Koga shouted in surprise while Ash muttered something in Pokémon.

Drapion sneaked out of Kingler's cornering using Feint Attack, while the Water type started to wave his claws in a circular pattern.

A cloud of darkness washed over Kingler's line of sight as he was struck by a Night Daze. Suddenly, a water-constructed Dragonite rose out of the liquid beneath his feet and filled up almost half of the room. Drapion and his trainer stared in disbelief as the construct held out his hand and pressed down, attempting to squash the Dark Type.

The Scorpion moved fast. He slid to the other side, and danced in a circle to avoid a Water Gun. The Dragonite then swiped at him. Drapion got out of the way with a Quick Attack.

The Dragon's hand lingered above his head, then collapsed and turned into a Waterfall attack.

Drapion yelped, and Koga shouted, "Acid Armor!"

The Poison Type turned into a puddle as the Waterfall passed through him without damage.

Ash smirked and gave out a command for the first time this battle. "Encore! Don't miss!"

Kingler lit with the white light of the move, and struck the Scorpion with it, forcing him to stay in puddle form for the next minute.

Which was a long time for any battle.

"Ice Beam! Then Freeze-Dry to ice up the Waterfall. Then a Blizzard to make the entire pool concrete solid!"

Koga's eyes popped out as he realized Ash's plan to freeze his Pokémon up with the water. If he succeeded, which was very likely, Drapion would probably have hypothermia for weeks since the cold got into his internal system in Acid Armor puddle form. He yelled. "Stop! I forfeit this battle. Kingler win."

Ash held up a hand for Kingler to pause, then looked to the referee. Aya sighed. "You win this round, Mr. Ketchum. Koga has one Pokémon remaining, while Ash still possesses three!"

Ash nodded and recalled Kingler. "Good job buddy."

The boy turned to Koga. "Your turn again."

* * *

The Poison Gym Leader looked at the smirking boy in front of him. "You're really strong, Ash. Strong indeed. Looks like I need to pull out my ace card."

He held up an Ultra Ball in his hands. "I prepared this for Phoebe of the Hoenn Elite Four originally, but I think here isn't a bad choice for your debut either."

"Go Muk!" Koga threw the ball, and it opened to reveal a Muk-like Pokémon, but with stripes of green, yellow and pink.

Ash furrowed his brow. "That's a Muk?"

The leader smirked. "It's an Alolan Muk. Apparently League just discovered a place next to us with some special influences of some sort. I think Professor Oak is thinking about building a school there."

"Anyways, by accident, my Grimer evolved to a Muk in the region and turned into this. That said, show me another great battle, Mr. Ketchum!"

Ash gripped the last Pokémon. "Then this should be interesting."

"I choose you, MUK!"

* * *

Misty groaned as she stared at the Muk vs. Muk battle. She poked Brock. "This brings back any memories?"

Brock shook his head. "No, but it does seem a bit familiar."

"Metapod vs. Metapod? The battle went on for hours without a resolution."

"Two Metapods?" Domino inquired while sipping on a juice box Kirlia just got her from the gym. She levitated a bucket of popcorn over. "Want any?"

"Gladly!" The other two took it and started chomping. "When Ash first started, which is actually about right now, he had a battle with a Samurai guy. The battle basically consisted of both of their Metapod using Harden repeatedly."

Domino chuckled. "Does seem like something he'll do. Did we encounter the Samurai yet?"  
"Yeah, Ash and I 'battled' him when we were searching for Mega Stones in Viridian Forest.

"Trust me, he's gotten a lot better."

"So how do you think Muk can beat his counterpart?"

Domino turned to Brock. "I heard from Spiritomb that Muk had something worked out in the ranch. Wonder what that would be."

* * *

Ash's Muk growled at his species, who roared back. The Kanto Muk smirked.

Then blew up into a million pieces of sludge and started to spin in a cyclone fashion, putting the Alolan Muk in the eye of the mini tornado.

Koga's Pokémon spammed out Dark Pulses, which slashed through some of the sludge surrounding him, and carried some away.

That had no results though. The sludge just crawls back into the storm right after. The hurricane suddenly released dozens of Fury Swipes, cutting deep in the Alolan Muk's body, while attaching some of the sludge onto his wound.

Koga's Pokémon roared in pain as the other Muk dug his way into his opponent's body. His sludge seemed to have a acidic effect that can eat through any barriers, including Dark energies surrounding the Alolan Muk.

All of a sudden, the tornado stopped and Ash's Muk materialized. In his hand was a multi-colored orb, and beneath him was scattered sludge of three colors.

Muk shrugged and threw the orb back onto the ground, and pulsed out a Sludge Wave to push the other Muk's mass back together onto his core. Koga's Pokémon formed again, but was out cold.

All of their jaws dropped open at the sight. Domino stuttered. "I did not expect his move to be this powerful."

Ash coughed. "Nor did I. I was going to use my strategy of blowing him up with…"

Koga rubbed his forehead. "I… wow. Here's the badge."

Ash smirked and took the Soul Badge. "Thanks Koga. Best wishes to your battle with the Hoenn Elite Four."

"Hold on, Ash. I heard you say you are an Aura Guardian. Is that right?" Koga opened a hidden door leading out of the room.

Ash nodded, and he continued. "In the olden days, there were three forms of high class battling in humans. The three classes are psychic, who manipulates the concept of earth, Aura, who deals with raw power, and ninja, who attacks using shadows."

"I am the descent of a great ninja, Naruto, whom I believe had fought Sir Aaron a thousand years ago. I have a collection of his training methods, which I am willing to share with trainers. However, most do not care at all about fighting themselves, or are too fragile to explore the depth of the arts."

"You are welcome to take some of the copies with you, Ash. Same with all of you. Combine ninja with aura and psychic. I want to see what will happen." Koga smiled, and a library appeared around the corner.

Ash smiled back. "This is just… a great gift Koga. I don't know how…"

Koga dismissed his thanks. "No problem. I've been trying to get them out so they'll stop stinking up the place for years. So far, only we three gym leaders and several ninjas under our training read them."

* * *

The four had separated after entering road of Fuchsia City. Brock went off to replenish some supplies, while Misty said she needed to get more bait for her rod.

Ash and Domino walked down another road together. The blonde girl poked her head to his ear and whispered, "Hey Ash. You know how you were acting all 'coaching' and stuff today at the Fuchsia Gym with me."

Ash massaged his neck. "Sorry, I got a bit excited there."

She flashed him a smile. "It's pretty cute."

Ash blushed and continued to rub his neck. He found a distractor as he recalled her previous statement "Koga's right, you need to work on some of your strategies. There're a bunch of holes that we must patch up together, and using your environment."

"But to be fair, Koga did specifically say to not toy with his gym. I mean, after all, you've only been a trainer for…"

Domino secretly beamed at the effect she can cause him, then forcefully cut him off with a Psychic. "Stop talking. You're rambling."

Ash silenced himself, but not for long. "Princess, how long have you actually been training with Pokémon in Team Rocket."

"Not too long compared to other elites. More like, five, six years." Domino grinned, "I finished my training a lot earlier than most of them."  
"And what do you mean by elite?"

Domino rolled her eyes. "Are you trying to do research for Oak or something?"

Ash coughed. "It's fine if you don't want to tell me."

"I'll tell you. It's not as if you have the guts to do anything against us." The Black Tulip poked him in the side. "The lowest ranking of the organization is grunts. They are the majority of the Team, and dedicated specifically to criminal activities."

"They're like trainers who just decided to go rogue, or thieves, or basically noobs who want to oppose the League. They can join as long as they pass the physical and the test we run to make sure they're not League spies. A member of the Team could stay at this stage for over two decades if they suck. Not a lot though, since grunts who suck tend to be caught by the League very quickly. Surprisingly, Jessie, James and Meowth actually were promoted out of the grunts after only a year of working, which is very quick."  
"What they are is basically the preparers for missions, like being the people who make bombs on an assembly line, clean my room, or janitorial services. Normally, they are not qualified to go on missions, unless ordered by those who can as helpers."  
Ash laughed. "You're kidding, right?"

Domino gave him a look. "Not at all. I remember once I made a mistake in my early days and Giovanni made me a grunt for two hours."

The girl shuddered as she recalled the memory. "I'll rather ride Yvetal than that again."

"How do you rank up?"

"By doing chores. Each has a point value, determined by its difficulty. The catch is that grunts can have their points deducted for messing up by anyone higher than them. And also, they are forced to do three chores a day, while they have time to do six."

"So a grunt can never rank up if he makes too many mistakes?"

"Or just pisses off too many higher-ups."

"The next phase is the agent. They are the people who can start taking missions. An agent is required to complete at least two missions each month. Like the grunts'chores, each mission has a point value. The harder the more points. There are seven types of missions: Code yellow, orange, red, green, blue, purple, and black, corresponding with the next seven ranks: Jr. agent, Sr. agent, Jr. Admin, Sr. Admin, Field Supervisor, Lt. Commander, and Elites."

"The last three ranks can assign Code red, green and blue missions respectively. I am allowed to assign Code Purple, and Giovanni is the only one who can assign Code Black. Beginning with Jr. Admin, the member can choose a field to work into, such as Headmaster, where they are in charge of resources. That's what the three idiots went into."

Ash clutched his head in pain. "This is so confusing!"

Domino laughed and nudged him. "You asked."

* * *

" _Okay, so let me try again._ " Mewtwo lay on the ground of his mental bubble and released his bent finger at the rock on the ground. The rock went in a straight line toward a small hole the size of the rock Meowth had dug, but bounced out again.

" _There's a problem with the hole. I know I calculated the power of the force with the impulse momentum equation derived from Newton's Second Law correctly. And I factored in the friction as well._ "  
Meowth chuckled. "There is a curve at da bottom so that it'll bounce out if you have ANY force remaining at the hole. Meowzie used ta play dat trick on me all da time. She said it's an ancient trick dating back to a thousand years ago."

" _You mean velocity?_ " Meowth looked at the legendary curiously, and Mewtwo continued. " _Because, you know, force is the acceleration when divided by mass, and velocity is…_ "

Meowth stopped him before the scientist can go on rambling. "Hold on. How da you know dis?"

Mewtwo shrugged. " _When Fuji was here, I asked him to bring me some physics books. I'm on the Quantum Chapter right now. Did you know that the world could be made of a series of strings parallel to…_ "

The Cat coughed again. "Here's another rock for da hole."

" _So how am I supposed to hit it in?_ " Mewtwo looked at the Scratch Cat questioningly.

Meowth smirked. "You can't. Dat's the challenge."

Mewtwo concentrated, and then sent another rock rolling with less force. The pebble bounced its way to the hole, and stopped before falling in.

Meowth grinned. "The world's strongest Pokémon is struggling?"

The Genetic Pokémon glared. " _I can't do something that's impossible._ "

Then suddenly, a light bulb literally flashed opened on top of Mewtwo's head. " _I got it!_ "

The Rocket Cat looked at him. "Whadaya got?"

The ground surrounding the hole shifted as it changed to a depression, with the hole being on the bottom. Mewtwo flicked his finger, and the rock went into the depression, and slid down the side into the hole. It bounced back up, then down again, its friction lost gradually.

Meowth stared. "Dat's cheating!"

" _So is giving an impossible hole._ "

* * *

Palkia shrugged. " _I don't get why you are struggling, Giratina._ "

The Renegade Legendary glared at the Spatial Dragon. " _Easy for you to say! You just placed a ball of gravity in the hole!_ "

" _I made it._ " Dialga was chasing his tail next the them.

" _You froze the time of when the rock came in._ "  
Sir Aaron laughed. "I can't believe a trick I invented when I was seven can stump the entire Creation Trio."

" _Yes, yes, very talented! Break's over. Help me build this damn sun!_ " Arceus' voice sounded.

Sir Aaron and the three legendary groaned. "C'mon Boss! Let us live a little."

" _Do you want us to live in darkness?_ "

The four groaned again and trotted over to the Alpha Pokémon, who was trying to put the sun on a chandelier. There were eight holes, but only four were filled.

" _Why do you need so many suns in your room, Dad?_ "

Arceus turned to Giratina. " _Not everyone can see through the blindness like you._ "

Sir Aaron chuckled. "Are you afraid of the dark, Boss?"

Arceus's eyes bloated open, then looked to his side. " _Uhhh, no?_ "

Dialga pointed his tail at a poster on the wall of his room. " _Then why is there a no Darkrai sign over there?_ "

Arceus sent out a Fire Type Judgments and burned the picture. " _GET BUILDING!_ "

* * *

Domino and Ash sat down at a table in the Fuchsia Pokémon Center. The blonde girl leaned across the table and snatched the menu out of Ash's hands. "Don't you know about ladies first?"

"You're a girl!?" Ash faked surprised.

A look of hurt crossed her eyes, and placed her head down slightly. Ash immediately realized his mistake and reached over to touch her hand. "C'mon, you know I don't mean that."

Domino pouted and placed her head down. "You're so mean to me."  
Ash sweatdropped at the statement, recalling how she was the violent one. He tossed the thought aside and went to sit next to her, before putting his arm around her. "I'm sorry. Will you forgive me?"  
The Rocket Elite looked at him, and then looked back down. Ash sighed. "I'll do anything. Just don't be mad at me."  
"Anything?" Domino looked at him with her puppy dog eyes.

Ash blurted out, "Anything."

"Okay. Lunch is on you." Domino smiled sly. "Ash Ketchum, you are so gullible."

"Wait, you're not mad?"

"Just shut up and eat."

Ash looked at the girl in his arm, shoving a slice of pie in her mouth, and smiled. "Gladly."

* * *

 **A/N: Ash's battle. He defeats Koga a lot quicker, but that's reasonable. I set up some structure for Team Rocket. It would be handy later on.**

 **Don't forget to vote on the polls detailing which Pokémon** **you want for the GS Ball.**

 **Please review. You know they're always appreciated.**


	27. Cha 26: Kanto 26

"Ash, I downloaded a copy of the rules of the race from the ranch website. Take a look."

Ash raised his Pokédex up. "No flying, no teleporting, no hovering…"

Domino pouted. "This seems unfair."

Brock chuckled. "May I ask how that's unfair."

"There's no guaranteed win!"

The group sweatdropped.

"Hmm… I think I might go with Kingdra this time." Misty contemplated. "Dragon Pulse myself all the way to final."

"Kingdra levitates." Ash deadpanned.

"This is really not working out for us, is it?"

"Ash, I have put together a lineup for us." Dexter materialized a list in front of the four. "Misty on her Gyarados, Brock still with Steelix, Domino with her Tentacruel and Ash with Squirtle."

"SQUIRTLE!?" Ash looked mystified. "Have you never heard of the story of the Squirtle and the Lopunny?"

"In my defence, the Squirtle won the race." Dexter beeped, "And this is by Squirtle's request."

Ash sighed. Domino piped up. "I don't think I can bring a giant Tentacruel onto the tracks."

"It is not against the rules, last I checked."

Mew flashed next to her. " _Dom, I've got a better idea._ "

* * *

"Deal?" Dario slapped a pile of bills on his counter.

"Very well." The man looked up from his shadows and threw a bag to the boy while withdrawing the Pokédollars. "If you get caught in the race, you did not get this from me."

Dario took the X Speed dust made from Salac Berries and smiled thinly. "Of course, the usual."

* * *

Ash was sparring with Lucario when the Storm's End landed. He was about to ask when an unfamiliar shape jumped down from the legendary's back, revealing himself to be… another legendary.

Raikou charged straight for Pikachu, who was in the middle of a hide and seek game with Zorua, Bulbasaur and Kirlia. The starter yelped and quickly put up a Protect shield out of instinct, but the electric Beast stopped before coming into contact with him.

The Johto Beast bowed. " _Sup, Pikachu? Dad's told me 'bout you a lot. Lots of guys tried to electrocute him, but you actually did it!_ "

Ho-Oh sweatdropped and shook his head. " _Greetings, Ash._ "

"So… what are you doing here?" The Ketchum boy coughed and looked at Raikou. "And what about him?"

" _I told him about Pikachu, and he basically bugged me until I agreed to take him to meet your starter._ " The Fire Type sighed. " _He even put a nest of Ariados in my Tin Tower to…_ "

His explanation was cut off by Pikachu's Thunderbolt aimed straight at Raikou's mane. Raikou fired his own Thunder, and the two attacks clashed in midair to form a huge ball of energy into which more electricity was being pumped on both sides.

"Crap!" Ash yelled. "Everyone down!"

The clash of energy exploded like a hundred Electroball, stray static waving off across the clearing. Zorua, Kirlia and Bulbasaur dropped from the trees.

Pikachu shrugged. " _That was certainly one way of winning the game._ "

" _That was so FUN!"_ Raikou looked like he was on a sugar rush. " _Let's do that again!_ "

"NO!/ _NO!_ " Ash and Ho-Oh bellowed at the same time.

* * *

" _So here is my offer._ " Raikou began. " _Father and I decided that since I have no responsibility at the Tin Tower, I have decided to aid you in your journey, Chosen._ "

" _However, there is a test. It was going to be defeating me with six Pokémon._ " The Beast smirked. " _But let's make this more fun. I challenged Pikachu to a raw power electric arm wrestle._ "

Ash looked at him, then at Ho-Oh. "Electric arm wrestle?"

The Storm's End shrugged. " _Told you he's bored. Suicune and Entei spoiled their baby brother way too much while I was gone._ "

The raven-haired trainer looked at his starter. "Want to give it a try?"

Pikachu's eyes were already glowing with fire. " _HELL YEAH!_ "

" _So here's the deal. We make a arm out of electricity._ " Raikou demonstrated by constructing a five-foot-high arm. " _Now you try._ "

Pikachu looked at it and back at Dexter. " _Can you give me me a deep-level scan of the electronic makeup?_ "

"You mean electric, because electronic refers to solid object." Pikachu gave him a look. "Why does nobody care about grammar now? Anyways, here you go."

Pikachu took a few glances at the layout of Raikou's hand and sparked, blasting into the sky a huge beam of lightning that condensed into an eight-foot-high hand. Raikou grinned. " _The biggest isn't always the best._ "

" _Then let's see, mate._ "

Mew gathered everyone around with a burst of teleportation and raised a pink shield in front of them. " _Careful. This might be loud._ "

* * *

The two giant hands clashed together and released a magnificent _BOOM_. Pidgeot winced. " _Even when I go supersonic, the shockwave wasn't this loud._ "

Ash took off his headphones. "WHAT DID YOU SAY!?"

" _You're yelling!_ "

"Oops."

In the middle of the field, Raikou and Pikachu each poured mega-amperes of lightning into their creations as bursts of beams exploded in different directions. Zorua shivered as she curled up in a ball on Domino's head. " _Now that's my Pikachu!_ "

The crew watched as the hands… no monstrosity that had grown to the size of a small house.

"Uhhh… Guys." Domino was the first among them to detect something wrong with the situation. "Guys, stop. GUYS!"

Mew caught on immediately. " _The electric construction are being compressed into positrons from electrons because of the insane electromagnetic field. It is literally sucking electricity out of them because of the Law of Balance. And the worst part is, they can't move!_ "

"Why the hell does this sort of thing keep happening to me?" Ash whined, and was sent back as a strike of stray lightning sent him against a tree, shattering his Protect shield.

Ash ducked as another bolt flew in his direction, hitting the tree behind him. The plant was blown to pieces instantly.

Domino teleported next to him, grabbed his hand and teleported right out. "Any ideas, genius?"

Ash thought hard. "Ho-Oh, Weather Ball."

The Fire Type looked at him questioningly.

"Just do it!"

Ho-Oh took to the air, careful not to soar into the range of the super effective energy. When he got above the field, the bird banked carefully to circle the ball of doom and started pulsing out an yellow energy unique to the Storm's End. The radiant glow circled the unstable mass and struggled to lift it.

The Rocket Elite caught on immediately at his plan and smirked. "Only you."  
" _Ash! Do what you need to! I can't hold this for much longer._ "

"Mew!"

" _On it._ " The psychic legendary pulsed out a pink glow as Ho-Oh blocked the electric energy from sucking away anymore of the two's electricity. Her Psycho Cut sliced through the electric strings that attached Pikachu and Raikou to the hands.

" _NOW!_ "

Ash threw two Pokéballs into the air. Pikachu's lightning marked ball into the air which released a beam that attached onto the tired mouse and pulled it back.

The other ball went straight for Raikou and absorbed him in an instant due to his similarly exhausted state. It rolled away from the vicinity just before the huge sphere of electricity turned Weather Ball crashed down.

Lucario dashed forward and threw a giant ball of aura on the ground beneath it, and Dexter and Noah both popped up and inserted a constructed hologram of… a trampoline below it.

The Electric ball slammed into the trampolines, popping it in an instant. Using the slight amount of time gained by the cushion, Lucario threw something under the massive ball of energy.

The group watched in amazement as the vast electric power was sucked into the dull object. Lucario bent down and picked it up.

Ash blinked in confusion as he recognized the thing in an instant. "How?"

" _Apparently the Mega Stone based reservation is big enough._ "

"What the heck is that!?" Misty exclaimed as she went up to the thing and touched it lightly.

"Lucario and I made an experimental aura reservoir a few weeks ago. Two of them used Mega Stones as base to receive the energy." Ash explained. "So I guess they were so large of a reservoir that it was able to absorb all of the energy Pikachu and Raikou put out…"

"Twelve Thunderstones plus a legendary worth?"Domino exclaimed.

"I guess so."

" _So what you are basically saying is that that piece of rock has the capacity of at least a… hydrogen bomb._ "

"..."

" _Don't worry. I'll only trigger when I give an aura code. I'll probably use this to fuel your Tree later in the timeline._ "

" _DON'T YOU DARE GET THAT NEAR MY TREE!_ " Mew growled, serious for once.

Lucario sweatdropped. " _Okay, ma'am._ "

Ash walked to the edge of the field and picked up the Pokéball he threw at Raikou. The light was on, indicating a successful capture.

"Huh… I thought it would be somewhat harder." Ash picked up the ball and released the Electric Type.

* * *

" _Okay, so I'm definitely crossing electric arm wrestling off the list._ " Raikou lamented as he licked his paw. " _I felt like I just got zapped._ "

" _It's not just you, buddy._ " Pikachu curled next to Zorua as she turned into a Chansey and nursed his tail. " _But nice charges._ "

" _Back at you._ "

Zorua looked at him. " _How did you even come up with that?_ "

" _Entei suggested I play it with Suicune._ "

The Pokémon couple blinked. " _Isn't Suicune Water Type?_ "

" _Yeahhh…_ " Raikou coughed. " _That should have been my first hint to stop playing this game_."

Ash came over with a pot of brownies Brock just baked up. "Bet you all are hungry after that… episode of a nuclear meltdown."

Pikachu and Zorua hopped over and each took one. Raikou approached it curiously and sniffed. " _Interesting. I have never seen anything like this before. What is it?_ "

" _A mix of melted chocolate and dough, and Brock's secret recipe_." Pikachu picked one up by the tail and offered it to the legendary beast. " _Try it._ "

Raikou levitated it by the formation of an electromagnetic field and chomped it down in two bites. His expression lightened up into shades of bewilderment and looked up at Ash. " _Chosen, if I do decide to follow you from here on, do I get bribed with this every day?_ "

"Probably not." Ash shrugged. Raikou's head lowered in disappointment. "But I'm sure Brock will cook something equally as good."

The Thunder Legendary popped back up in excitement. Ho-Oh came over. " _I can attest to that._ "

"And also, don't call me Chosen. Only Arceus calls me that, despite my telling him to stop dozens of times."

Raikou nodded vigoriously. "Sure Ash. Anything for that food!"

Dexter floated next to Ash. "How would you like to be entered into a race, Raikou?"

* * *

"Howdy y'all. My name is Lara Laramie, and welcome to the Laramie Ranch." Lara jumped off her Ponyta and offered her hand to the group.

Ash smiled and took her hand. "Ash Ketchum of Pallet. Do you know where we can register for the race?"

"Of course! The third building down after the barns." Lara replied cheerfully. "You're here for the race? Good luck then."

"Thanks."

Domino smirked. "Yeah, you'll need it, Ash."

Ash was about to retort when they felt a shaking on the ground, and a wave of vibrations echoed through the ranch. A cloud of dust came crashing towards them.

He closed his eyes, and did a double take as he saw nearly a hundred Tauros-shaped aura stampeding toward them.

"Crap! It's worse than last time!" Ash yelled. "Pikachu! Thunder wave."

" _No need!_ " Before his electric starter could spark more than once, Mew was already gone. A heartbeat later, she re-appeared on top of the herd and a pink wave of Calm Mind dropped onto the Tauros, putting all of them to sleep in a second.

Domino raised an eyebrow. "I thought that was Calm Mind. How did you Hypnotize them?"

Mew dusted her hands. " _Doesn't matter. Slight tweak only. They're essentially the same thing. I increased the dosage._ "

Lara gaped at the legendary. "I know it's rude to stare, but are you a Mew?"

" _Yep!_ " Mew rolled onto her back and waved at Lara with her tail. " _I'm also racing!_ "

Ash looked at Domino. "NO levitation, remember?"

"I know." The Black Tulip smirked mischieviously. "Hey Mew, can you catch that idiot running away?"

Mew flashed, and a man and white uniform, with a yellow G in the front, was levitated up. Domino's face sank substantially as she saw the man.

She muttered through gritted teeth in a voice only Ash, standing close to her, can hear. "Galactic!"

* * *

"What do you mean Galactic had infiltrated our territory?" Giovanni barked through the phone. "Only we can do that!"

Domino looked at the frightened man near her feet. She deadpanned. "I just captured one right here. Literally."

She switched the hand pointing her tulip staff with her Pokédex, showing Giovanni her prisoner. "Someone is not doing their job, or that we have some very high level spies."

The Rocket Boss hummed heavily. "Keep him there for five minutes. Someone will come to get him in fifteen minutes. Code word is Ketchum."

"Ketchum?" Ash walked over from registering his race position. "Woah there. I don't want to be part of anything you're planning."

"Exactly! It's brilliant! No one would possibly think that Ash Ketchum would have anything to do with me!" Giovanni laughed. "Plus, we have a common enemy here."

Ash coughed. "Hey, um, just saying… I'm not famous yet, so no one actually knows me."

"You sound disappointed." Domino giggled.

* * *

" _Why?_ "

" _Because they had it all wrong. We have to correct their ways."_

" _I know our way is definitely correct, but the humans are getting on pretty good with the Pokémon._ "

" _It's wrong! If we don't rescue them from themselves, they will be doomed!_ "

" _Yes sir."_

" _Keep the ship moving. It wouldn't be long._ "

* * *

"Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to the fiftieth annual Laramie Ranch race!" A man in a gray beard and the signature Ranch hat was at the mike. "The winner of this race will be invited to join the Laramie membership. Also, as a special celebration of the fiftieth anniversary, the Ranch would give the winner a unique gift!"

"From the left to the right, we have a total of fifteen competitor this year! Good luck contestants. Please send out your Pokémon."

Brock waved and sent our Geodude, while Misty sent out Starmie. Ash blinked in surprise. "Huh?"  
Misty smirked. "Since you're in this race, we decided to try something unconventional. You'll see."

"Speaking of unconvention," Domino smirked. "Go Deoxys!"

A flash appeared, and Deoxys materialized in front of them. Ash closed his eyes, and did a double take. "I can't believe you actually…"  
Deoxys chirped. " _Transform has proven to be so handy._ "

Ash smirked, ignoring the ruckus they were creating with possessing a legendary. "Go Raikou! Show them what it's like to zap through Johto!"

"Is that… is that a Raikou? And what is THAT!?"

Domino replied coolly. "A Deoxys. Now are you starting the race or not?"

Around her the racers took a sharp breath. A fiercer look of determination lit up on Lara's face as she recognized the prospects she was going up against. Dario paled considerably, and he whispered into a disguised radio attached on his sleeve.

The referee recovered impressively quickly and yelled into the mike with only a hint of tremble. "Let the best rider win! Ready, set, GO!"

The racers zapped forward, with Raikou and Deoxys in front. The electric beast turned to the disguised Mew. " _I thought Deoxys is supposed to be a lot quicker._ "

Mew sighed. " _Too bad I'm an imposter. Running is so boring. Teleporting is way more fun._ "

Ash looked around and sighted Misty and Brock both in the back. Misty took off her jacket to reveal herself to be in her swimming suit.

"Hydro Pump!" Starmie shot out a giant torrent of water which materialized into a massive Electrode. She attached on her rebreather and jumped into the Electrode, which was then frozen by a pre-planned Freeze-Dry.

The creation started to roll forward with repeated Rollouts, building up more and more speed.

Brock's method was less violent and more… Never mind, equally violent. Geodude started to build a giant structure out of rocks which turned into an Accelgor. Geodude hopped onto it's head and dragged Brock up with it. With that, they charged.

Pikachu and Zorua looked at them rolling out and sighed. " _Guess me have to do something drastic too, Zo._ "

" _You just read my mind, Pika._ " Zorua turned into a Regice and smirked. " _If they want a show, we'll give them a show._ "

She charged up an Ice Beam. Instead of firing though, she directed the energy below her feet and allowed it seep into the ground, which turned it into frictionless ice. Pikachu caught on immediately and climbed onto her and fired out a massive Thunder in the opposite direction.

The repulsion boosted them forward surprisingly quickly, catching up to Misty and Brock easily.

The racers each turned their heads to see what the commotion was, and screeched and dodged to the side frantically to avoid getting squashed by Misty's ball or Brock's creation, or worse- electrocution.

Ash yelled. "Charge!"

" _Can't you see I'm trying?_ " Raikou shouted back.

"No, I mean actually use Charge. Then maneuver it to your feet and reverse engineer that electricity. That should make it the opposite of everything you got in your body, which basically makes you shoot off as it come out your hooves."

" _Jesus! How do you come up with these things!?_ "

Domino pat her "Deoxys". "Let's crank this up a notch. Reverse to Speed Form!"

Ash shouted over. "This is not how this works!"

"It is now."

Ash and Domino zoomed forward in a blast of speed. Brock and Misty's creation seemed to have reached their horizontal terminal velocity and can go no faster, leaving them a tail behind the two forerunners ( **A/N: Pun intended.** ).

Lara whistled. "Boy this year's got a bunch of good challenges!"

Dario and his Dodrio smirked as he caught sight of the four approaching a barn. "Not anymore."

* * *

As Ash race around the track, letting the centripetal force swerve him to the right of the curve, he saw something flickering in the sunlight, coming at him, or more exactly, Raikou. Acting on instinct, he spun up an Aura Sphere and threw it at the object. The two blew up on contact, and a destroyed tranquilizer dart fell to the ground.

"What…" Before Ash can finish, a barrage of similar darts came through the barn and at him. One of his Pokéballs grew warm, and Lucario released himself. With an easily spun Protect as he flipped in midair, he stopped and caught all of the darts. With a burst of aura, he sent them right back into the barn.

" _You go on, Ash! I'm going to investigate this._ "

Ash and Raikou decided to let Lucario handle the incident and focus back on the road, discovering that Domino was ahead of them by a few feet because of the last distraction. With a yell, they both charged forward.

An eye in the air blinked as the previous trap fell to ruins with Lucario's Mega Punches.

* * *

Domino reached out with her psychic and discovered herself to be the first to arrive at the stepping stone portion. Mew danced through the parts with ease, pleased with her gracefulness.

They looked back again, expecting to see the other competitors struggling with the part.

Of course, and there is Ash, making their jaws drop. Raikou barely stopped to look at the water surface, and dashed across. His steps were quick enough and speed fast enough for the water tension to support the Beast for a bare second, enough for the legendary to walk on water.

"Swerve!" Ash ordered. Raikou curved slightly as he passed Mew and Domino. A wave spewed up from Raikou's change in motion, and Domino and Mew crashed straight into it.

"KETCHUM!" Domino yelled and tossed a Psycho Cut forward.

"Thanks for the boost!" Ash laughed and Endured it. "You might want to fix your hair."

Mew was distracted by the water and was slowed temporarily, but paced through quickly nonetheless, with Ash in first and her in second.

Suddenly, the water was lit yellow with electricity. Domino growled and put up a psychic shield to block out the static from influencing Mew and her. "Sabotage?"

"Raikou, Lightningrod." Ash ordered. The massive wave of electricity was instantly absorbed.

Kirlia popped out of her Pokéball. " _I'll handle this Chinchou._ "

She swan-dived into the water, and a second later, a pink gleam flashed through the water.

On the other hand, Brock and Misty arrived at the lake soon after the first duo. Misty's ball crashed into the water instantly, and two fin-shaped water sculpture extended out of her Electrode, paddling the water back and flying forward with great speed.

Brock's Accelgor statue stomped the ground as it neared, and a rock bridge extended into the water. Brock pat Geodude. "Nice. Your geo-manipulation has gone up a level."

Geodude chuckled. " _You kind of get crazy after hanging with Ash and Domino for too long._ "

The rock bridge allowed them to get across easily, and arrived the same time Misty's ball shot out of the water. The two dashed forwards again, with Geodude's bridge collapsing as they left.

Pikachu and Zorua barely gave the water a look as the Disguised Regice just froze the water under her feet like normal. Pikachu smirked. " _I love riding you, baby._ "

Zorua gave him a look. " _Trust me, the roles would be switching tonight._ "

Dario's Dodrio arrived at the water next, and he frowned dangerously. "Commence stage three. How did they get through so quickly?"

His mouth dropped as Kirlia floated to the top with an unconscious Chinchou and teleported off.

* * *

Raikou bounced into the food section of the map. The announcer opened his mouth. "You know, racing takes a lot of energy…"

The Beast swallowed the entire bowl in one gulp, stopping only to spit out the dish, before racing off.

Domino followed intensely. The announcer began again. "Racing…"

Mew shrunk the food to the size of a peanut and levitated it to her mouth and followed Ash.

The announcer muttered. "No one appreciates a good host anymore now, do they…"

* * *

Ash could see a ravine approaching. This is the final barrier to a straight path that will lead smoothly to the finish line. Half expecting an accident to happen, he already have his Pokéballs selected.

A Rhyhorn charged out of the bush at him, and Bulbasaur jumped out immediately and flung him back to his hiding spot with a Vine Whip. A Gligar dived down from midair for him, and was instantly tackled back up by Pidgeot's Sky Attack.

She chirped. " _Who do you think you are, a Lugia?_ "

Squirtle jumped out and pushed a Monferno back with a massive Hydro Cannon. " _My burning spirit will overcome your little, insignificant flame!_ "

Raikou jumped to the skies, and landed out of the ravine after the little commotion. Ash's three Pokémon returned themselves, leaving their opponents stunned in their place.

Domino followed without too much insanity. As a Dugtrio popped up in front of them, both Mew and Domino released a joint Psybeam that pummeled him back into his hole.

* * *

"WHY IS NOTHING WORKING!?" Dario shouted into his radio, frustrated that even with an illegal speed boost, he still wasn't able to keep up. "What am I paying you for!?"

An ominous voice replied back. "You really thought I was working for you, kid? No one can command the great Commander Mars!"

"Oh, by the way, the radio in your hand is a bomb. Good luck."

Dario stared in shock at his beeping radio, which exploded a second later, enveloping him in a dust cloud. When it cleared, it showed his Dodrio passed out on the road.

* * *

Mars stared intently through the spy cam. She wondered out loud. "What is Domino doing with that boy? And why does he look familiar? I know I never saw him before, or my X-Transceiver would have said something…"

* * *

As the path before him leveled out, Ash could see the finish line from afar. "So close." He whispered to Raikou. "Just a bit further."

Domino turned past the ravine a few seconds later after him and growled. "Noah. Do I have any chance of winning now without cheating?"

"Calculating… No. The lack of obstructions make this a very simple and also unfavorable path for your current situation."

Domino sighed. "I don't exactly want to cheat…"

She pressed her hands against Mew, and a pink glow flowed from her to the legendary cat. "Psychic Boost! My version of boosting a Pokémon by a human. Go MEW!"

The Speed Form Deoxys flashed into bright colors, and her speed picked up dramatically.

"Calculating… showing victory chance of 65%. DEXTER! Get your conscience out of my machine!"

A few dozen feet forward, Dexter announced. "Domino is boosting Mew with her psychic."

Ash smirked. "Thanks Dex. I've had it prepared all along."

He pressed himself to Raikou and steadily began to inject the energy into the Beast. The Electric legendary roared, and turned into a yellow blur of speed, just like his type.

A hundred feet back, Noah slurred. "Chance of victory, 0.000000000000000000…"

Domino yelled, frustrated. "We get it!"

"...000000001%." Noah finished. "Sorry. Code 401 of Hava 6.1.04 forbids me from stopping before calculation finishes."

"There is no Have 6.1.04!" Domino shot her Pokédex a look. "At least not in my programming training course."

"Oh yeah, that's called self-will in human terms."

* * *

Ash crashed through the red tape signaling the finish. He withdrew his hands from Raikou's back and pumped his fist in the air. The people cheered around him, and he flipped down from the Beast's back as he slowed, while Ash stopped himself with a burst of Aura.

Raikou snickered. " _Show off._ "

Ash laughed. "We deserve it."

A psychic voice projected itself beside his ear. "And you will also deserve the beating after this for spraying water on me!"

Ash turned to see Domino running though the finish line, only a few second after him. As Mew slowed, her rider teleported off and appeared again in front of Ash. Raikou bounced off to chat with Mew, unwanting to be in the line of fire.

Domino punched him with a Zen Headbutt charged on her fist. Ash laughed and caught it with a blue-coated fist. "Thank Arceus I have Aura. It's going to be hard being your friend without it, Princess."

Domino pouted. "You're my punching bag."

Raikou watched the scene from afar. He turned to Mew. " _Are they a thing?_ "

Mew shook his head diagonally. " _Nes_."

" _What the heck does that mean?_ "

* * *

"I present to you," The referee walked up to Ash as the racers each came to a finish, made of mainly very glad trainers who thanked the God for allowing them to escape without being electrocuted by a Thunder. "The winner of this year's Laramie Ranch Race: ASH KETCHUM!"

"And for the celebration of this fiftieth anniversary, we are rewarding him with a special gift from the Ranch. Please accept this treasured Comet Shard. We have no idea what it does, but it has been in the Ranch for generations."

* * *

"Wow, I could have done a race with Growlie." James stroked the Arcanine's fur as he turned up the volume.

Jessie turned to Mewtwo. "How do you get cable in your illusional world?"

The clone shrugged. " _You get bored after sitting here for a while._ "

Anna came over and sat next to James. "What's the Pokémon with the flappy legs?"

"That's a Deoxys." James replied. "But I don't think Domino has a Deoxys though."

" _That's a Mew in disguise._ " Mewtwo claimed. " _I can feel our DNA resonating._ "

"Through the TV?"

" _This is my world, remember?_ "

"That is not how this works!"

* * *

Arceus yelled. " _THIS IS NOT HOW THIS WORKS!_ "

Palkia shrugged. " _Why not?_ "

The Alpha One facepalmed. " _You're not supposed to build the roof before you build the pillars._ "

" _We have Dialga._ "

Arceus pointed. " _He's over there playing Risk with Aaron and Giratina._ "

" _Who needs pillars when we have my anti-gravity insertion?_ "

Arceus stared. " _But you're not going to be here forever though._ "

Palkia looked around. " _Oh yeah._ "

" _Hey, lazy asses!" Arceus yelled to the Risk group. "Get over here and start building my… I mean our swimming pool._ "

"Can't you just use your hot tub for that?" Sir Aaron groaned.

" _Maybe for you, shortie._ "

"Hey! I was the tallest back in my days."

" _And I was the God of all before 'all' collapsed. Get BUILDING!_ "

* * *

 **A/N: Surprised to see me back? A friend of mine who is a really successful writer himself told me before that each long term fanfic will suffer a writer's block period. If I can overcome that period, the fanfic could truly be successful. I totally agree now. Enjoy: Chapter 26.**

 **Please review.**


	28. Cha 27: Kanto 27

**Chapter 27:**

Misty looked down on her map. "We're approaching the Safari Zone."

Noah spoke up. "Wrong again. We're already in the Safari Zone."

"What?" Misty asked, shocked. "But that mountain look exactly like this one on the map."

She shooed the map in front of the materialized Noah. "Look."

Domino deadpanned. "That's a trough. A valley."

"Ohhh…"

"This one is with the idiot kid, right?" The blonde asked.

"Yep. He lost his memories apparently." Ash replied. "The plan I came up with is quite simple actually. I talked to Mew last night, and she said that memories cannot be lost, but only blocked. All that it takes is a powerful psychic to lift the memory block, like Arceus did to us, but not as complicated."

It didn't take long for Domino to figure out what he was trying to say. "So you're making me do all the work?" She asked crossly.

"It's not hard." The Pallet boy explained. "Just…"

"I know what to do." The Elite cut him off. "I have an entire Spoon Method dedicated to memories."

Brock clapped his hands together. "Then let's get to it."

"Ash. I just sent a message to Professor Oak telling him we're here." Dexter spoke up. "He asked you not to capture thirty Tauros again."

Ash chuckled nervously. "No promises."

The blonde stared at him like he was crazy. "Thirty? Why!?"

"It's not like I want to!" The boy protested. "A Tauros even jumped in front of a Rhyhorn last time!"

* * *

"Be careful, Ash." Dexter warned. "You see how their ears are orange. That's a sign that they're really ticked off right now. Probably because of this rain.

"No worries." Ash stepped out off the bush and waved. "Heyo!"

A boomerang came flying from the herd toward Ash. Domino jumped out immediately and caught it with Psychic, before throwing it back to the boy with a Fling.

A nearby Kangaskhan roared and reached over to slam it out of the air with a Mega Punch. Domino smirked. "That's it. I want you."

Ash elbowed her. "You can't yet. We don't have the Safari Balls."

The blonde gave him a look. "You're forgetting something. I'm still a criminal."

The boy shook his head, but held back from saying anything else. Domino sighed. "Okay fine, Mr. Goody-Two-Shoes."

She took out a Safari Ball. "I have had this for a while. I'll use this. Happy?"

Ash laughed. "Good girl."

Domino ignored his last comment and pointed at the herd. "However, let's get this problem sorted out first. What's the plan? Hypnotize them all?"

"Nope. Simpler than that. Pikachu and I had a bet." Ash gestured. Pikachu growled and sparked. A second later, a giant Thunderbolt shot out into the herd, instantly electrocuting the entire lot in one one.

The yellow mouse sat back on his hind legs smugly. " _Too easy_."

"How is that easier than Hypnotizing them?" Domino asked, exasperated.

Ash shrugged. "It is for Pikachu."

The crew began to walk toward the fallen Parent Pokémon before a shiny Kangaskhan began to glow. On its chest was two stones.

"Mega evolution!"

"How?"

Ash and Domino shouted out at the same time, and both moved. Domino shouted. "I call dibs! Go Zorua!"

Ash Mega Evolved Lucario anyways as a backup. Zorua pounced forward and turned into Cobalion. The Mega Kangaskhan's Focus Punch connected with her Superpower. Her new, massive size allowed her to suffer less knockback as the two powerful attacks collided.

The child Kangaskhan, using the instant of immobilization, cut deep with a Focus Blast.

Zorua popped her disguise in a cry of pain and disappeared with a burst of Phantom Force.

With Feint Attack, she reappeared next to the Mega in its blind spot and lashed forward with a Brutal Swing, hitting both her and her child. As they blasted back, she followed with a Boomburst, sending them crashing backward further while stunning them.

She began to charge up a Dizzy Punch, but yelled. " _Double Slap!_ "

The aura of the Dizzy Punch flowed into her Double Slap, and punched both Pokémon at the same time, confusing both.

* * *

"Huh. Never saw that before, combining two moves from the essence. The way she used to do it was just release a bunch of moves in a short period of time." Brock remarked.

Domino shook her head. "She never told me she had worked something like that out either. Maybe she wanted to perfect it more."

"There's definitely room for improvement." Ash said thoughtfully. "You can see that the effects of confusion is a lot more spread out, which means the Kangaskhan would be confused noticeably shorter."

Pikachu used Magnet Rise to give himself a better look and shrugged. " _I think she's doing great._ "

Lucario snatched the mouse out of the air and placed him on his shoulder. " _That's because someone's imfatuated._ "

" _At least I have a girlfriend. You're a thousand years old and still no one._ "

"OUCH!" Ash declared.

* * *

Zorua used the few seconds she got to send out a Hypnosis, successfully putting the Mega to sleep. She then followed through with a Dream Eater, landing critically while regaining her health.

The Kangaskhan mother roared, but it was clearly favoring one side. Zorua smirked. " _Pikachu! This is for you!_ "

She flirted her tail, then unleashed Fire Blast, Sacred Fire, Thunder, Mega Punch, Crunch, Shadow Ball, Psybeam, Bug Buzz, Magnitude and Rock Throw.

When the smoke cleared, the Kangaskhan was no more Mega. Her child returned to her pouch, and the she passed out on the field.

Domino smirked and tossed a Safari Ball forward, catching the Parent Pokémon easily.

Ash pulled her sleeve. "Go get the kid before the load all wakes back up and see their leader missing."

"I caught their leader?" Domino asked, surprised.

"Duh! It's a shiny, it could Mega Evolve, AND it is the largest one in Aura Sight."

"Well excuse me for not learning the inferior field of aura!" Domino Karate Chopped him before teleporting off.

Ash took the kid as she teleported back. "Let's get him somewhere else."

* * *

The blonde pressed a hand on the kid's forehead and sucked in a deep breath. "Spoon Method 3. Condense!"

She pulsed out a pink glow that surrounded the boy, and was absorbed slowly. When it is finally gone, Domino raised her hand dramatically. "Lift!"

The pink energy came rushing out. With it, the boy opened his eyes.

"Where am I!?" He looked at the four. "Who are you? Do you know my parents?"

Ash shot the Elite a look. "Good job."

He turned back to Tommy. "It's a long story. Basically…"

Misty poked Domino slightly. "Do Noah have Tommy's parents' phone number? With the original timeline, they won't be here for another few weeks."

"Yes I do. Dexter gave it to me during the data transfer." Noah said. "Calling…"

* * *

It was a tearful reunion between Tommy's parents and him. They crew decided to leave before things got too complicated.

Ash played with the little shard in his hand. "Princess, ever seen this 'Star Piece' before?"

"Nope. I think they just randomly named it that." Domino replied. "Have you ever seen this bone before?"

"The Rare Bone." Noah corrected.

Domino rolled her eyes. "The researchers probably just made it up. For all we know, these 'thank-you presents' are just a piece of rock and a bone from dinner."

Ash shrugged. "Then I'll take your bone."

Domino gave him a glance and smiled sweetly. "Sure. Take it."

She held out the Rare Bone. Ash looked at it warily. "On a second thought, there's probably a HUGE catch."

The girl laughed. "You know me best."

* * *

Dear Cyrus,

When I say 'dear', I mean you should get trampled by a Deerling.

One of my agents found one of your people on MY turf. Give me an explanation.

Actually, I don't care WHAT your reason is. Get your men out of Kanto and Johto!

Love,

Giovanni, Chairman of Team Rocket

P.S. Stop your wild chase for Palkia and Dialga. Reforming time and space will do none of us any good. You're not Arceus. You're a human.

* * *

Ash placed a bunch of pokedollars on Kaiser's table. "We're here for the Safari Game."

Kaiser shot a look at him and nodded, before leaving. After a while, he returned with four baskets each filled with thirty Safari Balls, along with four fishing rods.

"I'm assuming we can catch any Pokémon there is?" Domino spoke up.

"Yes, but take care of this Safari Zone." The warden shot the group a warning glance.

The Rocket Elite pointed at the picture of the Dratini on his desk. "So if we happened to find this rumored Dratini, we can capture it too?"

Kaiser stared at her, then jumped back abruptly and reached for his belt, while shouting. "How did you know about HER!?"

As he pulled out his gun, Domino flipped over the table and pulled out her shortened staff, extending it with a simple click. Her tulip staff opened to its full length, knocking the firearm out of his hand with precision. Then with a burst of her powers, the blonde levitated the warden off the ground.

She stared at him coldly. "Don't you dare point a gun at us!"

Ash, Misty and Brock stared at her for a second. The Pallet boy quickly went over and touched her shoulder. "You're overreacting."  
"No I am not." Domino turned her head around at him. "What if he actually shot? What if there is something actually wrong with him?"

"The things that had happened on the streets of Viridian. The dark side. Things happen. You don't want to know." Domino shuddered as she thought back many years.

"Here. Come on. Let's release him first." Ash carefully grabbed her hand and led her away. The warden dropped to the ground like a rock, and the gun was squashed in midair with an Extrasensory. "Do you want to talk about it."  
Domino sniffed, and nodded lightly. With a flash, the duo teleported away, leaving Brock and Misty.

The Pewter Gym Leader turn to his fellow Gym Leader. "We're stuck together more and more, huh? Those two are so…"

"Yeah, which could be a good thing after all. Last time when we were following Ash, I barely caught any new water Pokémon. Maybe it'll change if I work alone periodically."  
"And they make us deal with this Kaiser mess." Misty said pointedly. "You're the more formal one here. How do we persuade him not to file a lawsuit."

Brock shrugged and went up to the warden. "If you decide to file a lawsuit, we will remind the world of the presence of a Dratini in your Safari Zone."

Kaiser's eyes widened and shook his head vigorously. "No! I won't."

Misty and Brock traded a smirk. "Good."  
As the two walked out of the building, Misty turned to the Rock Trainer. "Never knew that side of yours, Slate."

Brock smiled. "You have to have some manipulation when you have to deal with more siblings than you can count. That ought to prepare you for anything."

* * *

"And I saw this man in the alley." Domino's voice cracked and sat down hard on a rock. "And he raped the boy, Ash."

She looked him in the eye and squeezed his hand tightly. "I saw a boy getting raped by a man when I was six!"

"The things that happen…" The Black Tulip finally broke down and pushed her face into Ash's shoulder. "Why does this happen!?"  
Ash hugged her to him tightly. She responded by burying herself deeper into the crank of his neck. The boy stroked her ringlet hair gently and soothed. "Come on, it's in the past. That's not important anymore. What's important is the future."

He paused. "Our future."

Domino looked up and met his calm gaze. She looked away. Ash noticed her red and slightly puffy eyes, with a rare drop of tear leaking down. His heart ached seeing her like this, and pressed her to him again. "I'm sorry, Princess. I am so, so sorry."

As he buried his face in her strawberry-scented hair, he kissed her head lightly and thought back on his past. He sighed.

Holding her, holding him, ignited the fuzzy feeling that began to disperse the feeling of despair. The wind howled next to them, as if carrying the hurricane of their emotions miles beyond. The surface of the lake stirred, and the head of a blue serpentine Pokémon popped out, watching them with curiosity, while absorbing the emotions they let off.

After all, his best ability is to manipulate the power of emotions, inherited from his mother. How else would her sense and escape the search of dozens of trainers thirty years ago…

* * *

" _Aron._ "

"Brock."

" _Aron._ "

"Brock."

" _Aron._ "

"Brock."

Misty rolled her eyes. "Just hurry up and capture him already! We don't have forever."

Brock stood up and reached for a Safari Ball. "What's weird is that he's only saying his name, but not any information with it."

He bent down again and placed the Pokéball in front of the Iron Armor Pokémon. "Hey little dude. Do you want to join my team? If you say yes, then be prepared for a rocky ride."

"And I do mean rocky. Meeting-legendaries-are-a-daily-routine rocky."

Misty facepalmed. "Stop with your rock puns. I'm not your siblings. I am the future Water Pokémon Champion!"

Brock winced. "Sorry. It leaked out."

Misty glared at him. "Give me one more pun and I will mallet you."

The rock trainer smirked. "You might not want to threaten your cook."

The Aron was clearly missing the attention he had. As a result, he Bounced, creating a cloud of dust as he crashed back down in a small area.

" _Okay. I'll be happy to join your team. I've been trapped here for way too long. I need something more exciting._ "

"You know, a lot of the Pokémon Domino recruited said the same thing about wanting an adventure."

" _Wait, you understand me!?_ "Aron blurted out. " _And who's Domino?_ "

Brock nodded. "Yes, I understand you perfectly fine. Domino is currently with Ash. They're both great friends. I can understand you because Ash is an aura adept, and he taught me and Misty here some of the basic tricks, like understanding basic Pokémon languages."

The Iron Armor Pokémon comtemplated that. " _I think I can see the rocky part._ "

He brightened immediately after that's soaked in. " _Now THAT's what I need in my life! What should I address you by?_ "

"Call me Brock."

Aron nodded and pushed the Safari Ball gently. A beam of light took him in. A second later, the capture was registered.

* * *

Ash felt something wet lick his face. That was when he realized that he had fallen asleep. He opened his eyes to find something unidentifiable from being too close in his face. He yawned his head backwards, and the blur of blue and white condensed into the face of a Dratini staring at them inquisitively.

Ash smiled at the Dratini, careful not to make too much motion to wake the blonde in his arms. "Hello. You must be Dragonair's child."

Dratini slanted his head to the right. " _You know my mother! I knew it. No wonder you smell like grandpa._ "

"Grandpa?" Ash asked questioningly. "Who's he?"

" _You know, Mespirit_." Dratini said obviously. " _He's from whom I got my emotion abilities._ "

Ash nodded. "That make sense. Mespirit does seemed to connect with emotions extremely well, especially with Dawn. After all he is the Emotion Pokémon."

" _Wait, you understand what I am saying?_ " Dratini asked as the realization hit him. " _Mother always said that humans couldn't understand Pokémon._ "

Ash waved his hand to spin up a ball of aura. "Normally, they can't. I train in aura, so I can understand Pokémon with a simple trick, as well as using Pokémon attacks. See?"

Dratini nodded. The lake from where he popped up stirred, and another head poked out, revealing herself to be Dragonair. Dratini waved his tail excitedly. " _Mom! I found a human who could talk!_ "

Dragonair swam ashore and trotted in front of head, bowing. " _Hello chosen. I was notified of your arrival by my Father._ "

"Mespirit?"

" _Indeed. I understand that you are on a mission assigned by Father's master?_ "

Ash considered that. "The Lake Guardians do seem to think of themselves as Arceus's servants, so I guess that is right."

Dragonair nodded. " _What an honorable cause you are taking up, Chosen. For that, may the world praise you._ "

She stroked her son lovingly with her tail. " _I do have one favor to ask though, if it is not too much trouble._ "

"Of course not, anything."

" _Dratini here wants to see the world and have adventures. I agree because he can't possibly live up to the potential of a pseudo-legendary, as humans would call it, by staying in this valley. I couldn't send him out alone because there are numerous poachers and ones with an impure heart. And then you came, Chosen._ "

" _There is no better trainer for my boy to go with than you. I wish you can take him on your journey, train him, evolve him, and maybe one day, save the world with you._ "

Ash considered that for a while. "I have no problem with taking him, but you have to understand, Dratini," Ash turned to the younger Pokémon, "The road ahead is going to be filled with dangers, including life-threatening ones. There will be battling with legendaries, time travel, getting possessed, battling more legendaries who could potentially wreck the world, not excluding Groudon and Kyogre, or even Giratina for all I know."

"I will also use you to battle other trainers' Pokémon, or do performances. The possibility with me is truly limitless." Ash paused and looked Dratini in the eye. "I want to make sure this is truly what you want to do before taking you out of this Safari Zone."

Dratini snorted. " _You got me when you said 'battling with legendaries'. You don't need additional advertisements._ "

He reached into his backpack and dropped a Safari Ball on the ground next to Dratini. "If you are one-hundred percent sure, press that button on the front of the ball."

Dratini examined the ball curiously. " _One last question. Is the girl in your arms your mate?_ "

" _Dratini!_ " Dragonair exclaimed, shocked. " _You can't just ask that!_ "

" _Excuse his crudeness. His social skills aren't favorable. We hadn't been in contact with mankind for the past many years, so he doesn't understand human culture yet._ " Dragonair apologized to Ash.

"No problem. You should have seen me when I first started." The Ketchum boy waved his hand. "And plus, he's not the first one to suggest it, though I don't get how anyone could possibly be getting that idea."

" _Because she's sleeping in your arms?_ " Dratini chirped.

" _Get in the ball!_ " Dragonair decided she had had enough of her son embarrassing her and pushed him into the Safari Ball.

With a flash, and some shaking of the Pokéball, Dexter signaled the capture.

Domino jerked awake from the flash of the light. "WOAH! What happened?"

She looked down to find herself snuggled into Ash's lap. "And let go of me!"

Ash smirked and put her down. "Oh yeah, by the way, I captured Dratini."

He released the Dragon Pokémon, who landed on the side of the lake, feeling dizzy. " _Wow, that felt weird. The adventure is already beginning!_ "

"This is nothing compared to the future." Dexter materialized next to him. "Let me show you some of the stuff from the LAST timeline."

* * *

Psyduck made himself very clear. " _No!_ "

Too bad Misty didn't listen. "You're a Water Type. You need to learn to swim."

The Duck waved his flappers. " _But these are so useless. Why swim when you can teleport?_ "

To prove his point, Psyduck teleported from his original spot to the top of a tree and back. Misty sighed. "Now you just sound like Mew."

The orange-haired trainer tried to explain again. "Swimming isn't hard. Just trying floating as a first step. I know you could do that."

She gave Brock a look. "Some Pokémon can't even do that."

The rock-trainer held up a hand. "Counter example: Corphish."

"Because it's a Water Type!" Misty turned to Psyduck. "Which makes it more reasonable for YOU to learn to swim."

Psyduck groaned. " _I swear, you're getting back at me for my headache ages._ "

Misty smiled sweetly. "Of course not. Now get in the water!"

The Water Type teleported onto the top of the water and held himself an inch above the surface of the lake with psychic. he gingerly dipped a toe in, and started to sink his entire body in.

Misty yelled. "You can do it Psyduck! I believe in you."

She then contemplated that sentence. "Hmmm, that's not something you're used to saying, even in THIS timeline. That's like saying Brock will one day get a girlfriend."

"HEY!"

Misty laughed. "Come on! Somehow Ash beat you to it, and he doesn't even know he's dating her, while doing the exactly same thing as a normal boyfriend."

Brock was about to reply when Psyduck began screaming, both physically and psychically.

Misty sighed and said without turning. "Just raise your flippers. That'll increase surface area and buoyancy."

Another scream pierced out, and Brock poked her with a serious expression. "Ummm, this might be bad."

Misty swooped around, and her jaw dropped when she saw the Carvanha dashing toward her Pokémon, jaws Crunching. "Jesus! Psyduck, okay, don't panic."

The Duck panicked regardless. He began to swim ashore for his life. In the meantime, he turned around and shot a Psybeam at the incoming Savage Pokémon, however achieving no effect. He followed with a Psycho Cut, which was too nullified as it touched her skin. " _Mist! Why is nothing working?_ "

The Cerulean Gym Leader thought fast. "Carvanha has a Dark subtype! Keep moving. Miracle Eye!"

Psyduck flailed his flippers, adding to their length by condensing his psychic powers into two extended paddles, while pushing water back forcefully. Of course, while screaming. He was so glad Mew forced him to take psychic lessons from her.

What did Misty say? Oh yeah, Miracle Eye. Another reason to be glad.

His eyes lit up in a mixture of pink and blue lights. He then turned around and blasted the unexpecting Carvanha with a Psystrike powered with Bide.

The Savage countered with a Dark Pulse and hit Psyduck on the side. The blast disrupted his fluency and he used the momentum to Dive.

Misty blinked in surprise. "When the heck did he learn to Dive?"

Starmie shrugged next to her. "It's just going underwater. Not too hard to replicate."

Carvanha swam on top of him and was about to follow him underwater when a blast of hot steam hit her and carried her into the air as Psyduck used a massive Steam Explosion under her.

As the Savage Pokémon went flying, Psyduck laughed. " _You're in the air now! THIS is my territory!_ "

" _What are you talking about? You're a Water Type. How the heck are you even psychic!?_ " Carvanha replied while trying to get back underwater.

" _Oh no you are not going back to the water._ " Psyduck smirked and hit her with a Future Sight, and teleported in with a super effective Cross Chop, before putting up a Light Screen to shield her retaliating Payback. " _A lot of thing doesn't make sense. You try explaining to me how Pikachu can electrocute Ground Types!_ "

His Light Screen broke, but he bought enough time to release a charged Brick Break. Carvanha decided to tank the move, wincing horribly, but used the knockback to get to the water.

Psyduck, as if already predicted her move, released a pre-charged Blizzard, which instantly froze the surface of the water in a moderate range of area around the two. Carvanha hit the ice with a _THUNK_ , before the Future Sight took effect and knocked her out.

Psyduck saluted Misty and smirked. " _So, one: Don't fight in the water. Two: If I am in the water, get the opponent out of the water. Three: If the terrain isn't what I want, evaporate it or freeze it!_ "

Misty sweatdropped and stepped onto the ice with a Pokéball in her hand. "How did you learn all of that crazy ideas?"

"Never mind, don't answer that." She threw the Pokéball at Carvanha. "We hang out with Ash and Domino way too much."

"At least you learned to swim!"

* * *

Dragonair shook her head. " _I don't want to put you, Kaiser and the Safari Zone in danger again. He lost so much trying to save me last time._ "

"We promise you it's safe." Ash reassured her. "Relatively few people comes to this Safari Zone anymore, most of them scared off by Kaiser."

"We'll guard you back to him. Trust us, you won't be hunted. The world outside Dragon Valley had changed dramatically. Not many had heard about nor remember the story from thirty years ago."

Dragonair thought for a moment, and took a deep breath. " _Then take me to him in a Pokéball._ "

* * *

"You're… you're that Dratini from…" Kaiser dropped his binders in his hand and stared at Dragonair. "You're still here."

A drop of tear escaped his eyes as he held out a trembling hand. "You evolved."

Dragonair rubbed her head against the warden and purred. Then she motioned to Ash and back at the warden. Ash stepped forward and handed Kaiser a Pokéball.

"This is Dragonair's Pokéball. She asked to be captured and brought to you because she said she wants to be yours."

Kaiser's eyes widened and looked back at Dragonair. "Is that true? You don't have to do this. You don't at all."

Dragonair smiled. " _Yes, I want to. You stood by me, and I will stand by you. You admired me not by my power, but for me. The only reason I didn't come to you sooner is so I can take care of Dratini._ "

Dexter materialized and provided them with the translation helpfully. Ash picked up a Pokéball and released Dratini.

" _He was my baby._ " Dragonair continued, gazing at the younger Dragon Pokémon lovingly. " _But now he's all grown up and ready to start a life of his own with a trainer of his choice. It's time I come to mine as well._ "

Kaiser looked at Ash and Domino, at Dratini and back at Dragonair. Unable to contain himself anymore, he rushed forward and hugged Dragonair. "I miss you."

" _I miss you too._ " She replied. " _And also, thank you for everything._ "

* * *

" _Guys._ " Zorua started. The chatter went on.

" _Guys!_ " She tried again, to no avail.

She turned to her mate for help. Pikachu smirked. " _Let me._ "

With that, the yellow mouse turned to the group of newer Pokémon at the ranch and yelled, " _LOCK IT UP!_ " as he shot a bolt of Thunder into the skies.

The noise stopped abruptly as they collectively turned to the Electric Type. Representing the newer group, Haunter spoke up. " _Why am I in this group? I've been here since the last timeline._ "

Pikachu smirked. " _This is the reason I called you guys specifically. To be counted into the family of the old Pokémon, you needed to do one of these things: either help save the world, get possessed or fight a legendary, and not just sparring, but actually I-want-to-knock-you-out fighting._ "

" _So to initiate you into this cult, we need you to fight something legendary level._ "

Raikou raised a paw. " _But I am a legendary._ "

" _Doesn't count._ " Pikachu shook his head.

" _Does Ash and Domino know about this?_ " Sableye piped up.

Pikachu chuckled. " _Please, let's not dumb ourselves down now. Of course not._ "

Kangaskhan, wearing her Mega Stone and Key Stone necklace, held her forehead. " _What have I gotten into?_ "

* * *

"Why?"

" _Isn't it obvious?_ " Arceus looked at Sir Aaron. " _How else would we be shooting cannon balls? We need at least three thousands of these archer holes._ "

Giratina, chief architect and legendary under torture, looked up from attempting to lift up the said three thousand cannons. " _They won't fit on the side of the Hall._ "

Arceus shrugged. " _We have Palkia._ "

" _Then why do we have to make holes?_ " Dialga spoke up. " _Can't he just miniaturize them to fit in random cracks?_ "

" _Good point._ " Arceus looked around. " _Now, where is he?_ "

Palkia's head popped up from the cannons. " _Here. I'm trying to help Giratina by making these fit on his shoulder._ "

Giratina yelled, while trying to not pull his back. " _Well can you help from down here? You're adding an extra four thousand pounds!_ "

" _I only weigh seven hundred! And I already used negative gravity to neglect my weight._ "

The Renegade Legendary stared at him. " _Then why aren't you doing that to the cannons!?_ "

" _My powers take a little time to get used to!_ "

" _Did someone say time?_ " Dialga piped up.

Sir Aaron shook his head. "I just about lost all respect for deities."

* * *

 **A/N: Tadah, Safari Zone. And a bit more revelation on Domino's background.**

 **Ash and Domino got more Pokémon, and so did Brock and Misty. No I am not having Ash catch thirty Tauros, or thirty anything because that is just insane.**

 **Pikachu and Zorua are also starting a cult.**


	29. Cha 28: Tomb of the Pokélantis King

**A/N: Caution: Don't read this at night.  
**

* * *

She sniffed the air. A series of smell entered her nostrils, but she picked out the scent she wanted in a second.

Absol muttered to herself, " _That's it. Crap this is strong._ "

She switched onto a face of determination and started down the slope of the Cerulean Cape.

* * *

Flint looked at the inside of the cave, jaw dropping. Forrest popped over from the other entering and asked. "Dad, what's all of this technology? I've never seen anything like it."

Flint took a deep breath. "Call your brother. Brock told me about this last time. If memory serves me right, this is bad."

* * *

"Last time, we went through Sunnyday Town, but that was weeks ahead of us." Ash stood in front of an unfinished bridge, if you would call it that. Only the skeleton was present, along with chains dangling down from pillars attaching the two sides of the bridge which extended down into the river. "And then some psychotic bike gang jumped out and challenged us."

Domino shrugged. "That's why you teleport. Wonder why I still haven't heard of a teleport gang?"

"Because there are only a few humans known to be psychic." Noah spoke up. "You, Sabrina, Liza and Tate, Olympia, etc."

"Nonetheless, it would have been cool." The girl sighed. "Why are we here then?"

"Resupplying." Ash said for the thousandth time. "I know you want to keep going on adventures…"

"Like you don't!" Domino snapped. "I want to see what it feels like to go on one of your really crazy adventures."

The Pallet boy thought about it for a while. "The first one is with Mewtwo, which is a month before the League. We still have a while."

"They're back." Domino pointed. "Let's keep moving."

"Bad news bears." Ash was about to start talking when Brock cut him off with a rare, serious look. "Ash, we have a problem."

* * *

Gary held Violet's hand as he drove down Interstate 1 towards Pallet Town, humming Master Quest, followed ignominiously by a few more cars full of cheerleaders. "Grandad's going to be so surprised. Good thing we remembered this time."

Violet smirked. "So you forgot last time?"

"Hey! You can't blame me I'm a immature ten year old last time!" Gary said pointedly, then laughed.

Violet smiled. "So you remembered to send Ash a text that Professor Oak's birthday is in two days right?"

"...Right." Gary coughed unconvincingly.

Violet rolled her eyes. "Give me the Pokédex. Don't text while you're driving."

"Nah, no need." Gary started to brake the car. "Let's camp out here for the next day. I was a bit faster than I expected."

Violet reached over and gave him a kiss. "Aren't you always."

Giselle picked her head up from her book in the back seat. "Please stop smooching guys. I know you're a couple, but isn't fifty-two times in the last hour a bit excessive?"

* * *

"What's the problem?" Ash asked. "It can't be worse than Mewtwo, can it?"

"Could be." Brock gave him a look. "Dad just called me ten minutes ago. Apparently the owner of a mine found this cave system in his quarry that, well, contains technology that is not part of our current… era."

"What do you mean?" Ash raised an eyebrow.

Brock took a deep breath and showed him the photos on his phone. "Do you remember this?"

Ash took a look, and he jumped back as if burnt. "BUT… but that doesn't come until the Battle Frontier!"

Domino poked her head over and looked at the photo of the cave. "Hmm, that seems like a…"

Her eyes widened in excitement. "An ACTUAL adventure!"

"No!" Ash shook his head. "No no no no no!"

"That's the one where I got possessed!" Ash continued, panting slightly. "What… how… why is it discovered so early!?"

"Hey!" The three looked up to see Misty racing over, carrying Pikachu and Zorua. "I got your text. What's so urgent?"

Ash licked his lips and strained to open them. "We're dealing with a disaster."

He paused. "Already."

" _Oh boy._ " Pikachu and Zorua echoed.

* * *

"Ash, my boy! Nice of you to call. What can I do for you?"

"Professor Oak." Ash greeted him hurriedly. "Can Domino and I have all of our Pokémon please?"

Oak gave him a look. "Sure. I'll have someone round them up in a few minutes. Care to explain why?"

"Remember Pokélantis?" Ash said. "The remains had apparently been dug up near Pewter already. I'm planning to go in and destroy the King's spirit once and for all."

The regional Professor nodded. "Sure, that sounds totally normal. Need any help?"

Ash contemplated that. "Nah… Besides the getting possessed part, this isn't one of the toughest ones."

Domino piped up. "You should have seen the look on his face when we first told him, Prof. He…"

Ash pushed her face out of his screen and coughed. "...Anyways, I'll try to keep the tunnels as undamaged as possible this time."

On the other side of the screen, Oak took a basket full of Pokéballs from an intern and placed them on a transporter. "Thank you, but don't let that be your main goal. Do you want Butterfree as well?"

Ash contemplated that. "No need. I don't want to disturb him from hundreds of miles away."

"Okay. Wait, let me get your mother's permission first on this." Oak winked.

"Professor!" Ash shouted.

The regional professor laughed. "I am sending to you all of you two's Pokémon besides Ho-Oh, Dragonite and Tentacruel."

"Ho-Oh's not with me, and Dragonite and Tentacruel had a bet on who can collect the most Clamperl, so they're down in thousands of feet of water currently."

"Be safe, got it?" Oak's voice commanded through Dexter.

Ash nodded. "Got it."

Domino elbowed him. "Don't worry Prof. I'll keep him out of trouble."

"I bet you will." Oak sighed. "Good luck, both of you."

As he cut off the line, he sat back tiredly. "Forty years ago, I would have been right there with them in a heartbeat."

Celebi landed on his head. "Growing old. I never understood that concept."

"It's strange. Time does that to you." Oak took a sip of his coffee and shot a look at her. "Well, maybe not _you_ , per se."

* * *

"Ready?" Domino grabbed Ash's hand. Mew held onto Brock and Kirlia took Misty. She was answered by a collective affirmative. "Then let's go!"

The four disappeared in a pink flash.

A gang of bikers turned the corner and rode onto the street. Tyra, one of the leaders, blinked. "I swore they were here a minute ago."

* * *

"This is the place." Flint pointed at the cave opening. "Take a look for yourself."

The four traded looks, and Domino dashed in first, quickly followed by the rest. She, having not seen this the first time, gasped. "This is so… Nurse Who!"

"What?" Ash looked at her, confused.

"Nurse Who." Domino repeated. "You know, the show where the Time Queen travels around time and space in her FARDIS with her sidekick, Orchid."

"Guys!" Misty decided to bring them back to reality. "We found the underground lair of an evil, ancient king who wanted to imprison Ho-Oh and you're talking about a TV show?"

Ash coughed. "Right. So… I guess we just go?"

Domino stared at him weirdly. "You said you've been through dozens of crises, and you don't even know where to start?"

"Normally disaster just drop on me." Ash raised his hands in protest. "It's not my style to go actively seeking for trouble."

" _Don't go in there!_ " The group turned around in surprise. " _It's filled with disaster. I can sense it._ "

Domino went slack-jawed, then quickly regained her composure. She said, dripping with sarcasm, "I can see what you mean, Ash. Disaster LITERALLY just drop on you."

In front of them was an Absol, famously known Disaster Pokémon.

* * *

"Absol, I know this is dangerous." Ash began his explanation. "I've been here before. I also know that this is the tomb of an ancient king, in fact, the King of the Pokétlantis. I need to go in and destroy his spirit so he doesn't come out and harm people."

Absol stared at him, and began slowly. " _Reason tells me not to listen to you. But my disaster senses are telling me to follow you in._ "

Pikachu snickered. " _Yeah, that sort of happens. I'm Pikachu, by the way._ "

" _Absol._ " She politely returned the greeting.

"Hmm, that sounded weird, hearing a Pokémon saying its name in Pokémon tongue."

Absol shook her head and just realized what had happened. " _You can understand me!?_ "

Lucario sighed. " _Yeah, that also happens._ "

Domino clapped her hands together. "Alright, people! Are we going to murder a king's spirit or are we going to just stand around chitchatting?"

"Stop making us look like the bad guys." Ash corrected. "It's cleansing, not murdering."

"Thank you, Mr. Politically-Correct."

* * *

Absol led the way as they trotted down the hall. She looked around curiously. " _It does make sense that this is the lair of Pokétlantis. I've never seen this design before. What is this metal-plating made of?_ "

"Melted polymer combined by stainless steel with a few drops of liquid carbonate." Dexter said. "Basically a massive bomb shelter."

Ash shook his head. "We've never seen it from this side last time. Wow, this is huge!"

It was. The tunnel has a diameter of nearly twenty feet, able to fit all of them walking in a line.

Absol suddenly cried out and leapt to the side. " _Careful!_ "

Lucario was the second one to detect it. Launching himself forward, he raised a Protect, and the incoming darts bounced off his aura shield harmlessly. He flung an Aura Sphere in the direction of the darts, and it exploded in an array of blue and sparks.

The sound of metal clattering to the ground echoed in the tunnel. Lucario sprinted forward, followed by the rest. He picked up a smashed dispenser from the floor and frowned. " _Traps. Should have saw these coming._ "

" _Stop!_ " Absol yelled. " _Something seems wrong. If the King is this bad with technology, how did he managed to build these walls? There is a clear difference in skill between the walls and a dart trap._ "

Ash decided to wave it off. "Don't worry about it. I've been here last time. All we need to do is go down into his throne room, find his orb and destroy it."

Absol turned to him. " _No, this is a lot more major. I can feel something very chilling in these depths. My senses are telling me if this is not handled well, then… OWW!_ "

Absol flung herself to the floor and banged her head on the ground. " _This… hurts!_ "

Mew levitated down to her and sent a reverted pulse of psychic energy. " _Did you see something that overwhelmed your senses?_ "

" _Yes. Destruction… explosion._ " Absol calmed a bit, then went into overload again. " _Are you a Mew?_ "

" _Mew I am._ " She said cheerfully. " _Now let's go destroy this, shall we?_ "

" _You are not treating this with the caution it deserves!_ " Absol nearly shouted. " _This could potentially destroy the planet!_ "

Ash looked around and shrugged. "We're used to it. We joke to deal with the stress. Or else, after the amount of encounters with global threats, we would have gotten Post Trauma Disorder a long time ago."

" _Guys._ " Zorua jumped back to the group. " _I found something._ "

She led them to a wall and pointed. Domino bent down and wiped the dust from the wall, and frowned. "This looks like a symbol."

"Do you recognize it?" Brock asked.

She shook her head. "Nope."

* * *

The eyes, shut solid by its stone eyelid, flashed. Cracks formed, and an eerie glow poured out. A second later, its eyes opened completely.

* * *

Mega Lucario forced his spikes into the side of the ground to stop himself from dropping into the covered trap hole. He launched himself up, before quickly lowering himself to dodge an incoming tranquilizer shot. A swinging pillar shot forward, and Mega Lucario used Force Palm to shatter the arm. A spiked ball connected to a chain dropped down from the ceiling and smashed toward the Steel Type in a pendulum motion.

He hopped onto the ball with Bounce and attached himself to it with Metal Claw, doing a handstand. When the ball reached its full swing and was coming back, his tail finished cloaking in a metal sheen and Iron Tailed the chain in half. Mega Lucario jumped down before the ball fell onto the ground and rolled into the hole.

The Steel Type smirked and looked back. " _Easy-peasy._ "

Misty frowned. "Something seems wrong. Anything involving Ash shouldn't be this convenient."

"Ash. Professor Oak said he had pinpointed Ho-Oh. He is sending him over now." Dexter piped up.

"Okay. How far are we to the throne room?"

"Two more corners to the left." Dexter said. "I could be wrong, since this is all based on predictions of symmetry and structural management we saw from last time."

"Absol?" Ash turned to the Dark Type, "Can you sense something?"

" _The Porygon isn't wrong._ " Absol seemed to have gotten over the uniqueness of Dexter. " _I feel a strong potential for disaster two corners from here._ "

She then blinked, and trotted over to the side of a wall. Reaching up with a hoof, she wiped off the side of the wall. " _Here's another symbol._ "

The group bent down to check it out. " _It's the same symbol as last time._ "

"Who's leaving all of these symbols?" Ash wondered out loud.

" _One way to find out._ " Mega Lucario started down the halls with a Protect shield raised.

Ash and the group followed him down the hall and turned the corner. The group stopped in their tracks. Ash said flatly. "Dead end."

" _No._ " Absol countered. " _Impossible. There's something behind this wall. I can feel it._ "

Mew agreed. " _She's right. There's a room behind this wall. I think I can teleport us in._ "

Ash closed his eyes. When he started Aura Sight, a blinding light cut into his vision and he pummeled to the floor, clutching his head. Pikachu jumped off in an yelp.

"Ash!" Domino was first by his side, and sent a Calm Mind his way. "What happened?"

The Pallet boy opened his eyes in horror. "There's definitely something in there. It can even resist my Aura Sight."

Ash closed his eyes again and reached out. This time, he got nothing. "It disappeared."

An eerie feeling rose up their backs. Pikachu jumped next to the end of the tunnel and smashed his tail against the wall. An echo responded them. He nodded. " _Definitely something in there._ "

His eyes fell onto something next to the wall. " _Ash… I think I found another symbol._ "

Just as he finished saying that, the wall started to shake slightly, and it began to be lifted up. An ominous yellow glow passed through. Gradually, the wall disappeared, revealing the throne room inside fully.

The crew traded looks, and Mega Lucario started into the room first. Absol screeched and stopped him. " _NO! This room is a disaster waiting to happen._ "

The Steel Type shrugged. " _It's not like we will go back._ "

He went into the room, followed by the rest quickly. Absol looked at the group ahead of her, and back at the dark tunnel. She sighed and turned her head around to follow them in. In the corner of her eyes as she was whipping her head back, a shape flickered.

* * *

They dropped their jaws when they entered. The room was massive, lit faintly by yellow candles, and the sound of a ticking clock echoed in the room. Around them were winged, stone gargoyles at the side of the room.

On the floor were piles upon piles of gold, silver, sapphires, diamonds…

"My Arceus!" Ash sucked in a deep breath.

"Holy…" Domino continued down his train of thought.

Misty and Brock each had stars in their eyes as they stared at the glistening jewels on the floor. "Woah…"

"Why didn't we see this last time?"

Pikachu rolled his eyes and jumped off onto the ground next to Zorua. He whispered. " _Can't believe our trainers are all misers._ "

Zorua pointed. " _And there's also Lucario._ "

Mega Lucario was, in fact, drooling as he stood staring at the piles of gold thrown carelessly on the floor like it was garbage.

Pikachu shook his head. " _I am so embarrassed._ "

Absol's sudden screech drew everyone's attention back from dreamland. Ash dashed besides her, and stuttered backwards. "Jesus!"

Misty was the second to walk next to Absol, and she released a scream and jumped back, her eyes bugging larger than a Venonat.

In the middle of the mountains of riches laid three, dried, shrunken corpses.

* * *

Mega Lucario was the first to recover, having been involved in dozens of wars in ancient times. " _Be very careful! Something in this room kill them._ "

Mew pulsed out a psychic shield immediately, covering the group. They waited for a couple of seconds. Nothing.

This is when Domino noticed something that sent chills down her back. "Guys! Lights!"

They turned their heads at her in confusion, before each of them realized what she meant.

"Lights." She repeated, staring at the candles. "How can there be lights? This place is buried for thousands of years. And they're candles! They would've run out milleniums ago."

Ash felt goosebumps down his arm, and he placed a second Protect shield around him for security. "Which means someone lit them before we came in!"

Their eyes shot collectively to the three bodies on the floor. Absol took a deep breath. " _What the hell have we gotten into?_ "

Domino looked at Ash, Misty and Brock. "Did this happen last time?"

"No." Ash forced himself to think. "This is a lot scarier than anything in the past."

Mega Lucario turned to Absol. " _Do you sense anything in these three?_ "

Absol shook her head to indicate a negative. Ash closed his eyes and tried Aura Sight. "I don't see any life either."

" _So they're actually dead._ " The Steel Type placed a shield around himself and walk out of Mew's force field. " _Dexter, Noah, follow me. We're giving these three an autopsy. Then we know what killed them and prepare for it._ "

Dexter and Noah materialized and placed a series of Light Screens around themselves and walked out with Mega Lucario.

* * *

"Nothing." Dexter said flatly. "They weren't killed by any outer causes."

"We believe they died twenty years ago." Noah continued. "Someone came in here before us somehow and died here twenty years ago. All of the water in their body evaporated, turning them into these shrunken… things."

" _But we found no cause of death. It's like they all died of a natural cause._ "

"Look at their faces though." Domino pointed, "Look at their expression."

"Dread, and hopelessness."

" _This is going to sound preposterous,_ " Mew started, " _What if something destroyed their consciousness from the inside? A Hypnosis and a really powerful Dream Eater?_ "

Dexter pondered that for a while. "Then the brain would be completely melted. But their brain is under a relatively stable condition, besides being dried for twenty years."

"Any Pokémon moves enough to kill them would leave a trace of some sort that we could have detected. We found nothing."

"Anything to identify them?" Domino asked. "Any ID's?"

Mega Lucario finished dumping their backpacks on the floor. Besides the gold they took from the mountains of jewels, there was two flashlights, a compass, rope, a lighter, first aid kit, tent, pens, knives, etc.

He picked up three pieces of plastic from the ground and read off. " _John, Kaitlin, Tim. All from Twinleaf Town._ "

"Wow, they've got everything." Domino remarked. "Almost a full pack ready for anything."

"Yep. Prepared, and they still died here." Brock nodded. He then scratched the back of his head uneasily. "I feel like they are missing something here."

Suddenly Ash was filled with an unknown feeling, as if something was watching them. He could not help but shuddered. "That's not important now. We need to find the orb containing the King's soul. If I'm not wrong, it should be under the throne's wool cover. There is a small hole containing the orb."

They started toward the throne in a back-to-back formation. Domino reached out with psychic held onto the wool coating the throne. They all sucked in a deep breath as the wool is uncovered.

The hole is empty.

* * *

They retreated to the pile of jewels and contemplated. Ash started, "Okay, we have two possibilities: Either one, that is not the right place, or two, the King is already out."

"What if," His eyes opened in horror, "These three already released the King's spirit…"

"That's not important now. We need to get out of here. This place is beyond us." Domino decided. "Plus, the orb containing the King's soul isn't here. Let's get outside and reformulate."

She shot a look at Ash. "What if last time, you never actually got down to the bottom of everything?"

"What if who you destroyed weren't actually the real King, but one of his substitutes?" She looked at him square in the eye. "He was the leader of the biggest empire that ruled over the entire planet. There is no way, now that I think about it, he is that easy to destroy."

"We need to leave, either way." She stated.

" _Good, I'm hungry._ " Pikachu tried to lightened up the mood.

Absol, upon hearing this, shook violently and dashed in front of Pikachu. " _What did you just say!?_ "

" _I am hungry?_ " Pikachu repeated questioningly.

Absol's eyes widened in horror. " _Food! They didn't have food!_ "

She ran to the pile of stuff from the three corpses' backpack that Mega Lucario had dumped on the floor. She repeated. " _They didn't have food!_ "

The crew's expression changed as realization hit them. They looked to the pile, and sure enough, all equipment. No food.

" _Impossible. If they are this prepared, they must've also brought food._ "

They stared at each other, as a horrible thought crept up to them one by one, but none of them wanted to say it. Dexter finally broke the silence. "What if they did bring food, but…"

" _They ate it all, and then starve here._ " Pikachu finished with a gulp.

"That would explain the results of the autopsy." Noah nodded. "And their expressions. Starved to death and still couldn't solve the problem that was keeping them here."

"Imagine the dread and hopelessness of the situation." Dexter finished and turned to the bodies. "May Arceus have mercy on your souls."

"How can they starve if they can leave?" Ash blinked, another terrible thought coming to mind.

Misty said with a shaky breath. "Unless they… can't!"

Their heads turned abruptly towards the door. To their relief, the entrance was still there. Domino grabbed onto Ash, "Let's leave. This is enough for one adventure."

"Agreed." Her decision was met by universal support.

Domino's eyes then caught the piles of jewels on the floor and smirked. "But first, let's take a souvenir."

She reached over to the pile of riches and grabbed a sapphire the size of her palm.

Ash, Misty and Brock traded looks and each grabbed a piece of jewelry. Zorua shook her head. " _What's with humans and shiny rocks?_ "

Pikachu shrugged. " _It's incorporated into their DNA. Humans love shiny rocks._ "

He turned to Lucario. " _Didn't you want one?_ "

Mega Lucario shook his head. " _I can't. The Lucario honor code forbids me from taking another man's burial jewels, even if said man is an evil King who deserves to die._ "

Their human trainers finished packaging the jewels, shot one final look toward the room, and started toward the entrance.

Their eyes bulged out as they took their first look at the entrance. The distance between the walls had shrunk at least a third, and the metal shielding of the wall turned into…

The silhouettes of a humanoid with a huge, bulky head.

* * *

Mew fell to the ground, struggling to maintain her force field from the shock. Zorua leapt onto Pikachu, who was shaking on the ground. Domino grabbed onto Ash's arm reflexively and the Pallet boy gripped a random Pokéball tightly. Misty held onto Mega Lucario, who was pulsing out shields after shields while Absol and Brock clutched each other.

After the shock registered, Absol was the first to blurt out, " _When the hell did this happen!?_ "  
"How is this possible!?"

Ash whipped his head back around to the throne room. "The room is still the same. Wrong entrance?"  
" _No way._ " Mega Lucario refuted.

They shot a look at each other, none of them wanted to take the first step. Ash breathed heavily and started down the hall, while trying not to pay attention to the ominous shape on the wall. Domino followed him immediately, as did the rest of the group.

As he trotted down the hall, another eerie thought filled his mind. He peered at the black silhouettes of the humanoid creatures, which seemed almost like they are squirming as his flashlight moves, and shuddered.

He said in an raspy voice. "What if this is the thing at the end of this tunnel."

He could feel Domino shake behind him as she clutched onto him. "Stop talking!"

As they continued walking, Ash felt something wrong. "This isn't the path we took. I may be bad at maps, but wasn't there supposed to be a corner?"

" _I was wondering that too…_ "

They continued walking down the hall in a completely straight path, each held his/her breath tightly. The throne room quickly disappeared behind them as their last landmark faded into the darkness.

Ash and co. found themselves trapped in complete darkness, broken only by Ash's flashlight when shone on the eerie pictures of the wall.

After about ten minutes of walking in silence, Ash's flashlight reflected, signaling the end of the tunnel. They each blew out a breath, relieved that they could finally escape the darkness of the tomb and the ominous humanoid silhouettes.

They approached a half-lifted wall, just like the one they had seen before. Then suddenly, Ash's flashlight caught onto something next to the entrance.

A symbol. Like the one they had discovered before. An uneasy feeling rose from the pit of his stomach, traveled up his neck and into his brain, and back down into his chest.

Taking a deep breath, he stepped into the room, followed by the rest. Their jaws collapsed to the ground as they took in the sight. "WHAT!?"

In front of them was another throne room, with the same design of winged gargoyle on the side and a throne in the smack center. To the right of the room was yet another pile of gold and jewels.

Misty gulped. "How rich exactly WAS the King when he was alive?"

Absol suddenly jumped forward onto the pile of riches as an unexplainable feeling overtook her. Then she let out a piercing scream as she looked down in horror.

Ash quickly jumped next to Absol. He followed her gaze down to the bottom of the hill of riches…

And saw a pile of equipment…

Laying next to three dead corpses.

* * *

 **A/N:** **This marks the start of something new. The first diversion of the plot away from normal Pokémon fanfic.**

 **For those of you that didn't get the plot development, basically Ash and co. entered the King's tomb, discovered his throne room, and three dead people who apparently starved to death. When they tried to leave, the entrance they came through somehow changed. When they went into the tunnel, somehow they came back the way they came from, back into the throne room…**

 **Trapped.**

 **To be continued…**


	30. Cha 29: Tomb of the Pokélantis King

**Cha. 29**

Mega Lucario gulped and jumped to the three corpses. Ash stared at the scene in front of him, not knowing what to say. He looked to his side and found his friends in the same condition.

" _It's the same room as we were in._ " Mega Lucario said in an extremely raspy voice.

"Impossible." Ash remarked, still refusing to believe the reality before him.

" _Our footprints are still on the floor._ " Mew pointed. " _Holy… I've never seen something this creepy._ "

"Did we unknowingly missed a turn?" Misty asked, shaking.

" _No._ " Absol confirmed. " _I could see bright clear in the dark, and I can guarantee there is no turn._ "

"How the crap did the entrance just switch?" Domino clutched onto Ash, much like Zorua and Pikachu.

" _Traps?_ " Mega Lucario responded. " _I recall Sir Aaron's enemies tried pulling similar crap like this, but they are much more primitive._ "

"Negative. That would require so much power, and it couldn't be pulled off without sending off vibrations that I could detect."

"Why don't we just teleport out of here?"

"No."

" _No._ "

Domino and Mew both rejected the idea. " _We would've done that a long time ago if it could work._ "

"Teleporting involves locking onto a space with psychic," Domino said, face cringing, "And something here is blocking my psychic, even after I Miracle Eyed myself."

" _Same here._ " Mew said.

"What the hell is going on!?"

"Can we blow ourselves out of here?"

Ash decided to test the idea and shot an Aura Sphere at the wall. It blew up with no effect.

Mega Lucario stepped forward and began charging up a massive Aura Sphere. A minute passed with them silently staring at the giant blue globe that had grown to the size of its creator.

" _Go!_ " The Steel Type launched it forward. Mew quickly placed them all under a force field to protect against the recoiling explosion. The sphere exploded against the wall of the structure…

To no effect.

Their jaws dropped. Ash echoed what they were thinking.

"What the hell!?"

* * *

"No way!" Ash shouted. "No freaking way!"

He looked at the entrance, the rest followed his gaze. He walked to the dark opening, and the paintings of the humanoid creature with the giant head glowed under his flashlight, taunting him.

"We're walking this again." He declared, and started into the hall.

Ash stared intently at the side of the hall, making sure there is no curves and diversion.

This time, it took them less than five minutes to come back, since they almost ran through the entire hall, confident this time that there were no traps.

He stopped to an abrupt halt as he approached the end of the tunnel… leading to the same door they saw last time. Sweat exploded out of his head. Mega Lucario wasted no time to jump on the same pile of gold. A look of hopelessness appeared on his face.

The Mega looked back at the group with an expression like crying without tears. " _We're back._ "

* * *

Brock held up his hand for silence. "Okay, we are going to be here for a while. Let's divide up the food supply first."

He shot a look at Dexter. "Can you transport out Pokémon?"

"Improbable. No wireless connection gained."

Brock sighed. "I was afraid so. Before we came here, I did do some resupplying, but that'll last us for about… a week tops."

Ash sat down and took out a pencil. "Then let's get to business."

He listed on the ground: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.

"Okay, start giving me some hypotheses about how this could happen." Ash remarked. "A general direction, nothing specific."

" _Mechanisms_." Lucario said, switching back to his normal form, " _Very complicated and intricate engineering mechanisms._ "

Ash nodded and wrote down 'Mechanism'.

Domino spoke up. "The King of the Pokélantis is still human. Even with the help of Pokémon, he still can't ignore the basic rules of physics and laws that even Pokémon powers can't break."

She paused. "My logic is still good?"

Nods and grunts of concurrence responded.

"That means," The Elite continued, "It is impossible for the entrance to direct us back here."

"But it did." Ash interrupted.

Domino shushed him and followed her train of thought. "It means that there might be nothing wrong with the entrance itself…"

She looked at the group and panted. "But with us."

The Black Tulip pointed at the '2' box. "So something is messing with our sensations and making us walk back unknowingly, like Hypnosis."

"Nothing that specific." Ash thought about that for a while. "Okay. So sensations."

Pikachu piped up after her. " _Remember that time with the Jewel of Life, Ash?_ "

Ash nodded. Pikachu continued. " _What if something with Palkia's powers created a mirror in space that reflected us back…_ "

Zorua interrupted him. " _That's way too mythical. The possibility is one to a thousand._ "

Ash put it down anyways. "Doesn't matter. This is just so we don't forget."

He looked around. "Anymore ideas?"

He was greeted by silence. Ash looked back at the list. It already involved everything from psychology to engineering and physics, to the rules of space and time. It was actually pretty hard to find something else out of those range. He thought for a while and jotted down an idea of his own. "We're being haunted."

" _No way._ " Absol stated flatly. " _If it was a ghost, I would have detected it in a heartbeat._ "

" _Same here._ "

" _Yep._ "

"No, not by ghost." Ash shook his head. "Just haunted by something."

"Okay, let's stop with this." Misty made a stop sign with her hands. "How will listing this actually help?"

"Helps us remember. I'm used to writing down everything so I don't forget." The Pallet boy stated flatly. "Plus, we wouldn't be reconsidering the same possibility after we rule them out.

"How would we do that?"

Ash stood up. "Let's start with one and two then."

* * *

Ash stood in front of the entrance, face darker than Giratina's. Mew stood next to him.

Ketchum pointed at the tunnel and asked the psychic legendary. "How fast is your Psybeam?"

Mew tilted her head, not knowing where he was going. " _The speed of a bullet at maximum. But I never power it up that far because it will slant out of my control easily._ "

"Doesn't matter." Ash nodded and pulled out Dexter. "Dex, how long was the 'tunnel' we just walked?"

"About half a mile." Dexter beeped. "Please excuse me for the approximation. I'm on full power saver mode right now. I shouldn't waste energy on anything unnecessary."

"No problem." Ash remarked. "Let's do an experimentation then."

He looked at the dark tunnel leading off to eternity. "Mew, shoot a Psybeam into the hall."

" _Why?_ " Mew questioned.

Ash smirked. "Your Psybeam doesn't have sensations, no matter how ridiculous things are around us. If this tunnel is only half a mile long, and your Psybeam is really as fast as a bullet, it'll take only two or three seconds to get to the 'end.' There is definitely no time for any mechanisms to start up quickly enough to redirect a movement of that speed."

"So if the tunnel is really a trick of engineering or illusion, the Psybeam would just stay at the end of the hall, not to return."

The crew's jaw dropped open as they followed through Ash's logic. Domino took the lead in asking, "How did you think of that?"

Ash smiled. "Don't know. I get smarter in difficult situations."

"Says the boy who jumped in front of two of the strongest legendaries' attacks last time." Dexter stated sarcastically.

"I thought you're on power saver mode!"

"Pointing that out is absolutely necessary."

"Anyways…" Ash breathed out, "Mew, Psybeam!"

"STOP!" Domino yelled loudly and sprinted next to Mew.

Mew stopped and looked at her curiously. " _Why?_ "

"This is going to sound strange." Domino looked at the entrance and panted. "It's probably because of some traps that we're stuck here, but what if, it really is the one in a million chance and that the hall really is that spooky."

"What if the beam actually does reflect back." She looked into the darkness. "Then you basically would've shot yourself in the face."

Ash and Mew blinked. "Guess I really am still that thick."

Domino rolled her eyes and pulled him close to her and out of the range of fire. "Mew, aim a bit down and to your right."

The feline Pokémon nodded and released a boosted Psybeam that went soaring into the entrance in a pink flash.

Their faces dropped as the beam came back a few seconds later and exploded beneath Mew's feet.

"Jesus!" Ash breathed heavily, "This really is that spooky."

* * *

Ash, Domino and Mew came back dejectedly and sat down next to their other depressed teammates in front of Ash's list.

Ash looked around and saw them in different positions, thinking. However, he knew that, like him currently, their minds were blank, unable to comprehend the situation. He looked back at the three dead corpses from twenty years ago and their expression.

He finally knew the reason behind their looks of deep, deep hopelessness. Like they saw something insane and impossible.

Because it is.

Traps and sensory crap he could deal with. He had dealt with them dozens of times in the past, but this? This mess that was against all laws of physics…

He forced himself to calm down and silently repeated in his mind Sir Aaron's meditation techniques.

The Chosen One looked back at his list. The benefit of writing everything down presented itself. If nothing was written down, they would be unable to reformulate any kind of logical thought after the previous experiment that ruled out any sort of logic, trapping them in a truly hopeless situation.

He held out a hand and shakily pointed to the list. "Let's keep going."

Misty looked at him unexpectedly. "You want to keep going?"

"Of course. We have to." Ash replied. "We can't just sit here."

Pikachu said sulkily. " _I beg a differ. I want a nap._ "

Zorua stretched. " _Me too._ "

Ash looked at his friends around him, falling completely apart, torn by this goddamn trap.

He jumped onto a pile of gold and yelled. "GUYS!"

"What are you doing!? Look at you." Ash pointed at them furiously. "You've been with me through life and death, and crap that could have ripped the planet apart. We've been through shit that if we told anyone, they would send us to a mental hospital."

"How can you get so torn apart by this trap!? We've been through worse, WAY worse! Now let's focus and actually think! We're not average Pokémon trainers. We're…" Ash twisted his face. "We're Legion!"

Everyone unitedly cringed.

"Is that the best motivational name you can come up with?" Domino teased him. "Really? Legion?"

"Anyways!" Ash picked his voice up and over the murmuring. "Let's focus on how to get out of here."

He looked around. "Any ideas on how to test this… spatial disorientation?"

Lucario piped up after a period of silence. " _It's impossible._ "

"We're going to think about it if it has a possibility, no matter how slim."

" _No, I mean it's impossible._ " Lucario repeated. " _It's paradoxical._ "

Ash looked at him for a further explanation. Lucario paused, as if to organize his thoughts, then he began.

" _Think about it this way: First, we can establish that the mirror has a width._ "

"Width?"

" _Yes, width._ " Lucario looked around and saw that no one realized what he was saying. " _Think about it this way. When we were walking, there is a point where we turn around, right? Even though we don't know when that happened._

Seeing them nod, the Steel Type continued. " _So say I'm drawing on the wall with a pencil when I'm walking. As I'm progressing, there is a long trace of marks behind me. Therefore, when I accidentally turn around, what will happen?_ "

Ash almost jumped as he realized what his Pokémon was saying. "You'll see that there are already marks on the wall!"

" _Not only that, but also I would be drawing on the other side of the wall, since left and right would be opposite after I rotate._ " Lucario paused for it to sink it.

" _So based on logical reasoning, there must be a point in the tunnel where we reverse, like Pikachu said._ "

" _But knowing that, when we approach the mirror, how wide is it?_ "

"Width?"

" _Yes, width. There must be a width to the mirror, because if it doesn't…"_ The Aura Pokémon took a deep breath, " _When the first half of your body entered, it would reflect immediately to your second half…_ "

The crew felt a chill sent down their backs. Domino spoke up for them shakily. "You would become a blob of flesh with your face attached to the back of your head."

Seeing that they got his point, he continued. " _Therefore, since we didn't die, there must be a width far larger than humans. We would enter, walk some distance, and pop back out the other side._ "

" _But we don't know the width of the mirror. So let's suppose it is ten feet. Let's say I walked into the mirror, but Mew, who's following me, didn't. What would I see?_ "

Ash could also feel his goosebumps forming another layer of his skin. "You'll… see two Mews, one on each side."

" _Correct. Now, here comes the paradox. Can the Mew in front of me see the Mew after me?_ " Lucario kept with his chain of rhetorical questions. " _Now what if I try to hold one of the Mew's hand, but not the other_?"

"STOP!" Ash cried and sat back down. "What are you saying?"

" _That we don't need to keep experimenting with this. This supposed 'mirror' is paradoxical and nonexistent. This spatial disorientation, and the fact that we cannot walk out of here is also illogical. It's impossible._ " Lucario bent down and drew a line through the third option. " _The King of Pokélantis isn't God. He cannot distort basic physics or create his own rules. What's happening here has no relations with him._ "

Lucario picked his head up and looked at the crew. " _This is a special case, a new case. We were directed onto the wrong path by taking the implications these corpses gave us._ "

" _Which means we are left with the one most possible option…_ " Lucario gulped and pointed at the idea Ash had offered in the beginning and mouthed silently, " _We're being haunted._ "

* * *

In a normal circumstance, saying those words with such a serious tone and getting so much consideration is unthinkable and even foolish. But in that condition, well, you can see the amount of strain the crew was put through. The effects of the intense pressure on them.

Absol wanted to open her mouth and reject that, but she decided against it.

Ash mouthed back. "What do we do?"

Domino coughed. "There's no reason to do that. If we are being haunted, the thing should already know that we are hunting for it."

"And plus, even if we are being haunted by something, how can we find it?" She continued. "I already search this entire throne room with psychic, and there's nothing in the entrance, or else we would have found it."

Ash turned his head at the hall. "Let's walk this again. This time, everyone turn on your light."

The next walk took almost half an hour. The heroes searched over every inch of space this time for traces of hints. When they arrived back at the throne room, their faces are even darker than before, finding nothing.

"Is it possible the entrance would be back?" Misty asked in a small voice.

"It won't happen." Ash replied, his usual optimism long gone. "Just look at the three that died before us. If the entrance could return on its own, they would have made it out alive. Don't even think about something as lucky."

" _Back to the drawing board._ " Pikachu hopped next to the list on the ground. " _If we are being haunted, how do we get out of this?_ "

"Well first," Ash suggested, "We need to see the haunter."

He closed his eyes. "If anyone makes a Haunter joke, I swear to Arceus!"

"Didn't you say you saw a bright flash when we walked in, Ash?" Domino asked him while playing with a diamond pearl.

"Yes. Yes I did." Ash replied. "But I can't find a single of trace of it with Aura Sight right now."

Ash closed his eyes to try again, and he still found nothing from the throne room to the tunnel.

" _Wait. Aura Sight detects life forces._ " Lucario interrupted. " _If we are being haunted, the thing must be, well, not living._ "

" _If it is not living, it wouldn't exist._ " Mew said, " _When I helped create Ghost Types, even they had a balanced amount of life forces that can counteract their forces of death._ "

" _You're saying that there can't be something made fully with death forces?_ " Lucario asked.

" _Yes. It's impossible._ " Mew confirmed.

The Steel Type coughed. " _So is this trap. It's impossible. That's why it's even more logical that the thing haunting us cannot be living._ "

" _Okay fine! How does that help?_ " An agitated Mew retorted.

Lucario smirked. " _If it really is non-living, then we can reverse engineer Aura Sight so it picks up on the death forces._ "

Ash frowned. "But that's insane. Aura is the definition of life."

" _Exactly!_ " Lucario snapped his fingers. " _So theoretically, the opposite of aura is death. If we can make Aura Sight do the polar opposite of its original intention, we can see death forces and therefore the haunter._ "

"But we can't." Ash deadpanned.

Lucario smirked. " _Yes we can._ "

He turned to Mew and Domino. " _I remember your telling me once that Dark Type energy is the opposite of psychic and can thereby neutralize any psychic attacks. And then your psychic legends invented Miracle Eye._ "

Mew's eyes glistened as she understood what he was getting too. " _You're not thinking…_ "

" _Miracle Eye reflects the opposite of whatever you intended to._ " Lucario nodded. " _If you can put the mirror of the Miracle Eye you created into my Aura Sight, I can use it to see the opposite of life, which is the forces of death_."

"That's genius!" Ash and Domino jumped in in excitement.

Brock and Misty turned around from trying to cook lunch with the help of Charizard. "What? What's happening?"

"I think we just found a way out."

* * *

"I'm still a bit confused. Explain it again?" Ash looked at the blonde.

"Thick as ever." Domino sighed and was punched lightly by Ash, his usual glint creeping back. "To create a Miracle Eye mirror, take the second part of the Spoon Method Seven and ninth part of the Spoon Method Four and twist your aura into the pattern I gave you. It can't be much simpler. Mew and I did all the hard work of tweaking between aura and psychic already."

"I helped!" Ash protested.

Domino pinched his cheeks and smirked. "Of course you did- standing there and look pretty. Now just do it so we can get out of this hellhole."

Ash looked at her. "What's Spoon Method?"

She glared at him. "The information I scanned into your brain with psychic, you idiot!"

"Ohhh…"

Lucario walked over and took a pose. " _Ash, Mega evolve me._ "

Ash nodded and raised his staff, while Lucario put on his Mega Stone necklace. Mega Lucario appeared a few seconds later with a new found confidence in his eyes. " _Ready Ash?_ "

"Ready." Ash directed his aura flow into the pattern Domino gave him and closed his eyes.

Following his trainer, Mega Lucario did the same.

At first, they saw nothing but a cloud of grey mist. There was a flash of silvery pink as it began to clear. Then his sight began to turn into black, signaling nothingness, just like Aura Sight. At this point, he slowly began to rotate. When he almost completed a right angle, a dull, gray color appeared on top of them, and he froze. Opening his eyes reflexively, he discovered that Mega Lucario was looking at the exact same location. Taking a deep breath, he managed to stop the feeling of the world spinning, and put his focus onto the ceiling.

Looking overhead, he saw nothing with his raw eyes. He then nodded at his Mega Pokémon and both closed their eyes again.

Then, simultaneously, both moved. Mega Lucario launched a sudden barrage of Aura Spheres up at the gray shadow, while Ash jumped straight up with a burst of aura and sent a Force Palm its way.

With the target not knowing that it had been discovered, both moves hit their mark. With a piercing scream, the shadow materialized and fell onto the ground. Heads turned instantly at the creature, and even with a decent level of preparation, both humans and Pokémon were on the edge of puking.

The shadow was the exact replica of the pictures on the wall of the entrance: A huge head twice the size of its body, which is the size of a human baby. It has no eyes or nose, but a huge mouth that took up half of its head. Around it grew clusters of small, slim tentacles. Its ears, attached to its forehead, were shaped like slimy bat ears, but even skinnier.

It screamed again, and it had almost the same effect of a boosted Screech attack. Using the moment of their immobilization, the creature dodged out of their circle and ran toward the entrance.

Saying that the crew was angry was an understatement. Misty and Domino were the first ones to break out their trance- in less than a second- and both screamed and chased after the creature that had trapped them for the past day, with Domino spamming Psybeams and Misty swinging her mallet like a modified form of Wood Hammer.

Ash sweatdropped and traded looks with Brock. "Girls, huh?"

"GO!" Brock ran after them, followed by Mega Lucario. Ash shooed Pikachu and Zorua, as well as Absol and Mew, in front of him and brought up the rear.

As he ran past the throne, his eye caught on something. An orb sat on the seat, unmoving. A thought entered his mind, and he closed his eyes, using Death Sight. Scanning it, he detected nothing wrong with the orb, and he switched over to Aura Sight, gaining the same result.

Ash reached out and grabbed the orb, confident that it is not possessed currently, and threw it into his backpack. He then spun on his heels and ran after the group.

As he approached the entrance, a smile finally lit up his face as he saw the walls are back to their metal covering. A small symbol was at the bottom of the entrance, and a corner was visible clearly ahead of him.

He's out.

He's finally out of the goddamn trap.

* * *

 **A/N: Pokémon is my favorite childhood show. I started watching it since kindergarten and still is watching it. But that is the problem: It is a childhood show. As we Pokémon lovers grow older, no matter how much we want to hold on to the nostalgia of thinking of Pokémon as our favorite show, the childish and somewhat immature topics and actions the show presents don't appeal to us anymore.**

 **This fanfic is designed to add this special, real-life and more stimulating flavor to adventures while maintaining humor. Other chapters would be a lot less serious than this one, featuring more than just thinking about a impossible and the past chapter are my first experimentation at that. Please tell me how I did.**

 **Hope you enjoyed! More chapters incoming.**


	31. Cha 30: Tomb of the Pokélantis King

**Chapter 30**

Ash dashed around the corner, and was greeted by the sound of Misty's mallet slamming onto the ground, followed by a series of explosion. He squinted and discovered that the creature was missing its right arm completely and half of its left. A mysterious black liquid dripped down from his wound, and was evaporated instantly as it touches the ground. Behind it was an angry mob made of his friends.

" _Die!_ " Pikachu released a massive Thunderbolt to relieve his pent-up frustration from the past hours. The attack connected with the creature, and a web of lightning tickled its skin.

It screamed and was sent to the ground, but was back in running mode in less than a second with a barrel roll. Ash did a double take as he took in the scene. Even he couldn't recover this quickly with his trained electric resistance and aura protection. This is Pikachu we are talking about!

The humanoid dodged a Psycho Cut sent by Mew, who was chuckling deviously. " _I've never seen you before, thing! Do you know WHO I am? I am the New Species Legendary. You should've checked in with me!_ "

" _Your punishment would be being dissected on my lab table. It's been centuries since I can caress a new species!_ "

A heavy layer of goosebumps covered Ash's skin. He slipped and almost launched his Aura Sphere at her. He muttered to himself. "We've got to get Mew some Aspirin when we get out."

The creature was at the top of its speed, sprinting for dear life, chased by a mob who was sprinting as fast as they could after the monstrosity.

They quickly lost their sense of direction, but failed to care though. By now, their only thought was to kill and slice the thing in front of them that had messed with them for the past day. Besides, there were always the Porygon.

After running around for a few minutes, or maybe longer, the hallway in front of them broadened up again. A faint light glowed in front of them. Before they knew it, the creature had led them stumbling into another room.

The room was bigger than the throne room in size, but was filled with the winged gargoyles they had seen before. Hundreds of them in fact. The creature ran to the middle of the room, and levitated up.

Then it spun around to face them, and made a very ominous expression.

Ash felt the hair on his back spike up, and decided to end it here once and for all. He walked forward three steps before Mega Lucario grabbed him and held him back. " _Ash… look around._ "

The Pallet boy looked around, and his blood ran cold. Eyes. Red, beady eyes had opened and were staring at them emotionlessly. Gargoyles. They had awoken.

* * *

Having been in dozens of life and death situations and insane impossibilities, Ash's reflex was as strong as Sir Aaron's from his times of battling. Immediately, he pulled out his Pokéballs and released his Pokémon who could fit, as well as materializing Dexter.

The others followed his lead, while the Pokémon who were already out started charging up massive area of effect moves.

Only a few seconds after they started preparing, the humanoid moved. It started to dance weirdly in place, while yelping in changing high and low notes, as if speaking a different language.

" _Stop him!_ " Mega Lucario yelled and threw the Focus Blast he was charging at the creature, a bad feeling creeping up. The monster in turn spit out a ball of black liquid and neutralized the Blast. Then, he released one final scream.

The Steel Type rushed forward and delivered a Sky Uppercut, sending it flying back into the crowd of gargoyles.

Its body was completely hidden by the stone forms after it fell, but a eerie crackling remained.

" _Too… late!_ "

* * *

In a mountain not far from Pewter City, an ancient form shook. A heavy pink glow lit up the summit from the inside.

In the hill next to it, a purple and black shadow casted itself over the landform, and a dark atmosphere fell silently on it.

In a ravine to its west, flashes of hot pink and blue resonated.

The three landmarks formed an equilateral triangle, with Pewter City as the center.

* * *

The gargoyles suddenly moved. The first few turned and positioned themselves toward the group, and started to move. At first, their movements were unsure and hesitant, accompanied by a chilling scraping sound. But as they moved forward, they became more fluent, as if getting used to the body.

Ash responded by throwing out a handful of Aura Spheres. They exploded on contact with the stone forms, shattering them to pieces. Domino stepped forward next to Ash and released a series of Psybeams, copied by Mew.

The massive web of attacks, flowed over the gargoyles' formation, shattering them in its path. Ash snorted. "If you think this can stop us, hehehe…"

Before he finished, the pieces of shattered stone on the floor started to squirm in place. Then, in their shock, the stone started to move to each other, and started to re-attach to other pieces.

In no time, the gargoyles they had shattered rematerialized in front of them as if nothing had happened.

Domino blew out a long breath. "Of course this would happen."

As the stone statues got broken down and rebuilt, they were becoming more and more fluent with their motion, and the time between each wave of the crew's attacks to keep them back is decreasing rapidly.

Ash shot a look at Mega Lucario. "Any ideas? Have you ever fought against an army of unkillable gargoyles with Sir Aaron?"

Mega Lucario released another barrage of Aura Spheres to knock some back, and thought quickly. " _Okay, feed me some details so I can begin thinking. Fast!_ "

"Let's see. They're stone." Ash said while charging into the line of contact. He launched two of them back with a Force Palm, while dodging out of the grasps of several others with a Defense Curl back. "They're awoken by the stupid haunter."  
" _Something less obvious!_ "

"There's moss on their heads. They have wings." Domino looked frantically around while backing Ash up with a succession of Psystrikes. "When they reform, black smoke comes out."

" _Keep it coming._ " Mega Lucario yelled while trading punches with a dozen of them with Extremespeed.

" _Disguise doesn't work on them!_ " A nearby gargoyle popped and Zorua fell out of it. " _I copied them perfectly and they still attacked me._ "

Mew flew on top of them and slammed down a Sludge Wave outward into the army of stone. Even though the poison had no effect, it slowed them considerably. Then Mew released a controlled Blizzard on the poison wave and temporarily froze their feet in place.

She was about to sigh in relief when one of the creatures moved its wings. Her eyes flashed pink as it broke the ice and flew out of her trap, crashing directly to her. She sent it flying with an Extrasensory and muttered to herself.

Absol suddenly yelled. " _Mew! Say what you were saying!_ "

Mew looked at her, confused. " _What?_ "

" _Say what you were muttering!_ " She repeated while Dark Pulsing three gargoyles." _My senses are telling me that is extremely important._ "

" _Okay, umm…_ " Mew started uncertainly. " _I said, 'Why does it look familiar?'_ "

Mega Lucario looked at them as more winged creatures began to learn how to fly. " _They do look familiar… I swear I saw something similar before._ "  
"Me too." Ash agreed. "What is it though?"  
" _I got it!_ " Mew was flipping through her memory with psychic when she finally settled on an image. " _Ho-Oh! They are deformed mini-statues of Ho-Oh!_ "

* * *

Gary pulled out his Pokédex. "Still no response from Ash."

Giselle barely picked up her head from her _Analysis of Bio-engineering Behavior_ and responded. "He better respond quickly. Professor Oak's birthday is tomorrow."

"How are you two managing to study?" Violet came over from the fire and placed the breakfast omelets in front of them, and yawned. "It just turned eight."

"Actually, sweetie," Gary looked at his watch. "It is still seven fifty-six."

Giselle immediately started coughing. "You mean eight-oh-two."

"Seven fifty-six." Gary repeated. "My watch is corrected to the Indigo League official clock."

"Mine is based off Lance's watch!" Giselle shook her head. "Therefore, I win."

"Seven fifty-six!"

"Eight oh-two!"  
"STOP! I am not hearing you two argue about your watches again! This is the third time today already, and we hadn't even started breakfast!" Violet held her head and sat down. "This is way too early."

A massive explosion, followed by an array of purple lights, sounded to their east. The Cerulean Gym Leader groaned and place her head down. "What now!?"

* * *

" _How the hell does these things look like me!?_ " Ho-Oh croaked as he was sent out by Ash. " _These things look worse than Arceus's hair that time he got hit by a meteor when he was sleeping in the thermosphere._ "

Mega Lucario presented his collection of ideas as he got his thoughts together. " _So my theory is that…_ " He pounded a Dragon Pulse at an incoming, airborne gargoyle.

" _I was talking!_ " He lamented. " _Anyways, these things are definitely powered by death forces, as seen by their creepy reforming ability, how they were summoned by the haunter, and most importantly, how Zorua's perfect Disguise has no effect. They must have detected her by her life aura, which is sharply contrasting their death forces._ "

" _The second thing is that they look like Ho-Oh._ " The Steel Type paused to reform his thoughts, while slamming a statue to his right with a Brick Break. The attacks were getting quicker and quicker as more of them learned to lift off the ground.

" _This may seem unimportant or coincidental at first, but remember that nothing here is coincidental._ " The Mega stopped for the message to sink in. " _The King of the Pokélantis had wanted to imprison a Ho-Oh for the entire latter part of his life, so he must had research a lot into the Storm's End._ "

He turned to the great phoenix who was spewing Fire Blasts at the gargoyles. " _And the most impressive ability about a Ho-Oh isn't its raw power, but the ability to regenerate. Ho-Oh don't die. They degenerate to ash and regenerate out of it in time when they are harmed to a maximum capacity._ "

" _Why is that, Ho-Oh?_ " Mega Lucario looked at the great bird.

The legendary replied hurriedly. " _When we are harmed, the life forces of that part get absorbed to our core. If too much life forces are trapped in the core and not enough controlling the flames, the fire burn us to ash, with our core left in the middle, disguised by the ash. It takes a while to rebuild a shape after that, usually a century._ "

Mega Lucario turned back to the reforming monsters he had previously destroyed. " _And the same with these creatures. They get smashed, and they rebuild. The difference is that they are merely rock, which is a lot easier to piece together than creating the delicate structures of flesh and bone._ "

" _They just attach the stones together and hold them with death forces. They even have the stones left on the ground, unlike how Ho-Oh need to start from nothing. They are a rip-off of Ho-Oh basically._ "

"So tell us what to do!" Ash and Domino already pulled out their staffs, and were in a back-to-back stance, swinging in a circle of destruction powered by aura and psychic. The gargoyles had forced themselves very closed to the group at this point, pushing them into a small circle. The waves of attacks came endlessly, from both the air and ground. Their continuous revival also sped up noticeably as the battle went on.

" _I don't know._ " Mega Lucario said and looked at the Fire Legendary. " _How do you prevent reforming, Ho-Oh?_ "

Ho-Oh thought about it, and remembered something Arceus had said to him a long time ago. " _If someone neutralizes my life energy when I'm reforming._ "

" _By providing death forces._ "

A bright flash appeared in Mega Lucario's eyes and he smirked. " _In that case, I know how to get out._ "

* * *

Gary licked his lips nervously as the giant Gengar stood only a few miles from him within the trees, with only his head and top of his shoulders popping out. Even from here, the ghost appears enormous.

He sent out his Fearow warily. " _Hey buddy. Can you take me up to see him better?_ "

Fearow chirped, and he climbed on quickly.

On the ground, Giselle sent out her Shelgon whom she had gotten as a present from Dr. Fuji as a Bagon and her childhood friend, Cubone.

Violet released her Poliwrath, Vaporeon and Cloyster. Then she pulled out her phone and dialed a familiar number.

"Daisy? Get Lily and some of the gym's strongest Pokémon and get over here. Especially bring Pokémon who can fly."

She shot a look at the looming purple form. "We're in for a wild ride."

* * *

" _So any re-shaping that they are doing comes from a stable, unchanging source of energy._ " Mega Lucario stated rapidly, pumped up on adrenaline. " _If the source is destroyed, they die. No more re-shaping._ "

" _If it's like that for Ho-Oh, it'll be the same for the gargoyles. They're powered up by death forces, so to neutralize it, we need…_ "

Ash's eyes opened abruptly. "Life forces. Aura!"

Mega Lucario smirked and looked at the gargoyles and the room, enclosed from all sides. " _Then good thing we charged up those aura reservoirs._ "

" _Do what you need. Quick!_ " Mew suddenly flashed a bright pink and the color was cast over the gargoyles as she used Gravity. " _I can pin them down for a while, but not for long. A hundred of these weird things are hard to overpower!_ "

Mega Lucario sprinted to Ash's side and took his backpack, pulling out the dozen of stones, including two unidentified Mega Stones that had been tweaked into reservoirs.

Ash took a Mega reservoir over. "How much aura did we put in one of these?"

" _Normal ones took half an hour to charge. The Mega ones took eight hours._ " Mega Lucario looked at the pinned gargoyles. " _They're only good with reshaping. They barely have any powerful attacks. They are designed to kill by wearing people down, which means they only have a small bit of death forces, around ten minutes, I'll say, on full burn._ "

Dexter beeped. "In that case, you would have 1560 minutes of aura in these reservoirs on full burn. There are a net total of 1240 minutes worth of death forces in this room."

" _More than enough to destroy them._ " The Steel Type smirked confidently as he directed the anti-resonating key to the seal of the Mega reservoir, followed by Ash. " _Let the neutralizing process begin._ "

Ash closed his eyes, using Aura Sight. He looked down to find a concentrated blue energy pour out of his Mega Stone, and smirked. "Good thing this doesn't take eight hours to release."

" _Nope, in fact, I'm done with mine already._ " The Aura Pokémon threw the empty stone Ash's way, and was handed another reservoir, a ball of steel.

As he took it over, he closed his eyes and used Death Sight. A gray spot in front of him was suddenly consumed by an unseen energy, and then another, and another.

He opened his eyes to find the statues in front of him and his last Mega reservoir frozen. Their red, beady eyes started to fade to a stone color.

Mega Lucario sighed with relief as he finished draining the second reservoir. " _Thank Arceus this worked._ "

* * *

Violet looked up to see Daisy landing with her Pelipper. "Where's Lily?"

"She's coming." Daisy held her phone to her ear. "Lils, I'm here."

"Kay-kay." Violet heard the other end, and the pink flash of a teleport glowed in front of her, revealing Lily on a Slowbro.

"Slowbro can manage long-ranged teleport now?" A slightly surprised Violet asked.

"We come from Cerulean. A hundred miles can hardly be called 'long-ranged'." Lily shrugged. "Plus, we took a break at the Cerulean Peak."

"So you have surely seen the giant Gengar?" Violet pointed at the nearby shape, still adapting up in the sunlight after his long hibernation.

Daisy nodded. "Of course we did. That thing is, like, thirty feet!"

"I thought Misty said this wouldn't happen for another few months."

"Yes, where are they?" Daisy asked. "I thought it's kind of THEIR thing to save the world."

Violet coughed. "I'm sure she wouldn't mind if we steal her job this time."

The three Waterflowers looked at the giant Ghost. "On a second thought, we should probably call Pewter City for some backup."

* * *

Domino's Tentacruel looked at the giant Alakazam standing next to the coast. " _Don't you know it's rude to throw rocks at others?_ "

He was responded with a spoonful of rocks.

The Water/Poison type glared at the psychic. " _This is your last chance to apologize before I get angry. You don't want to see the consequence of that!_ "

A second later, his face got another pummel of rocks.

Dragonite fell below the clouds, laughing. Tentacruel growled and blew the giant Alakazam into the Pallet sea with a massive Hydro Cannon. " _You might be two thousand years old, but you slept ever since you were genetically modified!_ "

Dragonite gloated. " _Therefore you're even worse than Squidward. Two thousand years old and can only fight like two hundred._ "

Alakazam was about to retort when a skyful of Toxic Spikes sent him to the bottom of the sea. He then looked at his Dragon friend above him, watching the battle interestingly and sent a wave his way. " _Stop calling me that! I hate that show!_ "

* * *

The last of the gargoyles lost the glow in their eyes, and froze. Mew released her Gravity hold on them.

"Ho-Oh, Sacred Fire!" Ash commanded.

" _Gladly._ " The great phoenix chuckled. " _These things are such a bad impression of me._ "

The Fire Legendary took off and flew a circle around the room and opened his mouth. A potent scarlet glow is shown growing in his mouth, and then he closed it.

When he opened his mouth for again, an enormous red rose flew out and landed on top of the stone forms.

A sizzling wave of heat exploded in the room, before being blocked by a mixture of aura and psychic.

When Ho-Oh's Sacred Fire died down, all that was left on the floor was a pile of melted rock, gravel and even glass shards.

Misty sent out her Starmie, who fired a Water Pulse into the sizzling room. A massive steam explosion formed outside of the force field.

All of a sudden, Ho-Oh roared and flew in front of the door and lashed out with a Fire Punch. Then he used a Fire Blast to send a figure crashing onto Mew's force field.

Domino directed the steam outside of the room through the door with a pulse of psychic, revealing the figure on the floor- the haunter.

Its face was completely melted by the Sacred Fire, and he was missing both arms and a leg. Deep gashes were in his sides, dripping a black liquid. He cried up a hoarse, contorted sound and rolled around on the floor.

Ash closed his eyes. The dull, gray death forces in his Sight were shrinking rapidly. "According to the Death Sight, this thing is minutes away from death.

" _The amount of aura we charged this room with is injecting itself into its body. His face wasn't melted because of the Sacred Fire. It was because of the life forces._ " Mega Lucario saw the same thing and spoke up. " _No wonder he's close to death. He's being neutralized to nothing._ "

"Wait." Domino furrowed her brow. "The Miracle Eye we casted on you should have worn off by now. You're not actually using Death Sight."

She trailed off as she realized a possibility. "This is Aura Sight, and you're…"

Mega Lucario and Ash traded a look. "The color is still dull, which means…"

" _This is a ghost!_ "

A strangled cough choked up from the distorted mess from the ground. An extremely blurred voice sounded, as if the owner of the voice hadn't talked in a long, long time.

"Tha… Thank… you."

"Who ARE you?"

"I…" The form on the ground started to lose its dark color and started to turn transparent. "Was the King of… Pokélantis."

* * *

Once upon a time, there was an abandoned boy. He lived in an orphanage until he was ten, then the orphanage was burnt down by the monarchy because of the wrongful conviction of the owner as an anarchist.

The boy traveled the land after that. He was an ten year old about whom no one cares, especially in this age of revolution. He relied on his skills to survive, by any means.

He had seen it all, the evils of mankind. The lust, the temptations.

He steals for a living. It's the only way he would live. As time went by, his skills in that field perfected, and he hadn't gotten caught in ever since his twelfth birthday.

That is, until he tried stealing dumplings from a quiet, secluded shop opened by an old man. In fact, an old kung fu demigod who later decided to take him as his apprentice.

Eight years later, the boy- no, man now- appeared as a master in the martial arts after the decease of his teacher.

Even though many years had gone by since the burning of his orphanage, he was still angry as hell toward the corrupted government. He wants payback. He wants revenge, for him, for the orphanage, for its owner.

As a result, he joined the rebelled forces, first as a soldier.

With his magnificent kung fu skills, he went up in ranks rapidly. Time fast forward ten years, and the man became the second in command of the AAM, or the Alliance Against Monarchy, the ultimate rebel organization liberating the depraved wantons in the castle.

Two years later, he found himself in charge of a near-collapsed rebel group. His boss, the head of the AAM had died in a major battle, which took most of the troops with it. The alliance was very closed to disbanding, and there was no hope in sight.

The monarch is near, is very near.

He could remember that day, standing in the snow, winds howling by him, and staring down at his pale, scarred hands wondering how, how twenty years went by so fast. How he could deal with the corrupted monarch.

Then, he was jumped by a Pichu, and officially began the Age of Pokémon Battling.

With the help of Pokémon, he reformed the troops and prepared for war. The use of Pokémon in battles was unprecedented, but that didn't stop him from creating unbelievable strategies that crushed the monarch again and again.

Bloody conflicts and deadly battles went by. Friends left, new friendships were formed, and they left too. Blood was shed, heads were beheaded, lives taken. He endured through all of that.

Ten years. When he stood upon the castle, with the ex-King at his knees, the rebel- no liberation, liberation flag in hand, he looked at his friends, humans or Pokémon, and smiled.

As the renowned King, he sunk the flag into the castle, in place of the flag of the last monarch. His Pokémon general, a Ho-Oh, flew by his castle, spewing fire for all lands to see.

"This is now, the castle of Pokélantis!"

He was happy. For forty years of stress and bloodshed, he was finally happy.

Then, life just happens.

* * *

The first time he had that dream, he shrugged it off and dismissed it as an illusion. For Arceus's sake, he had seen heads being cut off in his dreams. But does that scare him? Yeah, right.

When the dream occurred for the twentieth time in a row, he finally decided to seek a dream decipherer: a mighty Alakazam.

He told the psychic about it. In his dream, a figure, a dark figure kept on walking toward him. As the dreams repeated, it seemed to come closer and closer, but he still could not see its face.

Alakazam's reply made him laugh. The psychic told him that it is a sign of evil overtaking his body, and he should seek the help of God.

The King replied sarcastically that God had never helped him in the last thirty years, and that a weird dream was nothing by illusions. After all, a man who had went through all that murder, killing, lust, hatred, greed his entire life had no fears.

The night the figure walked into him, he felt cold. Then something just… changed.

He couldn't put his hands on it himself, but his friends and servants most definitely could. He heard him secretly talking about how he became darker, angrier… scarier.

He began to think eerie thoughts, ones that he had once believed against and would not consider in a million years. He put them on the amount of stress he was having. After all, Alakazam did say that stress causes hallucinations.

Then, he started to do things, as if he was a different person.

Children mysteriously disappeared off the streets, rumored to be experimented to create an eternal medicine.

Pokémon were killed. Parts of them were cut off, like Pidgeot's wings or Hitmonchan's fists.

People say they saw creatures, monsters in fact, with the faces of humans but Pokémon parts.

His best friend at once, in his dungeon, shouting at him that what he was doing was wrong. How the King shook his head at his friend's conservative views, his stubbornness.

The need to survive comes first, doesn't it?

He wasn't wrong, was he? He was still a perfectly normal human being, perfectly normal King, looking after his land.

Until he turned into the ugly, vile, loathsome abomination roaring, fighting Ho-Oh, who he had ordered to be captured to be experimented with.

That was a battle of destruction. His castle collapsed, and so had his kingdom. He lashed out with powers he did not believe he had, and still had no idea from where they came. His mind became black, and his eyes began to see red, but it all felt so… natural. The result of the battle was his complete annihilation, and Ho-Oh's severe injuries.

He could see the tears on his chief general's eyes when the legendary sealed him into the underground cavern he had built himself, and wondered how, just how, he became this… thing.

This possessed thing.

* * *

"Okay, I'm here." Flint arrived on his Rhyhorn and Forrest on his Onix. "Yes, I have seen the giant Gengar wrecking havoc. Do we have a plan?"

"Yes." Violet nodded. "Basically beat the crap out of it with thirty something Pokémon."

"It's one Gengar. It had to go down sometime." Lily nodded and supplied.

"..." Flint sighed. "What other choices are there?"

* * *

Ash bent down next to the King, who was now almost transparent, and sighed. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"No, no time for feelings. I'm not finished." The King croaked. "I don't have much time left."

"In the years I've been trapped down here- how many years went past? No, it doesn't matter- I've been thinking what had happened. I was normal, you know, when there was no intruders. I quitted after I don't know how many years."

"Then three intruders came, and I became mad, despicable… not me! Do you know what that feel like!? Looking at yourself like you don't control yourself, doing things that you can't control that is against your morals!?"

"After that incident, I started thinking again. I think that was several decades ago."

"I still had no clue what had happened to me." The near transparent form of the King cried. "But I do know one thing."

"I'm not human anymore. I fought with Ho-Oh, which should have been impossible." The King looked up at them, shaking, "I was possessed. From that dream I was telling you about. I think that was the thing that caused it, from my years and years of thinking." His body started to fade away, beginning with his feet.

"I was possessed, by something out of this world." His body up to the knees were gone.

"And then you lot came in." He took a deep breath. "I was reverted to that abhorrent monstrocity again."

"When I trapped you in that room, I created an illusion that covered the entire room in some form of forces that was complete the opposite of your life forces, some sort of 'anti' that you can't notice. When you thought you were moving, you were really just sitting on the ground, not moving at all." His waist exploded to dust.

"Your souls could still communicate, but that was it. I heard you discussing about Death Forces and aura. I guess that could explain it. Death Force. What possessed me was powered by Death Force." His chest was completely faded.

"The gargoyles were powered by Death Force as well. I think I built them two thousand years ago after my chief general, then something happened." The King clutched his head in pain. "The memories hurt. Please don't make me think back."

Ash and the group were silent, trying to absorb all of this. His neck was gone, leaving his head, bobbing up and down, panting. He continued.

"In this room, when you flood the room with aura, it neutralized the energy you call Death Forces, and finally terminated the thing in my head that had possessed me."

His chin faded, and his lower lip broke to pieces as he struggled to talk. "I then gained all of his memories. I must warn you. Terrible things… Terrible, terrible things."

His forehead disappeared, along with his eyes and upper nose. All he was left with was a mouth and nose desperately trying to pass on information.

"Beware, child. Please. Prepare yourselves."

His nose faded completely. So much memories, so little time. The King shouted out with his last breath one last time, "Remember the Key of …"

And, he was gone.

The remains of the King of the Pokélantis, the creator of Pokémon battling, the argued greatest King in the history of mankind by numerous historians.

Gone.

* * *

" _Sir, 037 is lost._ "

Silence followed.

" _Sir?_ "

" _Understood. Continue._ " A dark, humanoid shaped mass turned around.

* * *

 **A/N: Some people think that an author writes a story. People might think that if they are not the writer, but let me tell you, I have barely any control over my story. I just direct the main plot. It writes itself, basically. If any of you write a lot of creative fiction, you would know exactly what I am talking about.**

 **So yeah, the unveiling of a giant plot… Stay tune for more!**

 **From now on, I am probably going to mix up the sequence of the episodes a lot, and skipping out on others. By this point, Ash is an extremely experienced trainer, so some of the crap that happened caused by his foolishness can largely be corrected.**

 **For example, the bike gang episode was skipped in trade for this three-chapter movie plot that came early. Tell me if you guys like this configuration.**

 **Thanks for reading, and be sure to review.**


	32. Cha 31: Tomb of the Pokélantis King

**Chapter 31**

Ash walked into the sunlight, and took a deep breath of the very missed outside air.

And then started choking from the dust from the dynamite explosion and chemical residue, reminding him that he was in a quarry.

Domino burst out laughing next to him, and then started choking too.

Ash followed her in laughing, choking harder.

Brock shook his head at them. "They're so weird."

Misty shrugged. "Let's just say that the Post-Trauma Stress Disorder from the years of adventuring finally made broke them."

" _You all seem so… adapted to it._ " Absol spoke up. " _Does this always happen with you guys?_ "

"Actually, this is one of the worst ones." Dexter said.

"Most eerie by far." Noah supplied. "Usually, according to Dexter's database of last time, the routine is that the group finds a problem involuntarily, Ash goes in hotheadedly, make a target or plan obvious, something went wrong, he discovers that the situation was the opposite of what he thought, reformulate another plan, that fails, Ash risks his life and a miracle happens that saved the world."

" _So yes, this time is a lot less action, but a lot more planning, thinking and trying to outsmart a hidden enemy…_ " Pikachu said, " _Which is a new kind of disaster actually for us._ "

Absol considered that, and started again. " _So what you're saying is, there are many kinds of disasters that surround you, and you just bounce into them._ "

"Affirmative."

" _Interesting._ " Absol nodded, and then trotted up to Ash, who had Domino pinned to a wall. The Dark Type cleared her throat to get his attention. " _Excuse me, Ash. Do you have a minute?_ "

Ash nodded and released the Elite. "What's up, Absol?"  
" _I was talking to your friends, and they were telling me how you all always get into these kinds of stuff?_ " Absol gestured to them.

Ash chuckled and nodded. "Yeah, I'm kind of like a disaster magnet."  
" _In that case, I wanted to ask you of something._ " Absol paused, and opened her mouth again after a few seconds. " _I'll like to follow you around to examine some of the disasters and study them._ "

"Huh?" Ash rubbed his neck, not understanding. "How does that work?"

" _Well, I was thinking that since you are well like you said, 'disaster magnet', and I am the Disaster Pokémon who basically chase after and solve disasters for a job, I want to get to know how disasters form and the signs of disasters better._ "

Domino followed her logic and finished her thought. "So you think that following Ash is the best choice because he'll just lead you to countless disasters you would never even think of."

" _Correct._ "

Ash looked around at his friends and held his forehead. "Am I really that bad? To the point that a Disaster Pokémon want to follow me to find disasters?"

"YES!" The quarry echoed.

Ash sighed. "How would you like to do this then?"

Absol flicked her horn. "Capture me. I'll be around you all the time anyways."

* * *

Tentacruel looked at the beat-up Alakazam in the water. " _Would you like to keep fighting?_ "

The giant psychic rolled his eyes and looked up at the sky, currently filled with cumulonimbus clouds pouring on him, and down at the sea filling up to his chest. " _How the hell am I supposed to beat you in heavy rain and seawater?_ "

" _Depends. The fat lizard there._ " Tentacruel shrugged and pointed at Dragonite. " _Defeated me in front of my entire tribe actually. I'm going to get revenge one day though._ "

The shiny dragon smirked and looked at the giant Jigglypuff sitting next to him. " _He's not wrong; I did._ "

She laughed and bounced down from the cliff. " _Enough with the fighting. I want to play in the water!_ "

Tentacruel shook his head. " _Not until his mutant fox agreed to the consequence of the bet._ "

Alakazam sighed. " _Fine, I'll let her capture me. She's a Chosen anyways. It's not much of a humiliation to be the Queen's Pokémon._ "

" _Yay! Let's play then!_ " Jigglypuff sang happily and jumped into the Pallet Sea. " _Let's do water polo!_ "

The three Pokémon each took out some Lum Berries and gulped them down to prevent getting put to sleep and an angry Jigglypuff drawing on their faces… again.

* * *

Gary dived in on Fearow and released Blastoise above the very tired Gengar.

The giant Pokémon, busy handling the attacks from the Pokémon of both Pewter and Cerulean City Gym, never saw the evolved Turtle come down and land on him with a Heavy Slam boosted by gravity. Giant Gengar was smooched into the ground by the Water Type.

Blastoise raised his fist and smashed down with a Water Spout. The Gengar screeched in pain, which came out more as a muffled yelp as his head was in the mud. A second Hydro Cannon finally ended the battle.

Gary dropped down in front of the purple Ghost threw a Pokéball at the Gengar, while returning his exhausted Fearow who had been flying for over an hour.

Violet came over and panted. "Now this is what it feels like to save the world."  
Gary chuckled. "This is only a third of the giant Pokémon. There are two more out there, at least there were last time."

"..." Flint, Forrest and the Waterflower sisters stared at him.

The Oak boy shrugged. "Doesn't matter though. No smoke coming out of anywhere, so that's a good sign. The other legends on the home islands had probably taken care of it."

* * *

" _No fair! You can't block with psychic!_ " Dragonite shouted as his ball bounced off a force field.

Alakazam looked at him a deadpanned. " _You can fly. Tentacruel has hundred-feet-long retractable tentacles. Jigglypuff can just block out the entire goal by sitting there and inflating herself._ "

" _So why the heck can't I use psychic!?_ "

* * *

"Ash, you have one new message." Dexter beeped. "From Gary Oak."

"What's it say?" Ash turned around from giving Absol a basic breakdown of his life.

"Apparently Professor Oak's birthday is tomorrow, and Gary wants to meet up with you at a coordinate he sent here and go together to surprise the Professor." The Pokédex said. "That reminds me. I should set a calendar for important events."

Ash asked surprised. "It's his birthday!?"

"Indeed."

"Okay, tell him we'll be there in half an hour." Ash responded. "We're going to clear things up with Flint, then we can teleport over."

"Message sent."

Ash was about to go back to conversing with Absol when Dexter ringed again. "That was quick."

"Gary said that they just defeated a giant Gengar, and Flint is with him."

"Huh?" Ash coughed. "Shouldn't that happen a few months from now?"

" _To be fair,_ " Pikachu piped up from his shoulder, " _The tomb of the King didn't come until the end of Battle Frontier last time._ "

"All of this time and temporal stuff is making me dizzy!" Ash groaned.

" _Yeah, think about how I feel!_ " The group looked up to find a Celebi zipping over. " _Oh yeah, by the way, you forgot some Pokémon of yours from last time. Here you go!_ "

Ash looked down to see thirty Safari Balls at his feet. Celebi turned around and disappeared with a teasing chuckle. " _Have fun with your Tauros, Ash!_ "

Absol coughed. " _Was that a Celebi!?_ "

"Yeah. It's never good when she comes." Ash shook his head. "And of course the Tauros would follow me ACROSS the timeline. It's like I am destined with Tauros."

Misty laughed. "Wonder what Professor Oak would say when he sees this."

Brock supplied jokingly. "Pretty good birthday present, huh Ash?"

* * *

"So we had most of the place swept down." Ash finished. "But it's best to not go in until Lance's team gets here and does a formal, more complete liberation."

Flint nodded. "Understood. I'll make sure the quarry get halted for now."

Gary interrupted. "So are these giant Pokémon also because of the changes in the tomb?"

"Probably." Ash rubbed his neck. "Both are from Pokélantis times, so they probably do have a connection."

"This changed a lot." Gary sighed.

"Yep. I think I'm starting to understand why Arceus said this was a more difficult timeline."

Next to him, Absol fell sideways after taking in way too much information from Dexter's short version of Ash's life downloaded on her headphones. Short as in a bit over two hundred hours worth.

Pikachu gave a pitiful look at the Disaster Pokémon and back at Gary. " _You said you got the Gengar. How about the other two?_ "

Violet shrugged. "We're not seeing any smoke or, well, panicking, so something else must have taken care of them."

"Let's hope so." Ash let out a long breath.

"Did you invite all of them," Ash gestured to the Cerulean and Pewter Gym Leaders, "To celebrate Professor Oak's birthday?"

"That's right!" Gary snapped his fingers and looked up at the approaching dusk. "You made it just on time."

* * *

" _Hmm, that was weird._ " Mewtwo hummed as he sat on his couch in his world.

"What?" James looked up from cooking his empanadas.

" _For some reason, I just realized that Mew disappeared off my radar for a day, and she just came back._ " Mewtwo shrugged. " _Whatever. You know that the food doesn't need to be cooked? I can just cook it for you in a literal second._ "

Meowth chuckled. "We already explained dat ta 'im. He said someding 'bout secret recipe."

"You don't know the taste unless it is first demonstrated to you." James reiterated. "Without tasting my secret recipe, all you're going to end up making is just regular empanadas, and trust me, they're not the same"

Jessie nodded in agreement. "He's not wrong. He said his parents brought the recipe for half a million dollars."  
"That's what they told me!"

* * *

Professor Oak came over with three cups of tea and handed one over to Dr. Fuji and another to Dr. Akihabara.

Dr. Fuji took a sip and closed his eyes. "This is extremely well prepared and grown."

Akihabara nodded. "Indeed. What is it?"

"I'm not sure." Oak placed two slices of Nomel Berries in his cup for the distinct sourness. "Erika grew it in her garden. She never shared her secret, even when I offered her a pre-released read of my study on Grass Type regeneration."

Both Doctors smirked. "The temptations of keeping secrets."

Oak rolled his eyes. "And that's how science not advance."

They both chuckled, and Akihabara took out a disk. "Speaking of science, check this out."

He inserted the disk into Oak's PC. A second later, a light shot out of the screen and materialized into a Porygon. However, in a closer look, Oak could tell that the hologram was actually just programed to look like a Porygon, by the lack of signs of liveliness.

"Congratulations." He said to Akihabara nonetheless. "Transmitting data and all of the information using three dimensional projection. Imagine the potential with graphs. We can even venture into fourth dimensional fields of time."

Akihabara waved his hands. "Wait for it. This is the best part."

Oak turned around to look at the duck-like figure. The holographic Porygon opened its mouth. "Happy birthday Professor Oak!"

Then, the hologram shot up and exploded into fireworks. Flames landed down, but as they touched the ground, it burnt out and disappeared. Oak reached out and touched one, finding it to be cold.

The technical genius laughed. "This is my new invention. Interaction with the environment and switching back to holographic mode, while controlling all senses of interaction by usage of energy."

Oak shrugged. "I'm just glad you remembered my birthday."

As he finished, a pink glow surrounded him, as well as Fuji and Akihabara, and teleported them.

* * *

Giovanni picked his feet off his Lazy-Boy recliner and went over to pour himself another cup of coffee. When he returned, he continued reading the email report 009 had sent him. Persian curled at his feet and purred.

The Rocket Boss stroked the Classy Cat, earning another purr. "You can go to sleep if you want. I've still got some stuff to finish."

Persian rubbed himself against his trainer, and Giovanni laughed, something he wasn't able to do until deep in the night. "Yes, I have to finish this. It's quite important. The King of the Pokélantis probably would have left something else before he was sealed off, maybe like treasures."

"And WE, Rockets, have to get them first!"

He picked up another sheet of paper. "Let's see. Magma and Aqua are getting restless again in Hoenn and are seeping into Johto."

"Let's send some agents to teach them a lesson." The Rocket Boss smirked. "Our territory is OURS."

Persian purred again and gestured to a sheet of paper that had just came through the printer. Giovanni picked it up and scanned it quickly. "Interesting. Team Flare clashed with a small rebel forces at the edges of Alola and Kalos and lost terribly. There are some extremely strong Pokémon attacks that were off the books."

Persian growled lightly. Giovanni chuckled. "No, not as insane as Domino and Ash's, but from what I'm seeing, impressive for a gang."

"Their name?" Giovanni looked at the Normal Type. "I think it's Skull."

* * *

Oak found himself facing the corner, if you would call it that. The walls are completely transparent, made of an opal like substance. He turned around curiously.

"SURPRISE!" A group of people jumped out at him, led by Ash and Gary, each holding a side of a banner inscribed: 'Happy 60th birthday, Professor Oak!"

It took the Professor a moment to realize what was happening, then his smile cracked larger and larger. "You two remembered this time!"

Ash smirked. "Gary's the one who remembered. Even so, I almost couldn't come."

Gary chuckled and continued. "Yeah, he almost got trapped in the Pokélantis King's tomb."

Oak blinked, and was considering whether he should investigate down that route when, Fuji laughed and pat Oak's shoulder. "We're putting off all official stuff until tomorrow. Go on and enjoy this, old friend."

"You know, I should" The Kanto Professor smirked. "It's a once in a lifetime miracle. Who knows if they'll remember next year."

Ash and Gary cheered, joined soon by their travel mates and the Cerulean and Pewter Gym invitees.

Flint walked next to the three doctors and stood next to them. "They're so full of energy."

Oak nodded. "These young people. So full of potential. Believe me when I say they never fail to impress me."

The four adults stood, watching them, the new generation, as they bounced around with excitement, each thinking of their own childhood, in a past long, long way back.

* * *

Mew had teleported them all back to the ranch after the cake and desserts had been demolished since there is more room for partying.

As the Pokémon were all released and playing, Domino and Ash went for a stroll at the beach.

Ash looked at the sea and an urge of touching the water rose up. He kicked off his shoes and ran towards the coastline, trotting lightly on the waves. He waved to Domino for her to join him.

She gave a whole-hearted smile, beaming under the sunlight, tossing away all of the stress from the tomb and ran towards Ash. She jumped for him, and Ash held his arms out and caught her, twirling her around.

The two teens laughed as the comfortable breeze blew across their face, intertwining their hair with each others. Ash noticed how her purple eyes glistened as she looked playfully at him.

He reached out and squeezed her cheeks, which earned a small yelp from her. He laughed and put the blonde down, but decided to hold onto her hand.

The Black Tulip looked at him, with a obvious traces of smiles and bumped him. Ash reached out and fixed her hair that were blown untamed by the wind.

Ash noticed how her ringlet hair was evidently longer than when they first embarked on this journey together, and how her clothes was back to the civilian attire when she was undercover when they first met.

She, on the other hand, saw his tilted cap, and the untamed hair sticking out from the side. She reached out and tipped his hat back properly, and her hand came down and brushed against his shoulders smoothly.

She sighed lightly. "You had told me about these kinds of stories before, but I never knew one was actually that scary."

Ash nodded. "I understand. You're handling it pretty well for your first time."

"Of course." Domino puffed out her chest. "Did you really think all that Rocket training was useless."

Ash laughed and neglect to comment on how cute she looked with her feisty, proud expression. She continued.

"Wow, having think that you've been in over thirty of these…" She trailed off in a worried tone. "What if something happened/"

"Shhh." Ash put a finger on the girl's lips. "Remember, you're here with me now. Nothing can stop us."

Domino stared into his eyes, "Promise me that you will never leave me behind while you go be Mr. Hero."

"I promise." Ash stared back, equally as intense.

"Good." Domino smiled genuinely and intertwined their fingers.

Ash smiled back. Their smiles lasted as if for forever. The roar of the winds died down, the waves stopped crashing against their feet. The sunlight doesn't shine brightly anymore, but only to bring out the adoring expressions on each other's faces.

Ash saw a little shadow beneath her nose, and he succumbed to the urge to try to turn it into sunshine. Fireworks burst in the middle of their stare.

Fireworks that turned into magnets, pulling their faces closer. The chocolate orbs and purple amethyst grew bigger in each other's sight.

They thought of nothing, as if another force was directing them. Might as well, because this all seemed so natural.

"ASH!" They both jolted awake and pushed each other apart abruptly, blushing and as if caught in the middle of well… a not-kiss?

"ASH!" Delia ran over and gave her son a bear hug, ignorant of his blushing face. Or maybe she did know, but was just declined to ask. "How are you!? Professor Oak just told me you're here in Pallet! Why didn't you come home?"

Ash scratched his neck, his embarrassment of getting caught still hadn't died down. "I was making my way over, then I saw the sea…"

He motioned to the Pallet Sea and sighed. "You know my temptation to jump in the water."

"Well, you had your fun with the ocean. Now let's go home and tell me about your journey. It's been a while seen we chat at Mt. Moon." Delia laughed. She then turned to Domino. "Would you like to come as well, sweetie? There's always an extra seat in my house."

The blonde, also blushing, looked at the mother-son duo and shook her head. "No, I'll rather stay out here for a while. Enjoy."  
She looked at the two walk away together, knowing that it was their rare time together, and she was not going to interrupt that.

Oh, having a mother. The Rocket Elite sighed unconsciously.

"Ashy did you change your underpants?" Delia's voice was carried over by the wind. Domino giggled at the question.  
"MOM!"

She smirked and sat down on a rock at the beach, looking out into the ocean. Things seemed so peaceful at Pallet Town. She closed her eyes, trying to enjoy the infrequent moments of tranquility.

* * *

A rhythm of brisk knocks caught the few's attention who are hanging out next to the lab entrance. Gary opened the door to reveal a blue-haired girl dressed in a cowgirl outfit.

She greeted him cheerfully. "Howdy, y'all. May I find an Ash Ketchum here?"

Gary and Violet traded a look. "Have you seen Ash?"

"Nope. He left early. Probably went to see Delia." Gary shook her head and said to the visitor. "Ash's house is three streets down from the lab. Turn left when you hit Clover Street, and his house is the second one down on the right."

Violet took Gary's hand and shrugged. "We can show her. We've got time."

* * *

Delia sat quietly as her son finished his retelling of the events that had happened after the last time they met, including, of course, the tomb.

She gave him a look of mixed feelings after Ash concluded. "I didn't think you'll be put in such a life-threatening situation already. I mean, I expected it, but still…"

She sighed. "I know you have to do it, but I don't want to let you keep stumbling into those situations."

Ash stood up and gave her a hug. "Mom, please, I'll be fine. I promise. Someone have to do this. I think it's an honor Arceus picked me."

"I know, I know." Delia exhaled. "I can't keep you by me. A Pidgey has to learn to fly away from his mother sooner or later."

Ash smiled and released the hug. "I'll bring myself home in one piece, everytime, I swear."

Delia managed a smile back and fixed her son's hair. "I thought you said the first one was Mewtwo?"

"We didn't know what happened as well…" Ash shook his head. "Our theory was that by being here, we changed the timeline. Arceus did say this is 'harder' than last time."

Delia gave him another worried look. Ash sat her down quickly. "Mom, please don't stress about it too much. It's harder, but I'm also a lot more experienced than last time."

"Plus, I can protect myself now." He spun up an Aura Sphere as emphasis.

Delia grin lightly. "And you have Domino to protect you?"

Ash huffed. "She's the one who needs protecting."

"She does as well. She's a delicate girl." Delia said firmly. "Look out for her."

Ash laughed. "Of course I will."

"Good." Delia pointed up the stairs at the bathroom. "Now go take a shower. I bet you haven't showered in days."

"I have been told on multiple occasions today that I smell like a Grimer." Ash snickered and went up.

As Ash transcended the stairs, Delia muttered to herself quietly. "I hope he knows how to deal with relationships. If someone can hurt her deeply, that's him."

"Let's hope he's not going to be a boy." She went into the kitchen to prepare an afternoon snack. The matriarch shook her head and chuckled as she thought back on her days. "Yeah right. Every guy is going to be dumb. Even Hector was."

Ash entered his room to grab a towel and a robe. He leaned on the door and blew out a long breath as he entered the room. "That went a lot better than I thought."

* * *

Two familiar roars made her open her eyes. She found herself to be sitting in two massive shadows.

She picked her head up and shouted. "Hey! Dragonite! Tentacruel! I missed you guys!"

Dragonite smirked and waved back. " _We missed you too._ "

Tentacruel stuck out a tentacle and held it in front of Domino. " _And we got you a gift._ "

"Aww, thank you! You didn't have to." Domino levitated the object in his tentacle closer, revealing itself to be a Pokéball. "You caught me a Pokémon?"  
" _Yep._ " They nodded. " _Quite strong as well._ "

The blonde girl reached out with a pulse. "I can see. I'm guessing psychic type from the overwhelming brainwave signatures."  
" _Correct._ "

"Then let's see what it contains." Domino threw the Pokéball next to her, and Tentacruel hurriedly caught it.

" _That might not be enough space._ " The Poison Type chuckled. " _Allow me._ "

He chucked the Pokéball into the sea. Lights flashed out as its content materialized, showing a massive Alakazam.

Domino's jaw dropped open. The psychic bowed. " _Greetings, my Queen. These two turds have spoken quite highly of your majesty. I must say, they did not exaggerate._ "

The Black Tulip laughed at his statement. "Please, don't call me the Queen. I'm not royalty, and I don't ever want to be. Too much responsibilities."

" _Indeed. Iou carry enough responsibilities already._ " The ancient fox nodded.

" _Yeah, not many people can say they're on direct orders from Arceus._ " Dragonite agreed.

"So you two were the ones who took care of the King's giant Pokémon."

" _Indeed._ " Tentacruel swam back and waved his limbs at something. " _Speaking of which, let me introduce you to another friend of ours, Jigglypuff._ "

The giant Jigglypuff floated out on her stomach and paddled herself lazily towards shore. " _HIII! You're as pretty as they said!_ "

Domino blushed at the unexpected comment. "Awww, thanks. You're really cute as well."

Dragonite sighed. " _Unfortunately, Jigglypuff is sometimes as annoyingly cheerful as Mew._ "

* * *

Ash exited the shower, and Delia shouted up to him as she heard the bathroom door open. "Ashy! I made whipped creamed brownies, your favorite!"

"Thanks mom!" Ash replied pleasantly. "Be down in a minute."

As he entered his room, he heard a muffled ring of the doorbell.

Delia hung up her apron and walked to the door. Opening it reveals Gary and Violet, hand in hand, with an unfamiliar girl in the back. She greeted. "Hey Gary, Violet."

"Hi!" They greeted back, and Gary gestured to the girl. "This is Lara, from the Laramie Ranch. She's here for Ash."

"Come on in." Delia welcomed them. "What's up with Ash?"

Gary planted himself on the couch. With the amount of times he had been in the Ketchum household, it was almost like a second home for him. Violet sat next to him, and Lara shook hands with the woman.

"Ash had recently won our fiftieth anniversarial annual Laramie Ranch race. The top three were admitted into the our Laramie Racing club." Lara took out her backpack and took out a glass box, containing an egg with orange patches.

Ash bounced downstairs. "I heard my name. What happened?"

He waved as he saw the cowgirl. "Oh hey Lara! Nice egg you have there."

"It's yours." She grinned.

"Wait, what?" Ash looked at her. "What do you mean it's mine?"

"Remember how you won our race?" Lara continued after seeing him nod. "You were invited into our club. We give each newcomer a Ponyta egg as a just got through all the paperwork. So we're here to deliver your egg."  
"Wow! That's a great prize." Ash took the egg over and touched it smoothly. He closed his eyes, and reopened them after a moment. "And this little guy is extremely energetic too. His aura is flaring."

Lara smiled proudly. "That's what the Laramie Ranch breed is known for."

"Oh by the way, do you know where Domino is? I heard you guys travel together." Lara held up another egg. "All of the top three can join the club and get an egg. Of course, the third place winners were your Pokémon as well, so they automatically join the club under your name."

"Yeah, I think so. Last time I saw her was at the beach. I'll give this egg to her." Ash took over the second egg and easily balanced them with aura. "This is a really great gift from the Ranch, Lara. Please give them my thanks."

"No problem." Lara waved and began to walk out. "I'll see you around!"

"Are you sure you don't want to stay a bit longer?" Delia spoke up. "We have brownies."

"No thanks, Mrs. Ketchum." Lara smiled. "I still have some other errands. Bye!"

"Oh yeah, brownies!" Ash placed the eggs in his backpack and turned around, finding Gary to have already started chomping on his snack. He quickly pounced over and joined him into the devouring.

Delia smirked at seeing her boy. The same kind, Pokémon-loving, food-loving boy.

Her son: Chosen Hero.

She smiled and turned around to get some milk for them before they choked to death. Maybe she didn't need to worry so much after all.

* * *

"THIRTY!? AGAIN!?" A yell pierced through the dawn of Pallet Town, originated from a lab, next to which a ranch contained a stampeding horde of thirty Tauros.

Celebi perched on top of Oak's head. The regional professor stared at the mess his ranch was left in and growled. "I really do need to start charging."

* * *

Arceus paused the five-hundred-foot by one thousand screen and looked at the Creation Trio and Sir Aaron. " _Now you know why the movie theater is a good idea?_ "

Giratina stared at the Alpha. " _You just made both Palkia and Dialga pee themselves, and Aaron was sleeping with his eyes open with some weird Aura trick. Even I could barely take it._ "

Arceus pouted. " _I don't see the problem. It's just Saw._ "

He paused. " _Do you guys want to go onto Saw II?_ "

" _NO/_ NO!"

* * *

 **A/N: The Tomb is finally tied up. The first movie chapters I did. Tell me how you guys think about my organizing.**

 **Enjoy! As always, reviews are greatly appreciated.**


	33. Cha 32: Kanto 28

**Chapter 32**

"I believe we are helping that performer girl with her Ditto next?" Ash asked.

"Yep." Misty confirmed, watching Starmie practicing Psybeam on Carvanha. "That was really fun. We got to dress up as Rockets."

"Oh Arceus…" Domino sighed. "Please tell me this isn't another one of those times where the three idiots embarrass the crap out of the Team Rocket."

Ash gave her a look. The Elite sighed. "I know. Never expect too much."

Pikachu was pushing on a mini-swing set on which Zorua sat that was hanging off a low branch. She turned around and asked him, " _What's with the Ditto?_ "

" _Last time, when he transformed, his face was missing a nose, on anything he tries, Pokémon or human._ "

Zorua chuckled and licked his paw on her way back, purring. " _Well, we've got a lot of Pokémon who can demonstrate THAT. Mew, myself, Dexter, Noah…_ "

"That's a nice mansion!" Domino remarked sarcastically after she teleported the group here. With the constant teleportation practice, carrying the load of the group was easier and easier. Even with Mew back at the Tree, she could handle it without calling on Kirlia, back at the Ranch.

In front of them was a old, run-down house. Ash smirked. "It's all part of the copycat performing. Just wait 'till you see the inside."

A drop of rain felt on his head. He looked up at the sky to find it filled with dark clouds. "And it's raining, like last time. How suitable."

Ash approached the door and knocked on it. They waited for a few seconds, and a familiar blue-haired girl opened the door. "Hello. How may I help you?"

"This is Ash. Domino. Misty. And I'm Brock." Brock introduced the group. "We were just passing by and the rain started pouring. Do you mind if we can stay here until the storm passes?"

Duplica nodded. "Of course not. Come right in."

Domino marveled at the inside. What looked so abandoned on the outside was only a disguise for the inside. Pillars stood, holding up the ceiling, reaching up to twenty feet. The entrance room was massive, with a stage on the top. Hallways ran behind it and continued onto rooms.

As Pikachu and Zorua walked by her, Duplica bent down and pet the yellow mouse. "Awww! How cute. My Ditto had been trying to Transform into a Pikachu for the longest time, but he kept on having troubles."

Brock and Ash traded a look. Misty whispered. "This is going a lot quicker than I thought."

Ash shrugged and turned to the performer. "Really? What's the problem?"

"He can't maintain the color scheme, his face is still that of a Ditto, he can't do tails, and he will Transform back as soon as someone touches him."

Domino shot a look at Ash and sent a psychic message to him. 'I thought you said it was only the nose?'

Ash coughed, not knowing what to say. Duplica winced slightly. "Yeah, I know, a lot of problems."

"No no no," Ash quickly waved his hands. "I don't mean any insults. Can we see your Ditto? Some of our Pokémon know Transform or similar skills. Maybe they can help."

"Really?" Duplica asked doubtfully. "I thought only Ditto and Mew know how to Transform?"

"There's no way you can have a Mew, so you have a Ditto as well?" Duplica made her false conclusion and asked.

Domino neglected to point out the flaw and went with it. "No, but we do know some similar stuff."

She bent down and picked up her Dark Type. "Zorua here, is a master of disguise. She can transform into anything, which includes inorganic substances, like rocks."

Duplica wowed in surprise. "Seriously!? Ditto can only do living things."

The Elite nodded and materialized Noah. "And this is a Porygon. He can use his holographic applications to use a move similar to Transform."

"Noah, Professor Oak. Zorua, a wedding cake!" Domino called out. Noah turned into the Kanto Professor and waved at Duplica.

The Disguise Pokémon gave her trainer a look and deadpanned. " _A wedding cake? Really?_ "

"Just do it."

She sighed and turned into a four layer chocolate sprinkled cake. Ash licked his lips. "Now I want cake."

"We'll have Kirlia teleport in some leftover cake from the party after we're done here." The blonde decided.

"Wow, that's so cool." Duplica went over and poked the cake. It sunk a bit, but the illusion didn't break. "And this holds under contact!"

Misty smirked and handed over a mallet jokingly. "Not if you try smashing with this."

Zorua yelped and broke out of her cake form. " _Hey!_ "

"Just kidding."

"Can you teach this to Ditto?" Duplica looked at them hopefully. "If he can learn it, then we will finally have a chance at being performers!"

"Of course." Domino nodded. "Well, at least try."

"Ditto! Transform into Pikachu." Her Ditto looked at her, and at the group, unmoving.

"Sorry," Duplica said apologetically. "Ditto's kind of shy in front of, well, people."

She swallowed after saying that. "Yeah, I know it sounds wrong, but I told him we'll work on that part after he got the Transformation down."

After a few more attempts of urging from his trainer, Ditto finally overcame his fear and Transformed into… a Pikachu?

It had the general outline of a Pikachu, but the body was green. The mouse's signature lightning-shaped tail was missing, and so was his ears and cheek pouches. His entire figure appeared to be asymmetric as well, adding to the problem.

Pikachu collapsed from Ash's shoulder, unable to see this anymore. Zorua jumped on stage after checking on her mate and looked at Ditto curiously.

" _Can you let go of the image really quick?_ " Ditto looked at his trainer for approval, which she granted. " _Now, tell me what you feel when you started pulling that illusion together?_ "

" _Umm… Kind of, like, tension._ " The Transform Pokémon started timidly. " _And it's not an illusion. I'm making myself actually into it._ "

" _Ahh, I see._ " Zorua nodded. " _The art of Transforming, or pulling together any sort of mimicking is to copy directly off of nature. When you Transform, relax. That will automatically balance you, which separates an equal amount of mass on both sides._ "

" _Now try it again, but relax this time._ "

Ditto nodded and closed his eyes. A few seconds later, he flashed into Pikachu again. This time, his body was not globular anymore. It was definitely symmetric, but a bit thick on the ends.

Zorua signaled for him to change back. " _You're getting it. Now you just have to find the perfect place to shape a Pikachu. Your figure was a bit chubby, so you can fix that by clumping a bit before transforming, but it's all in experimenting._ "

Ash gulped down his third piece of cake as they watched Zorua went through the process with Ditto, with the occasional help of Noah to define or visualize certain intangible concepts.

"She's a really good teacher." Domino commented. "I should have her in charge of all of the baby Pokémon to teach them the basics of the world."

Kirlia snickered. " _She and Pikachu already made two cults back at the Ranch: The new Pokémon, consisting of all of those from the new timeline after you got Tentacruel and the old, which is from Tentacruel and before, for both you and Ash._ "

Ash shot a smirk at his starter. "Why Tentacruel?"

The Electric Type shrugged. " _I had to start somewhere. Zo said to just throw a die._ "

On the stage, Zorua blew out a long breath and looked at the newly Transformed Pikachu. Five hours had passed since she started the lesson, and the results were clearly evident.

The Pikachu onstage was, though slightly chubby and droopy on some edges, clearly identifiable, with a coating of yellow fur, lightning-shaped tail, red pouches, and the sharp ears rising up.

And the best of all, his face was most definitely manageable as a beginner.

Ditto looked up at his trainer hopefully. Duplica yelped in excitement and climbed up onstage, grabbing her Pokémon and hugging him. "I knew you can do it!"

"You're the best, Ditto! You will one day stand as the best Pokémon performer in the history of performing arts! Duplica smiled widely and started painting a bright future.

She bent down and picked the Disguise Pokémon up for a hug as well. "Thank you so, so much, Zorua! What you did was incredible. You're such a great teacher."

The Dark Type purred happily and licked her face. " _Thanks. It was my pleasure. I'll do it anytime._ "

The blue-haired girl then turned to look at Domino. "Thank you as well! This is great. I don't know how to repay you for this."

Domino smiled lightly, the kind of smile one got used to having in a position of command. "You're very welcomed. Good luck with your performing career."

"Thank you." Duplica replied politely. Ditto, in his trainer's arms, chirped suddenly. She turned to him, and made a face of realization. "Actually, Ditto and I do know how to repay you. Please excuse me."

As she hurried back into her room, Domino smiled at Zorua. "You were great up there, you know."

" _Thanks, Dom!_ " Zorua rubbed herself again her trainer, pleased. " _I like teaching Pokémon stuff and seeing them improve. It feels, fuzzy._ "

"Aww! That's what happens when you help someone." Domino cooed to the Dark Type.

Ash watched her and Zorua, thinking to himself how much she had changed from Day One. A smile unfurled on his lips.

The rap of Duplica's footsteps brought everyone's attention back to her. In her hand was a purple egg. Ditto sat on her shoulder as she walked up to Domino.

"Ditto laid an egg a few days ago. He said he wanted to give it to you for helping him so immensely, and hope that Zorua can teach his child the same techniques."

Domino took the egg over and caressed it carefully. "Wow, this is really great. Are you sure you want to give it to me?"

Duplica nodded. "You have shown both Ditto and me that you are the most qualified person we know to take care of a Ditto. I'm sure you'll do great raising him."

"Then, thank you for this." Domino took out her incubator and laid the Ditto egg next to the Ponyta egg Ash had delivered her.

"I guess this is goodbye, now that the rain had stopped." They looked out the window to find the late afternoon light pouring in.

"Good luck, Duplica." Domino grinned at her. "I hope you would one day become the Princess of Kanto with Ditto."

Duplica returned the smile. "Thank you very kindly. And I wish you an enchanted journey. All of you. It has been such a pleasure to meet you."

'Very few Pokémon can contain such an energy. As a result, the residue sinks into the rocks, forming the Mega Stones.

'The Pokémon who can contain such energy becomes extremely overpowered and can live for a very long time.'

'The effects is comparable to having a constant Mega Evolving on, and maybe even tougher depending on the amount of energy absorbed.'

Gary taped the pictures of the giant Dragonite, Tentacruel, Alakazam, Gengar and a Jigglypuff dressed as a disco ball onto his journal.

"Dinner's ready!" Giselle and Violet called from the campfire. He closed the notebook and made his way over to them.

"Finishing today's entry?" Giselle asked cheerfully while putting out silverware.

Gary nodded. "Yep. On giant Pokémon. How's yours?"

"Energy recreation." She replied. "Also inspired by the giant Pokémon."

Violet sat down and poured some ice tea into her cup. "We should hang around Ash more. Things always happen around him."

"I've wanted to do that for a long time last time." Gary sighed. "Then I came to a realization. Things happen around him, yes, but he is not the prime example of science. If I want to study something, I need to find it the general way available to the public."

"And if there's something destined to be undiscovered, maybe it's best for the world if we don't uncover it."

"Hey, Ash." Dexter played his message tape. "This is Akihabara speaking. Professor Oak informed me that you would be coming to my lab soon. If you can, please bring all of your psychic/aura/power Pokémon who can interact with the natural forces."

"I have an interesting, and quite large, in fact, of a project that must require of some potent assistance. The voice of the graphic scientist finished. "I look forward to your visit, Ash."

Ash shared a look with the group and shrugged. Absol, paddling beside them, asked. " _What did he mean by power Pokémon?_ "

"Pokémon who can manipulate pure energy and not just elemental." Ash replied. "So like the Porygon, Pikachu, who can twist electric and magnetic fields…"

"Spiritomb can use shadow energy, and Zorua can call upon illusion energy." Domino finished.

" _What about me?_ " Absol tilted her head as she considered that. " _I can sense and follow disaster trails._ "

"I don't know, actually." Ash scratched his head. "But I would assume so. It's quite a marvelous and valuable skill that no other species have."

" _Yay! Then I get to go._ " Absol cheered, then took a sniff of the air. " _But it's kind of disappointing though. There's no disaster this time._ "

Brock, Misty, Zorua and Domino, Pikachu, Lucario and Ash universally sweatdropped. The electric mouse picked his head up, strained and echoed what they were all thinking. " _Please don't worry. If there's one thing we run into too much, it's disaster._ "

The group arrived in a flash of teleport. Ash, like usually, landed upside down. He held out his hand to balance himself with aura, long used to Domino's way of putting him.

He grumbled, as always, and she giggled. Then a laugh boomed from the sky.

"Ah, Ash, my boy! Glad you can make it!" A large Dragonite landed in front of him. He reached up and picked his rider off, gently putting Oak on the ground. Another large dragon, a Salamence, landed next to the previous dragon, and Dr. Fuji hopped down next to the Kanto Professor.

"Hi, Professor Oak! Dr. Fuji." Ash greeted the two old scientists and immediately guessed the reason of their arrival. "Are you here for Dr. Akihabara's project as well?"

Laughter sounded from behind them. "Of course they are! Glad to have all three of you here. This might actually work then."

Fuji coughed and spoke up demandingly. "Okay, Doc, what is this project that you repeatedly speak of? Why did you want all of us here? What's the big secret?"

Ash and Oak looked at him with the same questioning glance. Akihabara smirked. "Patience, my friends. De bono patientiae."

"What?"

"Good things come from patience." He translated. "That was Latin, by the way. Come this way. I have the blueprints in my lab."

As he walked toward the lab, he began. "So, let's see who we have here: Oak, expert in Pokémon behavior, as well as habitat and relationships."

"Fuji: Ph.D in biology and chemistry, cloning, and the chairman of the first soon-to-be successful cloning project of a legendary Pokémon, and one as powerful as Mew, a Cosmic level legend."

"And then Ash and Domino here." Akihabara gestured to the teenagers. "I don't even know where to begin. But let's start with the basic: You singlehandedly created the species of Porygon. You created four-dimensional life, a life that existed only theoretically in machines!"

Akihabara stood in front of his main office door and exhaled, voice slightly trembling due to excitement. "Ladies and gentlemen, do you see where I am going with this?"

Domino, unable to force her curiosity down any longer, reached out with psychic and took a peek in his mind. She then gasped and stepped back. "That! That's… crazy!"

"No I am not. It is definitely possible." Dr. Akihabara looked at her and nodded. He opened the door to this office forcefully and walked in, hands in the air excitedly. "We are making a world made entirely in machines!"

On the walls of his office, slightly smaller than Fuji's main cloning room, was taped with blueprints after blueprints, filled with random thoughts, laws and principles, numerous equations.

Ash was the first to break down. "What the heck do you mean? Creating a new world?"

"Exactly!" Akihabara shouted excitingly with a crazy glint. "Creating a world made entirely with data, statistics, and modified principles."

"We can make modified life with the addition of fourth dimensional rules, which are the ones that shaped Porygon, which should be no problem to Ash and Dr. Fuji."

"We can make a functioning ecosystem, powered as well by derivatives and mathematical operations, which is no problem with Professor Oak here."

"After life has been truly created and can reproduce, their interactions with the digital world starts, and comes an era of fourth-dimensional life."

When he turned back to look at the group, their jaws were hung open, staring at the scientist like he belonged in an asylum… and he does.

"You mean…" Domino stuttered. "You want to create an entire NEW LIFE FORM!?"

"EXACTLY!" Akihabara yelled excitedly.

Oak blinked rapidly. "Do you know the potential consequences to that? How much could go wrong? The amount of computation you need to plan out even a single, small biome is beyond imagination."

"One wrong move, and the entire system collapses, along with your entire lab of collection of data, which is in connection with half of the search engines of the WORLD!" Oak started talking faster and faster. "If your servers die, so will half of the Internet! Have you not thought about that!?"

"And plus, there is another, very bad repercussion." Fuji spoke up. "What if the digital forms that we spend so much time creating become hostile toward US? Pokémon is a type of web-data. So if this digital form rebell, we basically lose all of our Pokémon. What if it's like Mewtwo from last time over again?"

"I saw this once in a movie. It's like with robots, but worse, because we are providing them with self-conscience ACTIVELY and they are fourth dimensional!" Ash was against it as well.

Dr. Akihabara sighed. "I knew you weren't going to support it if I don't prove to you a small part of the experiment. That's why I brought you here today."

He led them into another room, this one the same size as the last one, but almost three quarters of the space was taken up with CPUs filing to the ceiling.

In the center of the room was a dozen bed-like devices, with wires hooking up to the massive PC. He explained. "This is called Translever. It transports people's conscience from the third dimension into the fourth."

"Wait, you already started!?" Oak shouted.

"Yes." The computer expert looked at him. "In fact, for ten years."

"Remember how I broke the Guinness Record for biggest storage of information ten years ago?" Seeing them nod, he continued. "At the time, I had no goals, because my lifelong, ultimate goal was fulfilled. Then, then I stumbled onto this project.

He panted as he finished. "This gave me a reason of living again."

"I already invited the Elite Four over for a few tests five years ago. The League gave me approval to continue the research as long as it doesn't interfere or impair the Internet."

"For years, all I was doing was to pile on loads after loads of information, hoping to awaken a conscience. To create a life."

"Then, a few months ago, I heard about the Porygon, and I realized I've made a huge mistake." Dr. Akihabara sighed. "Thinking that piling information together can create life is like expecting to create diamonds from putting coal together, or a skyscraper from a bunch of bricks."

"It takes an energy of the next level, the dimension of thought, to create life. The energy that you have possessed Ash." Akihabara looked at him. "Then I began thinking about all of this again. I need a climate and habitat for the new life, and there's where you, Oak, come in."

"The life form relationships and life restraints, would be created by you, Fuji."

Oak took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, Doctor, but I can't cooperate with you on this. This is too risky. Too many undiscovered dangers. If you give me a few days, I can come up with lists after lists of reasons of why this is bad."

Akihabara sighed. "I knew I was going to get resistance. I received the same resistance from the League years ago. That's why I set up a digital, fully functioning world as a presentation."

"What do you mean?" Domino asked.

"I mean a world that you can go into, look around, explore, and determine whether this project is safe and has potential." He responded forcefully. "All you need to do is go lay on the Translevers there. Your conscience would get zapped into the digital world."

"Currently, there's no life forms, but I do have a digital ocean that looks exactly like the actual ocean. You would spawn on the coast."

"Wait, what's the difference between that and videotaping the real ocean?" Ash asked.

"The difference," He replied, "is that this ocean is completely simulated by computations. Each wave, each drop of water, how much sand is carried off, how much water the wind is pushing… everything."

"It is another world, different from the outside world. If you want to say that the outside is created by Arceus, then the inside is created completely by digital computations. Nothing in the outside will affect the inside, and vice versa."

"And how much power and storage does that take up?" Oak pointed out the limit of the situation.

Akihabara sighed. "Almost half of all of these CPUs. But you have to admit, this does have potential!"

The two scientists, and Ash and co. traded looks. Ash spoke up for all of them. "Then let's go into this digital world and see what it's like, shall we?"

The three scientists and the four teenagers walked to the beds and laid down one by one. As Professor Oak, last one to lied down, got into position, Dr. Akihabara flicked on a switch, and a brown glow flowed over them. The movement of the light reminded Ash of pudding.

When the light finally overwhelmed their heads, all seven closed their eyes. Images of something replayed in their heads, but they couldn't catch on. But at the same time, a thought entered their minds: Numerical visuals.

They felt like they were traveling through trillions and trillions of miles, all in the blink of an eye, or maybe for centuries. More of more images flew by them, as if they were entering a tunnel.

Tunnel passing between dimensions.

And then their consciousness faded.

After who knows how long, Ash and Domino were the firsts to wake up. Maybe it's because of their 'thought' powers, or maybe something else. They did not know how long had passed. Maybe a minute, or maybe a week.

Ash looked and around and took a deep breath. He went over and held the Domino's hand. "We're here."

No other words than divided was a better word for the scene in front of him.

Behind them was darkness. Just darkness. The only presence recognized are the random numbers that jumped in and out of the void, going about some unexplainable computations.

A digital black hole.

On the other hand, what was in front of them was amazing, truly amazing. They were standing by a coastline. Under their feet were solid grains of sand, not intangible numbers through which they would fall.

Domino bent down and grabbed a handful, and watched it leaked out so fluently, so naturally.

The sound of the ocean echoed in their ears. A wave crashed onto the shore in front of them and drops of water splashed onto her face. Ash reached over and smoothly knocked it off, with his hand lingering.

A sudden breeze curled her hair, allowing the sun to shine fully onto her face, as if a stage light purposely showing the star of the show. He stared at her, the familiar oceanic sounds and smell of seawater mixed with fresh air entered their nostrils.

A tempting smile played on Domino's lips, as if encouraging Ash to finish what he had started a few days ago at the similar beach. He smiled, the wind ruffling his unruly hair, flapping in the air, like the flag of power.

Ash leaned forward. Sound disappeared, along with the smell of the sea, replaced by the scent of the strawberry shampoo she used frequently. Color. Purple. Her eyes.

He could feel her breath on him, and closed his eyes, sinking in.

Before a large yell sounded from behind them. "Holy crap! What is this place!?"

Ash and Domino turned around and glared at Brock, whose judgement was still impaled by the digital world.

Dr. Akihabara, already woken up, walked up to him. "This is the digital world. The current simulated habitat, which also for the past decade, is the coast of the Pallet Sea."

"Wow, this actually does feel real." Misty said, and she took off her shoes and walked into the waves. "And the water is actually WET!"

"Everything here is real, because that's what it was designed to do." The computer scientist said.

"But there's no life." Oak said. "Everything is too… quiet."

"As for life," Fuji replied. "Couldn't you just simulate some fishes and birds?"

"Because that's not real." Akihabara deadpanned. "The simulations are just fragments of patterns studied. Everything would be controlled. It'll be like really complicated robots."

"The AI's couldn't think, couldn't feel, and couldn't imagine." He concluded. "At the end of the day, they're just robots, not digital life."

As he finished that sentence, Ash and Domino's Pokédex started glowing. A second later, Dexter and Noah materialized in front of them.

"I feel so… at home. Why?" Dexter spoke up, and then did a double take. "Did I just speak normally!?"

"Umm… Dex, I think we're in the digital world Doctor was telling us about…"

"Congratulations. You're the first four-dimensional life form to step on this planet." Dr. Akihabara pushed his face next to the two Porygon. "How are you feeling?"

"Extremely powerful." Dexter said. "Like I have unlimited energy. My sensory details are boosted dramatically, so is my CPU capacity, which I suspect is connecting with your computer's accessory."

"And the derivation of computations, simulations, information linkage, prototypical transfer." Noah continued, slightly gasping. "This is amazing!"

Dr. Akihabara turned to look at Oak and Fuji. "Now do you believe the potential of this project?"

"Imagine this as your title: 'Creator of Digital Life Forms.'"

"We would be basically God!" Dr. Akihabara exclaimed, gesturing widely.

Suddenly, lights shot into the Dexter and Noah across the entire area.

"What are you doing?" The doctor asked alarmingly.

"I don't know. I'm not in control of me right now." Dexter shouted frantically. "The entire data pool of the coast is just… flooding into my CPU!"

"We're being overwhelmed with information! What is happening?"

"Quick! I can go out there and shut off the system for now." Oak called and headed for the black hole from where they first entered.

"Hold on." Akihabara called out. "I think I know."

"This habitat is perfectly suitable for living for digital life, like Porygon, so the environment is automatically connecting with its life forms, sending information of surroundings to the Porygon."

"It's kind of like genetic instincts, similar to how we know how to breathe without being taught or knowing what's pain."

More and more beams of white light flashed into the two Virtual Pokémon. By the end of fifteen minutes, they looked as if covered completely in a cocoon of white light.

When the cocoons were broken, two Porygon2 emerged from midair.

"It is indeed nice to meet you, Guzma." Giovanni shook hands with the white haired man. "Your gang is very successful, so I've heard."

"It's my pleasure to meet you too." The leader of Skull nodded. "Currently, it's the biggest in Alola. I assumed you heard about us from the battle with Plasma?"

"Yes." The Rocket Boss nodded. "I was pleasantly surprised. Team Plasma is the second most powerful under Galactic."

"No, they are all equally potent." Guzma said. "Plasma, Aqua, Magma, Galactic, Flare; each is in search of something that they believed in. That's what fumes them."

"If I may ask, what fumes you, Skull?"

Guzma was quiet. "I know what I want, but it's not what the gang will want."

"Then I assume it is not power nor riches?"

"No, it is not." Guzma looked at him. "It is the truth. The truth for the universe. The truth behind Pokémon powers, behind the revelations that had been fed to us for generations and generations."

"Do you know what I am talking about, Mr. Giovanni?" He asked fiercely.

Giovanni nodded. "Yes, I do. In fact, I could be of a little help."

"How?" The leader of Skull gave him a dubious look.

"When you are the head of Team Rocket, the biggest organization of the underground world," Giovanni smiled, "Things will happen, like weapons and Pokéballs showing up magically at your front door, and prizes that you can use to get people who actually want to work for such a great cause as yours."

"You're a born leader, Guzmo. Not one of those fakes who use people to seek power, but for understanding." Giovanni stood up. "I admire that. I look forward to the day you whip your gang into a real Team."

He started walking toward the door, before a voice called out behind him. "What is your philosophy, Giovanni? What does Team Rocket chase after?"

Giovanni paused as his hand wrapped around the door knob. "World peace."

And left.

 **A/N: The concept of a digital world is confusing, but important, because it will become a large part of a plot.**

 **As the fanfic continues, more details would unveil.**

 **I hoped you enjoyed, and be sure to review!**


	34. Cha 33: Kanto 29

**Chapter 33:**

" _Ash, it's that time again._ " Butterfree floated in front of him, beads of tear streaming out of his large eyes.

"I'm going to miss you, buddy." Ash replied and wiped off his own tears. "But don't worry. Remember the little device Dr. Akihabara gave us a week ago?"

"It's called a Digipad." Dexter interrupted.

"Okay, fine. Digipad." Ash held up the blue dotted device. "It basically works as a telepad for Pokémon by converting them into digital information and transporting."

"Dexter already has the motherboard attached to him. If you put your branched device somewhere safe with your Pokéball on top, you can come to us when you want, or when we need you." Ash said and handed the Digipad over, along with Butterfree's Pokéball.

" _Thanks, Ash._ " Butterfree looked at the device and grinned. " _Is it just me, or are you a lot mature and considerate this time?_ "

" _It's just you._ " Pikachu remarked.

Ash ignored that statement and smiled at Butterfree. "Last time, I have a lot of Pokémon who decided to left me to train on their own, or just left for other good reasons."

"They still want to help me, but need to continue a life on their own, so Akihabara and I came up with this to summon them when I need them, which is probably frequent in this 'harder' world, but not to prevent to achieve their lives and dreams away from me."

Butterfree nodded and turned away to look over the cliff at the diminishing sun, releasing its last rays of sunlight in the dusk as it sunk below the ocean. He looked back at his trainer, behind whom an arc of the bright moon shone, its light beating on his face.

" _I'll miss you, Ash. You're a great friend, great trainer, and great hero. Goodbye, Ash._ "

"Me too, Butterfree." Ash couldn't stop the stream of tears, even though he knew he could see Butterfree often this time with the Digipad.

With that, the Bug Type zoomed into the sky, beating his powerful wings and joining the flock overhead, maneuvering himself to the front of the group with his skill and agility and landing beside a pink, shiny Butterfree.

It's the process of seeing his Pokémon grow, and continue on a life of his own that saddens him in a positive way, like seeing your own children grow up to continue lives of their own.

"This isn't goodbye, Butterfree, we'll still see each other." Ash ran to the side of the cliff and waved, crying. "I'll always remember you!"

Butterfree turned around and chirped, before turning around and leading the group into the dusk light, attempting to soar after the fireball.

Ash stared after them, as they disappeared in the distance, to a small dot that he couldn't see anymore, and sighed.

Domino came up to him and held his side. "Pokémon grow up. It's not uncommon to leave. What's important is that the bonds still live on."

Ash turned around and gave her a smile. "I know. It's still sad though."  
"I know. Without sadness, there will never be happiness." She breathed softly. "But I'll always be here, remember that."

Ash nodded and brought her tighter against him. "And so will I."

"Promise me?"

Ash winked at her. "Of course I promise."

* * *

"Can we divert a visit to the Pokémon amusement park really quick?" Misty requested.

"Sure thing." Domino coated them in pink energy.

"But no breaking anything this time." She demanded. "Or at least not of my design."  
Ash laughed nervously, and the group reappeared at the island of machinery moments later. The island was on a break today, so it was all closed down and without children.

" _What do you need here, Mist?_ " Lucario asked. " _If I remember correctly from Dexter's summary from last time, nothing interesting happened here._ "

"There was a Slowpoke here last time." Misty said and casted an envious look at the Rocket Elite. "After seeing what Domino can do, I REALLY want a Water/Psychic Type."  
"Plus, Lily has one too."

"You're really diversifying really soon, Misty. Last time, you waited until Johto." Ash commented. "Are you sure this won't mess with the timeline?"

The group gave him a universal eye roll. The orange-haired girl remarked sarcastically. "Really!? Coming from THE Ash Ketchum?"

Ash laughed and closed his eyes, using Aura Sight in search of psychic life forces. A while later, he opened his eyes and pointed in a direction. "That way!"

At the same time, Domino pulled back her psychic senses. "Confirmed."  
"Then let's get there!"

* * *

Misty led them in walking toward the Dopey Pokémon, her eyes shining. "Hmm, I guess it already evolved into a Slowbro?"

The evolved Pokémon was sleeping on a rock four times its size, snoring. Misty was debating on what to do: Whether to wake him and battle appropriately or just capture him.

Suddenly, a flash of pink light appeared in front of her and a Slowking materialized in front of the sleeping Slowbro. The Royal Pokémon blinked as he caught side of them, and the group returned the same momentary confusion.

Ash was about to speak when the Slowking suddenly bowed. " _Greetings, Chosen, Queen, Princess and Knight._ "

The four paused, and Misty and Brock fell down. Misty coughed. "What did you call me?"

The Slowking gave her an innocent look. " _I said, greetings, Princess of the Ocean._ "

Misty's jaw hung slightly open. "Yeah, what do you mean by that!?"

" _You're fused with the same energy Kyogre, and legend said such a human is the Princess of the Ocean…_ " Slowking looked at her confused. " _Wait, you didn't know?_ "

"Hold on, what did you call ME!?" Brock got up and shouted.

" _Aren't you the Legendary Knight of Foundation?_ " Slowking bowed. " _The one whom, according to legend, will one day forge the foundation for the Third Bountiful Empire of Pokéland? You possess the same energy as Groudon._ "

" _And of course, there is no denying your majesty to be the Queen. I can feel Mew's residue on you. And the Chosen, I can feel a quaking from the soul of Arceus's leftover energy._ "

The four humans stared at the Slowking, who was becoming more and more talkative.

A cough interrupted the Royal Pokémon's rant as Slowbro woke up and shot a not-at-all oblivious look at the group. " _Sorry for my dad. Uncle Lugia always says that the ancient books that dad reads get into his head too much._ "

* * *

"So you're that Slowking in Shamouti?" Ash gave the old Pokémon a look.

" _Indeed, Chosen._ " Slowking said slowly. " _We have a prophet in Shamouti, in fact, that one day this world will come to shambles, and we will turn to Ash._ "

Domino burst out laughing, while Ash collapsed from a minor stroke. "Please don't remind me of the prophet that HAS A PUN WITH MY NAME!"

On the other side of the beach, Misty was facing Slowbro as he considered her offer. " _Okay, I would like to get stronger, and no doubt the Princess of the Ocean will provide me with some quality training._ "

Misty shook her head quickly while waving her hands. "No, no, no. I'm not the Princess of the Ocean. Please don't call me that. It's pitiful."

"At least you're not the 'Knight of Foundation.'" Brock said bitterly. "Can't the prophet come up with a better name than that!?"

" _Anyways,_ " Slowbro turned to Misty. " _I will let you capture me under one condition, and that is we conduct the ancient rituals of battling, and you must beat me with one Pokémon._ "

Misty smirked and considered her choices. "Deal!"

* * *

" _Hello._ " Mewtwo looked at the unannounced visitor in his psychic domain. " _How may I help you?_ "

" _HIIII!_ " Mew bounced around Mewtwo's mental world, its surroundings now had changed from the lab to a the island James had described growing up. " _So you're my clone? That's so cool!_ "

Mew did a back flip and landed in front of Mewtwo. " _Why are you purple?_ "

Mewtwo coughed on the coconut water he was sipping. " _What kind of question is that?_ "

Mew shrugged and circled the Genetic Pokémon. " _I heard from my sister that you are training with her old methods._ "

Mewtwo nodded. " _Indeed I am. I presume your sister is the Mew of the Tree?_ "

" _Yippee!_ " Mew giggled. " _Let's have a battle. It's been so long since I had a good battle!_ "

" _Why must we battle?_ " Mewtwo asked and placed down the 'Quantum Gravity Theory' he was reading. " _Let's just have tranquility._ "

Mew rolled her eyes. " _C'mon, it'll be fun. It's like that time I rode on Primal Kyogre when she was wrestling Primal Groudon._ "

" _The waves were like roller coasters!_ "

Mewtwo stood up then. " _Okay, then let's try battling. You have to go easy though. It's my first time actually battling._ "

" _Okay!_ " Mew agreed cheerfully, before she was hammered into the side of the world by a Psybeam. " _No fair! I didn't say start yet! Eat Prismatic Laser!_ "

* * *

Arbok did a flip and swung the Iron Tail like a uppercut into Erika's Gloom.

The Weed Pokémon was launched back and cracked a hole on the side of the Celadon Gym. The referee blew the whistle and signaled the win to the challengers.

Erika growled and threw the Rainbow Badge to James, before going to pry Gloom off the burnt wall, as a result of a previous Flamethrower from Growlie.

James caught the flying badge and handed over the Meowth, who deposited in a silver lining box. "How many do we have?"

"Five!" Meowth answered, "Countin' dis one."

James and Jessie traded a smirk. "Three more to go."

"We're definitely avoiding Saffron. Who knows if Sabrina's still bonkers…"

A phone rang, and Jessie pulled it out. She listened and shut it off when the message was finished, and groaned.

"Fuji is calling us back AGAIN." She complained. "Arceus! He's even more demanding than Boss."

James sighed and released Exeggutor. "At least he gave us a Pokémon to travel around with."

"Actually, that's kind of weird." Jessie pointed out. "We have more Pokémon when we are not actively trying to steal them."

"Dat's 'cause we're away from Ash!" Meowth hypothesized. "He's a walking disaster, remember? He is so big of a disaster Arceus made another timeline just to contain him."

The Coconut Pokémon rubbed his head on James, who sighed. "I know I feel good to Grass Types, but we really should go now."

"You're NOT going ANYWHERE until you paid for my gym!" Erika placed her hands on her hips and glared at them.

Meowth shot out a bundle of Rocket 'business fares' with Pay Day.

The trio was surrounded with a Grassy Pink, and off they went.

* * *

Professor Oak looked in shock at their creation in front of him. An ice tunnel ran underneath the entire water park, stretching from one side of Pallet to another. Giant slides ran across the seaworld, supported by pillars reaching deep into the ocean depth.

Stations were connected by large, stone bridges, formed from hundreds of Stone Edges. There were modeled ships and islands, serving as resting places and being overall part of the scene and adding to the atmosphere.

Underneath was a natural aquarium, where viewers could get to with a transparent opal/glass/ice-like material. Huge rooms of the same material were connected to the previously-mentioned tunnel.

Around these rooms were a fanciful underwater view. Schools of Chinchou were floating around, lightning up the marine environment with their natural lightbulbs. Goldeen formed large, unidentified creatures when flocked together.

Clamperls lined the ocean floor, opening and closing their shell, putting their pearls on full display. Corsola were dodging between coral reefs, playing their constant game of hide-n-seek.

It was an amazing, never-seen-before ocean amusement park.

Oak stared at the giant Dragonite, Tentacruel, Alakazam, Jigglypuff and Gengar, whom Gary decided to send back and became quick friends with the other giants, despite ancient conflicts with Alakazam and Jigglypuff. "How in the world did you five do this?"

Dragonite shrugged and spoke for the rest. " _We were bored. The Pallet sea has nothing to play with, so we created one instead._ "

Oak held his head. "Never mind, I forgot all of you are crazy."

* * *

"Go, Carvanha!" Misty threw out a Pokéball with a requested fin-picture on the front. The Savage Pokémon landed in the water and swam away, daring Slowbro to come closer.

Slowbro trudged after her, his tail dragging Shellder not affecting his speed at all.

As he was approaching, Carvanha turned around and fired a short Dark Pulse at him, and Slowbro evaded by Diving into the water. He then emerged and threw a Future Sight at the Dark Type, achieving no effect.

He blinked. Using the moment of hesitation, Carvanha countered with a Snarl, the soundwave launching the Psychic back.

Slowbro cried out pitifully. " _No fair! Type advantage!_ "

Ash walked over by this point, along with Slowking and Domino. He muttered. "Type advantage doesn't mean jack."

The two Pokémon began to circle each other. Both were still at maximum concentration. They waited like hunters for the exact moment to pounce out and tear their prey to pieces.

Being the younger of the duo, the Savage Pokémon lost her patience first, and launched herself forward for a close ranged Crunch.

Slowbro solidified a Light Screen in front of him. The Dark Type attack broke through within a second, with which Slowbro used to launched himself into midair with a Psychic.

Then he released a Thunder Wave down, conducting the entire area of water of electricity. Carvanha sunk below the surface, shaking.

Slowbro smirked and floated down, charging a Hyper Beam to end the battle. Suddenly, in his seconds of immobilization, the water surface broke open, and Carvanha hit him with a double powered Payback, before slapping her tail at him with a Disable. " _No more electrocuting for you, mister!_ "

Oopening her mouth, she followed with a point-ranged Shadow Ball.

The super-effective attack hit critically, and Slowbro was thrown back, completely losing his aim and shooting the orange beam into the heavens above.

" _How can you not get paralyzed by that!?_ " Slowbro yelled, rubbing his sore side. " _This place is filled with dissolved ions from the chemicals used to build the park! This is way more conductive than normal water!_ "

Carvanha chuckled. " _You get used to electricity after sparring with Magnemite all the time. The guy is practically using Pikachu's ways to train._ "

Pikachu cracked half an eyelid open. " _Did someone say she got used to electricity?_ "

Carvanha returned herself without another word, trying desperately to avoid the immense amount of physical pain that might follow.

Slowbro sighed. " _I guess that was a victory for her anyways. I would've definitely lost. I couldn't use any of my psychic, and water doesn't do anything to her either._ "  
Misty pat his back. "No worries. This is what I'm here for, to train you against Pokémon who can resist you and diversify your moves."  
She took out a Pokéball. "Would you like to join my team, Slowbro?"

" _My pleasure._ " Slowbro stuck his head forward to press the button.

After a few shakes, lights flashed on in front of the little device, and a signature _ding_ sounded in recognition of the capture.

On the other hand, Slowking wiped a tear off his face. " _My little boy is finally growing up…_ "

Slowbro released himself again and deadpanned. " _Dad, I left Shamouti five years ago. You just noticed?_ "

* * *

"Sir, our Pokémon Island is shown to be outdone in visitors and revenue by another park, after our glorious five years." An officer reported politely.

Giovanni shot him a look. "Get with the usual. Mess up their schedules, supplies and replenishment. Collapse the place, and then buy it over."

"Yes, sir. On it." The officer bowed and turned to exit.

"Hold on. Where is this place? I haven't heard about any recent major construction."

The officer looked down at his report from the finance branch. "It's at Pallet Town."

The Rocket Boss blinked.

"Stand down the orders. Offer them an alliance in tourism from the Abra Assets. Do NOT mess this up."

* * *

A pink Moltres was soaring across the ocean peacefully when a Hyper Beam zoomed by her head from below.

She yelped and looked below. " _What the heck is going on!?_ "

* * *

" _Lugia! Guess who I saw today!?_ " Slowking yelled at the underwater current in front of his island.

The current shot out a beam of water and corrected. " _Whom I saw today._ "

Slowking stopped waving his hands. " _Who did YOU see today?_ "

" _No, I'm saying it's whom I say today._ " The psychic voice rang out.

" _Exactly! Who did you see today?_ "

Zapdos held his head as he perched on Lightning Island. " _This could get confusing quickly._ "

Then the Electric bird roared. " _Arti! Get out of my island!_ "

The sound of blue feathers flapping on the other side of his island answered him as Articuno soared to the sky. Zapdos fired out a tracking Thunder using ion residue that flew after her.

Moltres laughed as he rose out of Fire Island. " _You can literally feel the sexual tension between you two!_ "

He was blasted a Ice Beam and a Thunderbolt.

" _SHUT UP!_ "

Pretty soon, a powerful psychic energy swept over the three islands, and all three were pinned down to their respective islands.

" _Which one of you started it this time?_ "

" _Moltres!_ " The Electric and Ice legendary said at the same time.

The Flame Pokémon made a poo-poo face. " _Of course you two are teaming up against me._ "

* * *

"Tribe of Pikachu, huh." Ash looked down at Dexter, and glanced up at Pikachu. "So I guess this is goodbye."

Pikachu nodded sadly. " _I guess this is._ "

He glanced up with tears. " _We had a great run, Ash. We have had so much fun together…_ "

"I know buddy." Ash hugged his starter one last time. "See you around, I guess… I know Professor Oak caught you against your will."  
" _Thank you, thank you Ash for releasing me._ " Pikachu took his Pokéball with a lightning shaped symbol over. " _You're the greatest trainer I've ever had, you know that._ "

"Goodbye, Pikachu."

" _Goodbye, Ash._ " With that, Pikachu leapt away toward the group of Electric Types, leaving Misty and Brock rolling on the ground from laughter, and a very puzzled Domino.

Ash buried his head in the Elite's blonde curls and whispered. "Now it's just us."

"Ash Ketchum! What the heck is going on!?" Domino demanded and held his face in front of hers. "Why did you just give Pikachu his Pokéball back!?"

The Pallet boy shrugged. "Pikachu wanted to leave. You can see that."

Domino stared at him, and not from affection either.

* * *

" _What are you doing with those rocks and ice?_ " Mew asked the two Regi's in front of her, carrying loads of materials from who-knows-where.

Regice turned to her and beeped.

Mew blinked. " _You want to build another Hall?_ "

Regirock beeped some more, which translated to a very firm affirmative.

* * *

Gary looked down at the envelopes he held, sent over his Pokédex from Professor Oak and printed out.

He looked up at Giselle. "I think we found a solution to your fossil problem."

"Hmm?" She looked away from helping Violet assess her dress. "What?"

"Apparently, Grandpa Canyon is opening up early this year. Visitors are invited to go there and dig for some fossils."  
"Nice!" The female researcher remarked and tossed another shopping bag over to Gary. "But that's only a small problem. The real problem is this!"

She dragged two dresses over, one orange and one red. "Which one looks better?"

Gary sweatdropped and pointed at the red. Giselle shot a look at him, and tossed the red one off to the side.

"Hey!" Gary remarked, slightly offended. "What was that?"

"Boys your age have terrible sense of fashion."

"You are well-aware that I am beyond that age!"

"Prove it!" Violet looked over at him teasingly. Gary snatched her and pushed her against a wall.

"Feisty, huh. Just the way I like oooff…" She was stopped from talking as Gary took up her offer.

Giselle rolled her eyes as she placed the red ones back on the shelf as she counted "Twenty-seven."

* * *

" _What do you mean someone is stealing my blueprint!?_ " Arceus raged as he chomped down on a meteorite cookie.

Sir Aaron carefully placed the picture of the mini-Hall of Origins in front of him.

The Alpha yelled. " _But I came up with the design! It was copyrighted!_ "

The Knight of Honor and Creation Trio slowly backed away from the raging God Pokémon.

" _I need a bath!_ " Arceus declared, then growled. " _Giratina! Under my command, you shall return to the normal timeline and bring the three Regi's to trial._ "

" _And charge them for what?_ "The Renegade Pokémon responded sarcastically. " _Plagiarism?_ "

" _No! Third degree murder of my precious plans!_ "

Arceus screamed and jumped out of the hot tub as he entered. " _Dialga! I thought you said you froze the hot tub at the perfect temporal condition! Why is it cold?_ "

" _That's because you were so angry you activated your Fire Plate._ "Dialga deadpanned. " _The water is still perfect at 22.5 Celsius._ "

* * *

"PIKACHU!"Ash yelled and held up his arms. "I thought you left!"

" _Of course not!_ "Pikachu ran at him and leapt into his grasp. " _I'll never leave you for the world._ "

Ash laughed and held his starter up, spinning him around. "You're back, Pikachu. I'm so glad you're back!"

Domino opened her mouth. Misty and Brock were again dying on the ground.

"What the hell is all of this?" Domino yelled.

" _A very bad soap opera._ "Lucario answered, looking at Dexter's summary of the last timeline. " _He said something about bad writers for Satoshi Tajeri._ "

* * *

"Eeveelution party?" Ash pointed at the sign.

"Yes!" Sparky said. "Today, us three,"

He gestured at himself, Rainer and Pyro. "Are evolving our eevees. See? We even dyed our hair for the occasion."

Sparky had a orange haircut that stuck up at least a foot, resembling the same hair as Jolteon. Rainer had on a flat, blue haircut after Vaporeon. Pyro had a red, flame-shaped hair, after Flareon.

Ash whispered to Brock and Misty. "I thought it was their brother last time?"

"We're early, remember?" Brock reminded him.

"May we join the party?" Domino asked politely, a glint in her eyes daring them to say no.

"Of course! The more the merrier!" Sparky welcomed them in. "In fact, as my gift, you can each take an evolutionary stone."

"This little guy looks like he needs a boost." He looked at the Pikachu on Ash's shoulder and grabbed an Electric Stone. "How about evolve him to a Raichu."

Pikachu looked at the stone and took it over with his bare hands, before gulping it down in three bites.

He shrugged. " _Quite a nice refreshment._ "

Sparky's jaw dropped open and pointed at the mouse. "Wha… What…"

Pikachu looked at him. " _Don't you know it's rude to stare?_ "

"Ha… How did I understand you?" Sparky could barely talk anymore.

" _Aura._ " Pikachu dismissed the topic. " _If you encounters something weird, blame aura, psychic or Cratormaster._ "

Ash pet his starter and tried to explain. "Pikachu's kind of… special."

"No doubt!" A slightly high-pitched voice rang out from his side. "I have never seen a talking Pokémon!"

They turned around and saw a boy ran over, carrying an egg. Sparky waved at him. "Hey Mikey! Have you decided on which of the three eeveelutions you are going to choose for Eevee?"

Mikey pouted. "Stop pounding me with the questions. He's not even born yet!"

"It could be a 'she'." Rainer interrupted.

"Nah. I can guarantee a 'he'."Ash said.

Domino poked him on the side. "Never say guarantee. Watch the eevee become a female."

Dexter materialized next to them. "Correction on your information pool. There are seven types of eeveelutions."

He formed a hologram of the seven types in midair, his abilities getting a lot smoother after his upgrade of Porygon2.

"Woah!"Mikey stared at the pictures. "This is so cool!I want the dark one!"

"That's Umbreon. That will be a really strong Pokémon. Dark Type, which is really rare in Kanto." Domino remarked. "But the thing is, you should ask your Eevee's opinion before you force to evolve. Always take your Pokémon's feelings into consideration before you force evolution."

Misty tapped Ash on the side and whispered. "Wow, you've really changed her a lot."

Ash smirked, looking at the blonde beauty in front of him. "All for the better. She's changed me too."

Brock snickered. "Yes she did. Now at least you can say that you had been intimate with a girl once."

"We are not intimate!"Ash growled lightly. "Plus, at least better than your case."

"Touché," Brock backed down, sulking.

Misty and Ash laughed, and Domino stood up. She asked teasingly, "Are you proud of me, Mr. Goody-Two-Shoes?"

"Always, Princess."

* * *

" _Hey Gerri!_ " Mew shouted after the shadow that had befallen in his tree. Giratina phased into reality.

" _Hello Mew._ "Giratina nodded back.

" _What are you doing here? I thought you're with Arceus, rebuilding the Hall of Origins?_ "

" _Yeah, that's kind of the problem…_ " The Ghost Dragon coughed. " _Your robots are 'plagerizing' Arceus's floor plans, and he wants me to charge them for…_ "

He paused. " _Third degree murder._ "

Mew rolled her eyes. " _Is he on his period again?_ "

" _I don't think that's how that works…_ "

" _Wait! Do Gods even have periods?_ "

* * *

 **A/N: I'm planning to do a big Christmas chapter. Give me some ideas, and I'll make them come true!**

 **Also, I haven't realized the amount of influence the Rocket Trio has on the plot developments. Almost every single episode, the conflict is their messing up something, and then Ash had to go fix it. In the eevee episode, there is barely anything to write about with Team Rocket's interference.**


	35. Cha 34: Kanto 30

**Cha. 34**

The group applauded as the hippie finished playing his Pokéflute.

"Bravo!" Ash cheered.

"Thank you, son." The old man bowed and raised a bowl. "May I have a bit of food? I'm starving."

Brock pulled opened his backpack and handed the man some sushi from lunch.

Misty made a grunt of realization. "Ah, yes. This is the one with the Snorlax blocking the stream?"

" _Yes. Heavy sleeper, he is._ " Pikachu gulped down another Chesto, counteracting the effects of the flute.

"This should be easy." Ash remarked. "I can think of five different ways already to wake him up."

"Plus, I can always just move the Snorlax with Psychic." Domino shrugged. "If I can lift Ash, I can lift him."

"HEY!" Ash protested, and the blonde broke down in giggles.

* * *

Pikachu handed over some of his leftover Chesto Berries. " _If you need any as backup…_ "

" _Nah, let me try._ " Lucario walked in front of the Sleeping Pokémon.

"Don't pull your back." Ash warned.

" _Aura BOOST!_ " A condensed blue glow, turning purple, surrounded the ancient Steel Type. He then bent down and grabbed onto the heavy bear and tossed him twenty feet away from the stream.

Then, he turned around and rubbed his palms together in near sonic speed, producing a bright red aura glow, induced by friction, and sent a Flamethrower at the thorns, burning a large hole for the river to flow through in seconds.

" _Showoff._ " Pikachu muttered.

* * *

" _Cheers to…_ " Mew couldn't think of anything else after their three hundredth toast. " _Oh, yes! Regigigas losing weight!_ "

The two Mews and Giratina gulped down their cups of smoothie, and Regice refilled their cup on auto-programming.

" _This is awesome._ " Giratina commented. " _I wish I can stay in your Tree all the time, Mew._ "

Mew smirked. " _It's more work than you think._ "

Her sister gave her a look, and she laughed. " _Just kidding. No it's not._ "

" _What are you all doing up there?_ " The other Mew asked curiously.

" _Arceus forces us to, well, do free labor._ " The Ghost Dragon complained. " _It's basically slavery without representation!_ "

" _It's taxation without representation._ " Regice corrected.

" _Not everyone is programmed to have an infinite database, Regice._ " The Renegade Legendary sighed. " _We established this two thousand years ago already._ "

" _Noted. Gratitude for reminder._ " The Ice Golem beeped and filled his cup up again. " _Even though I can only store four hundred thousand telobytes._ "

* * *

Moltres landed next to the still-sleeping Snorlax. She shrugged and blew out an actual Flamethrower, wiping away the entire cluster of thorns.

" _That should allow the river to have more room._ " She muttered, and looked at the direction where the crew was standing before the teleportation.

" _Good thing I'm psychic. Guess that's one plus to being shiny._ " The pink legendary vanished in a blink.

She never saw the circling shape a few thousand feet on top of her, creating trails of rainbows.

* * *

As they phased into existence from Domino's teleportation, sounds of clashing flooded the street they were standing on.

Two groups, one wearing blue and one orange was forcing one another, some of them wrestling, and Pokémon fighting as well on open streets.

Ash looked to Pikachu. "Your turn to show off."

" _My pleasure!_ " Pikachu yelped excited and hopped off. A second later, massive Thunderbolts zapped into the midst of the battle, completely paralyzing everyone.

"Good work." Ash complimented.

Misty winked at him. "Leave this group to me."

With that, she dashed straight between the two groups and pulled out her mallet threateningly. "You two are not even close to becoming a gym leader."

Misty shook her head as she looked at Kaz and Yas. "First of all, isn't this supposed be a Dark Gym? Why do I not see a single Dark Pokémon!?"

"Second, you think that Gyms are just battles" Misty waved her weapon around. "Of course not! They are tests of character! That's why they are recognized by Indigo Plateau. Pokémon battling is supposed to strengthen bonds and develop respect, not a series of _bang-bang-bang_!"

"And let met tell you something: Street fighting is definitely NOT a way to show character!"

"Well said!" Brock applauded as he walked up with the group. "A small problem though, Mist. I think they're still paralyzed."

Domino tossed over a roll of Paralysis Heal. "Don't worry. Always prepared."

* * *

"And who are YOU supposed to be?" Kaz growled at the Water Type Trainer. "Why should we listen to you?"

Misty rolled her eyes and pulled out her master Cerulean Badge. "Misty. Cerulean Gym Leader."

"Brock, Pewter leader." Brock held out his master Boulder Badge as well. "Misty is right. Aggressive Pokémon fighting is definitely NOT a way to solve your issue, especially not in your city of peace."

The older teen gestured around the street. "Look at what you're doing. You're scaring everyone away into their homes. If you truly want to help people by opening a gym, resolve this peacefully! Or else, your characters do not fit to be Gym Leader."

"Gym Leaders have to also protect the city against crime, regulate laws, and let me remind you, the same laws that you are CURRENTLY BREAKING!"

Misty continued. "Plus, it is not fair to the Pokémon. What should they do your dirty battling for you? To them, battling is a noble cause. It demands respect and honor!"

Lucario nodded. " _She's not wrong._ "

Yas and Kaz looked at each other and back at her, ashamed. Yaz spoke up. "How do YOU suppose we solve this issue?"

"Yeah, we've already tried battling and choosing the more skilled, but most battles end with ties and the large influx in victories determined nothing." Kaz supported his argument.

"Again, it's not about battling. It's so much more." Misty said, exasperatedly. "If you are so stubborn and concentrated on battling, let me tell you something with battling then."  
"To become Gym Leader, you need to get approval from an Elite Four, which requires at least one battle where you can impress them with considerable skill, with Pokémon of your type."

"Now, how do you suppose you do that, when you don't even HAVE a Dark Type right now?"

"What she's saying is," Ash spoke up, "Help each other figure out a plan of action. Research more into the Gym subject. When we bond, our strength is a lot stronger than single."  
"How do you suppose we do that?" Kaz asked. "How did YOU get your Gym certification?"

"You can borrow Pokémon, or train them yourself. The Elite Four are just assessing you on skill and whether you know what you're doing" Misty said. "However, I'm kind of different from your case."

"Brock and I," she gestured to the Rock Trainer and herself, "have strong, mature, evolved Pokémon already trained for the Gym by our parents and siblings."  
"However, in your case, in which you're starting from scratch, you must find the Pokémon by yourself, and then train them, which adds to the my original statement that you two shouldn't ever fight, for a position that hasn't even been established yet. You need to help each other."

"We're not actually sure how to start from scratch." Brock said. "But if you are interested, talk to Koga of the Fuchsia Gym. He's extremely experienced, both as a trainer and gym leader."

"Yeah, and I think he said he started the Poison Type Gym by himself singlehandedly a decade ago. You should ask him for more information." Misty agreed.

"Then, if you truly think that you can handle the responsibilities of the Gym, help each develop a structure and apply to the Pokémon Inspection Agency, while planning for the battle with the Elites."

"Because let me assure you, they, or at least Lorelei, are difficult as heck."

"Same with Agatha." Brock supplied.

"Umm…" Kaz started hesitantly. "Do you mind demonstrating how strong they are?"

"There's no point to a battle if you are going to be battling with non-Dark types when your gym is Dark." Misty said and handed over a piece of paper. "Here's my number. I'll be happy to battle when you organized a team."

* * *

"So, Mistyyyy." Ash poked the redhead, "Did you prepare your Goldfish costume yet?"

Misty blushed and punched Ash. "You weren't supposed to see that last time!"

The two males bent over, laughing, as they recalled the look on Misty's face last time as they walked in on her in her Goldeen costume performing for Melvin.

"Speaking of Melvin," Misty coughed and quickly changed the subject. The time she was seen in that costume was really not one of her best days. "What are we going to do with him?"

Ash shrugged. "As long as he doesn't try anything stupid, we'll go our way."

* * *

"And my next magic trick is…" Melvin said in his monotone voice, "Black hole!"

The object on the table behind which he stood floated upward and was sucked into a tight ball in front of him and maintained in that position for a full minute. The few who are still sitting stood up and left, leaving Ash and co. and few rare others to be the only ones left.

Domino rolled her eyes and wanted to get up as well, but didn't feel like moving with her head currently comfortably attached to Ash's shoulder. "That's just the easiest psychic pulse I've ever since."

Ash winced. "Is it me, or does he suck even more this time?"

Misty stared at him as he performed his next trick, levitating objects. "Believe me, it's not just you."

The rest of the audience got up and left. The magician sighed and gestured for his Exeggcute to stop. "You guys can leave too. I know I suck."

"You do. That was a complete waste of thirty minutes." Domino stood up. Ash pulled on her sleeve, signaling her not to be too mean. The girl shrugged. "However, I do see potential."

"Really!?" Melvin asked, surprised. "I knew it! Would you like to help me? I have a really cute Goldeen costume…"  
"STOP!" Domino cut him off right there. "What I mean is that your performance with Pokémon is decent, even though it's not necessarily magic."

"What are you saying?" Melvin asked.

"I can introduce you to a circus. A pretty popular one as well." The Elite said. "You can perform with your Exeggcute all the time.

"A circus? But I want to do magic."

Domino sighed. "Names are only a matter of identification. You can call Team Rocket evil," Domino shot a smirk at Ash, "Before you know the organization truly."

"You'll be doing what you love, so why do you care what people call it?" She continued. "Plus people will actually applaud you for what you do because they are paying to see a circus, aka your 'magic' show, and not what you qualify as magic, which most think was a waste of their money."

Melvin considered that and slowly nodded. "I would like to try that, yes. Will there be people to train me through the process of a circus."  
"Of course." She replied. "Here's the number to the circus. You'll have to also submit a form to the Abra Assets, and tell them that you're sent by the Black Tulip."

Melvin nodded with gratitude, and took the slip of paper over. "Thank you. This is a great opportunity."

"No problem." She nodded. "Just don't try TOO hard, you got that?"

Melvin nodded and went to the back of the stage. Ash looked at her curiously. "Abra Assets?"

"Yeah. It's a theme park company that the Team runs in the tourism business. I'm a shareholder, apparently." Domino nodded. "Giovanni made me spent all of my Christmas money on a fourth of its stock when it is first launched. I remember not talking to him for almost a month."

She laughed. "Then the money started pouring in at an insane rate after a year."

Ash shrugged. He never cared for the financial field. In his mind, as long as there was money to fund his journey, he was all set.

Brock dusted his hands and stood up. "Wasted thirty minutes to take care of a psycho magician. I guess that's a fair trade."

* * *

"We have arrived at destination: Leaf Forest." Dexter sounded.

The group looked around the woods. For a relatively small forest, it had a lot of Exeggutor. Even at the outskirts of the area already stood a Coconut Pokémon.

He wobbled after the group, examining them inquisitively. Domino reached out with a psychic pulse, inviting the Pokémon to a link.

The Grass/Psychic shrugged and joined it, and began to communicate with the girl. After a while of fast-paced communications, the Exeggutor nodded. " _If you beat me in a battle._ "

Domino sent out Shedinja, who phased into the shadows of the forest.

Exeggutor blinked. " _That's a Shedinja? They're really rare. I thought they're found only in Hoenn._ "

"Mine traveled a bit." Domino smirked. "How do you know Shedinja?"

The Coconut Tree smiled. " _He's not the only one who has traveled, which reminds me. Prepare for my ultimate form!_ "

He raised his hands, producing a Light Screen shield and blocked off an attack from Shedinja. " _Alolan Form!_ "

Lights not unsimilar to that of a Mega Evolution flooded out of him. His neck started stretching and stretching, to almost twenty feet high before stopping. A tail grew out of his backside, and another coconut materialized at the tip.

The crew's jaw dropped. Dexter materialized and scanned the Pokémon, the first time in a long while. "Pokémon unidentified. Absorbed infrared suggest same radiation as Koga's Muk. Conclusion: You're from Alola."

The newly formed Grass/Dragon Pokémon smirked. " _That is correct. I'm from Alola. My parents were a Kanto Exeggutor and an Alolan one, so I could switch in between forms as I wish._ "

The lights rushing out of him started to die down. As Shedinja tried to hid back into the shadows out from which the lights pushed him, the coconut tree released a pink wave at him.

Thinking that it'll have no effect, the Shed Pokémon decided to tank the attack. The Coconut Tree smiled. " _And I also know the Wonder Guard prevents me from doing any damage, since my only super-effective attack against you is the Dark Type Thief._ "

Shedinja was covered by the pink light. His face changed abruptly as he realized that his ability is getting… drained.

Domino immediately realized what the attack was, but it was too late. The Skill Swap already rid him of his Wonder Guard ability for the match, in trade for Alolan Exeggutor's Frisk.

The Coconut, using the moment of his opponent's shock, called down a rain of Draco Meteor, determined to rid Shedinja of his minimum health, especially vulnerable without the protection of the traditional Shed ability.

Of course, even without his special ability, any Pokémon of Domino's would not go down easily. Coming back to his senses within a second, he phased through the heavy assault with Phantom Force.

Appearing again mysteriously behind his opponent, Shedinja used Mirror Coat to repeat the same move on him.

Light flashed on the Exeggutor, and he switched to original form in the blink of an eye, and teleported out.

Shedinja looked at the spot where he was standing and a grin formed on his face. " _Hmmm, Zorua thought up a counter to short ranged teleportation. What was it again? Oh, yes!_ "

" _Beat up!_ " Shedinja flashed, and five different shadows flowed out of him, materializing into giant Dragonite, Tentacruel, Alakazam, Jigglypuff and Mew.

The four giants rushed forward and stomped at the poor Coconut Pokémon, who was forced out of his hiding space, by the shaking and breaking of trees. Instantly, he was flooded by Fire Blast, Gunkshot, Ice Beam and Shadow Ball from the four giants respectively, all while being held down by Mew's Gravity.

Zorua shook her head. " _Poor Exeggutor. Now I kind of feel guilty for teaching Shedinja that._ "

The Exeggutor pointed at the sky, trying to say something. However, the only thing that emerged was smoke.

"Our motto is that type advantages don't mean crap." Domino chuckled. "We have long considered the consequence if Shedinja was somehow rid of his ability temporarily, and with our luck and the Pokémon we have to phase, it is probably extremely common."

"We've already planned out an entire moveset against that."

Then, behind the Pokémon sneaked in the Shed Pokémon and finished the job with a quadrupled effective Bug Buzz.

* * *

"This goes against everything I believe in…" Domino muttered as Zorua jumped down from her shoulder to face the Paras.

His trainer, Cassandra, had a big smile on her face. "Thank you so much for helping me evolve Paras."

"Ehh, no problem. My team needs to learn humility anyways." Domino shrugged, and sighed as she sent a reinforced psychic pulse to Zorua. "You know the plan. Lose on purpose…"

Zorua nodded. " _Got it! In that case, I have an idea._ "

She looked at the hesitant Paras, who is afraid to make the first move, since he never had seen a Pokémon like Zorua.

The Disguise Pokémon transformed into a Joltik and crawled in front of the Paras. " _Come on! You can literally defeat me by stepping on me!_ "

Paras shrunk back in fear. Domino turned to Ash and glared at him. "Why do I have to do this dishonorable nonsense?"

"Please, Princess? Just throw the battle." Ash pleaded, which earned an eye roll from the blonde.

"I swear, I'm getting way too soft around you." She remarked and turned back. "Paras has Dry Skin, so a Water shouldn't hurt it."

The Joltik jumped up and gave her opponent a light Water Gun, which got absorbed by the Mushroom Pokémon.

Cassandra kneeled down next to her Pokémon and whispered encouraging. "See? She couldn't do any damage to you. There's nothing to be afraid of. You're so close. Just a little more. Use Fury Cutter."

Paras blinked slowly, as if assessing the situation. Then, a faint, dark green light of the Bug Type energy lit up around his mouth and aimed at the Disguise Pokémon.

The first attack flew past Joltik and ended in the ground. So did the second.

Domino sighed and called out. "Enlarge yourself, Zorua."

The "Joltik" started to inflate to become Paras's shape to give him better aim. Seeing his opponent enlarge herself, the Paras shrunk back in fear.

It took another few minutes of encouraging on Cassandra's part to have him try attacking again… and also Ash being Domino's punching bag to relieve her of the "shame and disgrace of this entirety of situation."

Paras's fourth Fury Cutter hit Zorua, who barely flinched from the effective attack. The next few came more strongly, but the move expert easily diffused them into her defenses.

The ninth actually stung a bit. Domino, seeing her beloved Pokémon flinch, quickly sent her telepathic message. 'You can drop dead now.'

Zorua secretly rolled her eyes and "fainted."

Paras stood in front of them, the expected evolutionary light failed to shine.

A look of realization lit up on Ash's face. He pulled Domino to the side. "This time we were months early. Maybe Paras needs a lot more battling to evolve?"  
Domino stared at him, and then walked forward and implanted a palm on Paras's head. She extracted her hand, and the Mushroom Pokémon began to glow.

"You could have just told me he evolved last time already. Just remind him of his knowledge last time, and he'll evolve." Domino deadpanned. "We've already established knowledge is what evolves a Pokémon."

Ash opened his mouth slightly, and Misty and Brock facepalmed.

* * *

"What's next?" Ash asked his Pokédex.

"Neon City. Nothing major. You meet a Jigglypuff that would stalk you for years."

"Yeah, haha, screw that."

* * *

" _Welcome to the ranch!_ " Kirlia said brightly as she worked on her swingset hanging off of a tree.

" _Where is this place?_ " Exeggutor asked.

" _This is a ranch where Pokémon whom Ash and Domino don't carry with them stays. The owner of this place is Professor Oak. He's really nice._ " Kirlia levitated a screwdriver over with a box of screws. " _He's also the regional professor._ "

" _What does he do?_ " Exeggutor asked.

Kirlia was about to apply when Squirtle hopped over, carrying a tray of smoothies. " _Free drinks! Anyone?_ "

" _Gladly._ " Exeggutor plucked a cup out from the tray. Squirtle Aqua Jetted away.

Kirlia eyed the cup in his hands suspiciously. " _You might not want to inspect that before you drink it…_ "

" _Why?_ " The Coconut Pokémon gave the smoothie another look. " _What's wrong with it?_ "

"... _Well, first of all, that's not smoothie._ " Kirlia lifted the goop out with Psychic. " _And second, I think that's his experiemental homemade seaweed blend._ "

Exeggutor face wrinkled in disgust and immediately ripped a hole in space, teleporting it away in the blink of an eye.

" _Good decision._ " Kirlia nodded. " _Anyways, Professor Oak is who feeds us and take care of this place. He also conducts research on all sorts of Pokémon related stuff, as well as weird human stuff._ "

As Kirlia finished, a herd of Tauros stampeded through the ranch, chased by Squirtle waving his tray of 'smoothies'.

Exeggutor coughed. " _This is could take awhile to get use to._ "

* * *

"Sure. You guys can leave temporarily. There's nothing too impactful going on with Mewtwo currently anyways." Fuji returned the Rocket trio's vacation forms, sighed. "If you are going to Grandpa Canyon for the fossils, can you bring me back something meaningful?"

"Of course, if we're lucky enough." James nodded, and sent out a Metang. "Grandpa Canyon please?"

The Psychic/Steel Pokémon nodded and flashed off with them.

* * *

Moltres screamed at the top of her lungs as the cup of green ooze that had appeared out of midair splattered on her head. " _WHO THE HELL DID THIS!?_ "

A drop dripped into her mouth, and the legendary almost fainted from the taste.

She lit herself up with Flare Blitz, hoping to burn the green goo to ash, but somehow it stayed intact under her flame.

The shiny opened her mouth in shock. " _What the hell is this?_ "

She seriously couldn't take this smell any longer. With a flash of pink, she teleported herself to her underground lava base and plunged into the magma shower.

* * *

"Ay! Ashy boy!" Gary walked forward, with Violet and Giselle, tailed by his massive crowd of cheerleaders in an Indiana Jones outfit and greeted the newly appeared Ash. "I can see you got the update about Grandpa Canyon as well."

Ash nodded. "Dexter and Noah both got an notice from the Web."

Brock spoke up. "I'm calling the Aerodactyl."

Ash protested. "Hey! No fair. I wanted that."

"Me too!" Gary agreed.

Brock shrugged. "You didn't call dips."

* * *

"It's quite easy, actually." Ash demonstrated as he closed his eyes. "Just go to Aura Sight, and sense the life forces."

He pointed at a direction. "There you go, Dex."

Noah materialized and released a beam that went through into the ground. "Thermal data suggests cave below three hundred fifteen feet under the large, cake-shaped boulder."

Domino nodded and reached out with a pulse. "Got it. Ready for a teleport?"

Giselle stared at their efficiency. "How many times have you all been doing this?"

They shrugged. "Maybe a hundred. Why?"

* * *

"Prepare for trouble!" Jessie stood on top of the canyon with a megaphone.

"And make it double!" James finished her thought, before the megaphone was slapped out of his hand by Meowth.

"Da twerps ain't here, can't you see!?"

Jessie scanned the area. "...Oh yeah."

A voice sounded behind them. "Hey look who're here. The useless admins!"

The trio whipped around to find Cassidy and Brush standing behind them. "At least we're officers."

"Yeah, that's so funny." Cassidy laughed. "It's probably a fluke or blind luck or something. How can someone can useless as you three be promoted?"

Jessie growled. "Useless? More useful than you."

"Oh yeah? Prove it." Brit spoke up.

"I will, Brad!"

"IT'S BUTCH!"

A second later, the duo was blasted away with a massive Hyper Beam from Rhyperior. Jessie smiled. "Wow, the last few months trapped on that island really paid off."

"Of course! Who's a better teacher than Mewtwo, a legendary battler?"

"Wonder how much distance is between the twerps and us?"

"Wait. Are you countin' Domino too?" Meowth asked.

Jessie tilted and head, and then nodded. "Sure. She's going to be Mrs. Twerp sooner or later."

* * *

Dexter materialized a giant lightbulb into the cave, instantly lighting up the entire underground system. Undisturbed fossil Pokémon lined the place.

The Pokédex shined the light further, and the shadow of a sleeping Aerodactyl illuminated the place.

Ash closed his eyes, and opened them as he furrowed his eyebrows. "Something seems extremely wrong here. Something I didn't realize last time."

They looked at him in confusion. "What's wrong?"

""Every fossil here is alive." Ash deadpanned. "Every, single fossil is full of life, after being trapped here for thousands of years."

"What's wrong with that?" Violet asked. "The Grandpa Canyon people said that it is natural for Pokémon to live if they are hibernating in a close-off area."

"But this is unnatural. It's impossible!" Ash said. "Every single fossil here is alive. If I told you that if an entire ecosystem of ancient Pokémon is buried under a sinkhole for thousands of years, and every one of them survived, what would YOU say?"

Domino realized his point immediately, having been trained in analysis for years. "What are you saying Ash?"

"I'm saying this is improbable… without the interference of some other force. Ash looked into the darkness of the cave and closed his eyes again. "Domino. Think. What is the only force that can keep so many Pokémon alive over thousands of years that is not aura, because I didn't detect pure aura here?"

A look of horror entered her face. "You're not saying…"

Ash nodded, and Brock and Misty began to understood what they are saying as well. Lucario immediately put on a defensive stance. Gary, Violet and Giselle looked at them, lost. "What are you talking about?"

Ash took a deep breath. "Domino. Use Miracle Eye on me."

The Elite didn't waste words as a pink glow formed on Ash. He closed his eyes, which flashed with a mix of blue and pink.

A second later, he shook violently and opened his eyes. Taking a shaky breath, he said in a low voice. "It's that."

* * *

 **A/N:** **Broke 150,000 words! Go us!**

 **What's the secret under Grandpa Canyon? Wait to find out!  
Please review. It's much appreciated.**


	36. Cha 35: Kanto 31

**Cha. 35**

"What's wrong?" Gary turned to Ash, having no clue what he meant before.

Ash breathed out heavily and took out his staff, encoding it in a flow of aura. "Bad. Just know that this is very bad."

Lucario Mega Evolved and held out his hand on which a small, blue flame danced. The temporarily lighting allowed them to see into the cave. The fossils stirred.

"NO!" Ash jumped next to him and slapped the flame extinguished. "These things are fueled with Death Forces. Your aura will wake them up."

" _Then what do we do?_ " Mega Lucario looked at him and stepped back.

"If this was last time, I would've rushed in." Ash closed his eyes. "But it's not. So we say we teleport up and regroup."

"Do you think that it'll let us teleport out this easily?" Misty shook her head. "Remember how last time teleportation shut off completely?"

"Actually," Domino spoke up. "I can reach out perfectly. I can get us out of here in a second."

"Then let's go. What are we waiting for?"

"No. Misty's right. It wouldn't let us out this easily," Domino said with a glint in her eyes. "IF it is well."

"What are you suggesting?" Ash looked at her.

"If it is powerful enough to trap us here like last time, it would have. However, it is just letting us go, which means that we are powerful enough to beat it currently."

Ash realized what she was saying and looked back at the Death Force through his Death Sight. "The Aerodactyl?"

"No. It's probably just using it as a form. It can go anywhere. Mega Lucario. Make sure you make a Protect of Aura large enough to cover the depression where the Aerodactyl sits. When I beat it, it'll just try to escape and possess another fossil."

"I thought they are already filled with Death Energy _._ " Brock said.

" _These Death Energy are relatively small, in fact, minimal. I'm guessing it's just to keep them alive for whatever purpose. The Dark Energy in the Aerodactyl is the main enemy._ "

Ash took a deep breath. "You ready?"

" _Yep._ "

Ash and Domino dashed into the backside of the cave with Pikachu and Zorua, while Lucario started building a thick wall of aura between them and the squirming fossils on the outside.

Pikachu opened fire immediately as he turned the corner with a massive Thunder, which knocked something out of the air and was diffused.

Pikachu was about to second that when Ash yelled "Wait!"

Ash bent down and picked up the thing that intercepted Pikachu's Thunder. The Aerodactyl is still sleeping.

As his hand touched the thing, which now appeared to look like a button of some sort, and it started darkening. A coat of blue aura flowed to his skin instinctively.

A mass of Death Energy began to sizzle out into the air, as if evaporating. Mega Lucario shouted. " _Ash. Did you get it? The Death Forces are disappearing in my Sight!_ "

" _They Death Forces on the fossils are disappearing as well!_ "

Ash looked at the button he now had in his hand. "... I think I found something important… and false alarm, we don't have a Death Creature."

" _What?_ " Mega Lucario broke the shield and walked in with the rest of the group. He took a look at the button in Ash's hand and gasped. " _That was what was releasing the Death Forces?_ "

"Yep. An object inscribed with Death Forces." Ash nodded. "It's like how something, like a Mega Stone, is inscribed in Aura, which doesn't have to come off a living being."

"So no Death Creatures?" Misty sighed with a breath of relief.

"Nope."  
"Good!" Brock said. "Don't want to live through THAT again."

"Wait. How could a button keep all of these fossils alive?" Domino asked.

" _Maybe the button was extremely infused with Death Forces many thousands of years ago. And then it was all spent protecting these fossils for whatever reason when they collapsed into this cave._ "

" _After that, they just started to hibernate, while the button just sits here?_ "

"I guess that makes sense." Ash nodded and closed his eyes. "Whatever the case, there definitely is not anymore Death Forces here, so no Death Creatures."

"Hey look! Something is written on the button." Domino pointed at the no-longer-infused button.

"It says…" She squinted to get a better look. "Potter?"

"What the heck does THAT mean?"

A roar brought their attention back in front of them and discovered the Aerodactyl's large eyes staring at them.

* * *

Pikachu rolled his eyes. " _C'mon, big guy. Calm down. We're trying to figure out some world mysteries right now._ "

Aerodactyl roared again, and he stood up, a huge globe of white energy charging in his mouth.

Pikachu sighed. " _You're forcing me to electrocute you._ "

With that, he released a pent-up Thunderbolt that he didn't get to use on the nonexistent Death Creature. Aerodactyl fell to the ground, paralyzed.

Brock shrugged and took out a Pokéball. "Thanks, Pikachu. You're getting stronger and stronger."

The yellow mouse shrugged. "Nah. He's just too weak. He's been trapped here for millenniums, has no room to use his Flying abilities, AND who knows what the Death Forces did to him over the course of time."

The Pokéball absorbed the Fossil Pokémon. As Pikachu predicted, he was too weak to protest, and was promptly captured.

Ash took the button over and threw it in his backpack. Looking around, he shrugged. "I guess… that was a bit anticlimactic."

Misty shrugged. "You can't expect every moment of your life to be suspenseful, Ash. And with Domino's teleportation, we've been traveling around A LOT faster, and going through adventures faster too."

Brock walked over to a unwoken Omastar. "Will you join my team?"

He was, of course, given no response.

"If you don't say anything, I'll take that as a yes."

Silence. Domino rolled her eyes. "Just capture what you want and let's get out of here. It's too dark for my liking."

As his friends tried to capture Pokémon, Ash closed his eyes and did one final sweep with Death Sight, and then Aura Sight.

Something flickered with a brown light in Aura Sight next to the Aerodactyl. Ash bent down and picked it up. A smirk came to his face. Mega Stone.

Mega Stone lying next to Aerodactyl. Wonder what THAT means?

A few minutes later, the group was teleported out, with Brock's addition of Aerodactyl and Omastar, and Misty's getting a Kabutops early.

Giselle decided to add a Kabuto to her team that she wanted to train up.

Violet settled with an Omanyte instead of an Omastar because "I don't like spikes."

* * *

"Okay, Ash. Do some explaining. What the hell was all of that?" Gary fold his arms across his chest.

Ash scratched his head. "Well… I don't know. Do you remember the Tomb of the Pokélantis from last time?"

Gary nodded. "Yeah, you were just telling me about it during Grandad's party before Domino dragged you away. By the way, are you two a thing now?"

"No! Why would everyone think so!? That's insane!" Ash coughed and quickly returned to the previous subject. "Anyways, this time I went through the tomb, there was this really weird creature, and it carries a force completely opposite of aura."

"Wait… but aura is life force." Gary questioned. "The opposite of life…"

"Death." Ash finished, looking at his childhood friend. "A creature of death. The force of death. The same force that was on that button in the cave."

Gary stared at him.

Ash began again. "In the tomb, it somehow managed to create what Dexter called a paradox. We entered a room through an entrance. Perfectly normal. But then, when we try to exit, it keeps looping us back to the same room!"

"Spatial disorientation?" Gary asked.

Ash shook his head. "No. We managed to shut that possibility down in the room already. Short story is, if there is a spatial mirror, then our foreheads will loop back to become our our neck, and our neck would become our arm… and end up being a glop of flesh."

"It was the Death Creature. We don't know how either? Even Mew's teleportation didn't work."

Gary took a deep breath after comprehending everything. "You know Ash, if anyone else said the same thing to me, I would probably sign the guy into an asylum."

"But, still…" Gary sighed. "Even those words coming out of YOU, it's still…"

Ash nodded. "I know. I couldn't believe it either. It might seem really weird now, but we were scared to death in the tomb, not only by the prospect of death but the creepiness."  
"I can see." The Oak boy nodded. "What can the Death Forces do, besides making paradoxes?"

"I'm not sure. Another thing we encountered in the tomb was a bunch of sculptures- possessed, or enhanced, whatever word you want to use- by the Death Force. It is immune to Pokémon attacks, because it reforms after you break it."

"Mew had to pummel one with, like, four Prismatic Lasers, to evaporate it to kill it." Ash's face twitched as he recalled the battle. "Good thing the Death Forces were weak, and we were able to neutralize it with a crap ton of aura from our aura reservoirs."

Gary took a deep breath. "Did you tell Grandad this yet?"

"No."

"I'm sure he'll be VERY interested."

Ash nodded. "I'll make sure Dexter put that down on the to-do list."

"Noted."

"Hey Ash?"

The Ketchum boy turned around and looked at his friend that had accompanied him through all of his childhood. The first to talk to him since his mother and him moved to Pallet.

"Remember: if you need any help, I'll be there in a sec." He smirked.

Ash smiled. "Me too, Gary, me too.

* * *

"Defensive Curl! Then Flare Blitz to him and Tackle!" James commanded. Growlie carried out the orders perfectly, knocking the wind out of Brotch's Rhyhorn, ending the battle, while the Arcanine landed gracefully on the padding of his feet.

Jessie had already finished her side of the battle with Metang, easily beating Cassidy's Vileplume. She dashed over and picked her up.

And slapped her across the face.

And again.

And again.

"WHO's in CHARGE here!?" Jessie yelled.

"You…" Cassidy said in a small voice.

Jessie grinned. "Good."

James spoke up. "What will you not do next time?"

"Steal Ash Ketchum."

James gave them a look. "Damn right. Team Rocket doesn't need an enemy as terrifying as Ash Ketchum. Why else would Boss not say anything about Ms. Domino traveling with him?"

Cassidy and Broccoli stared at him. "Domino's traveling with HIM!?"

The Rocket Trio facepalmed, and Growlie also imitated them by covering his face with his paws.

Metang sighed. " _When you fail so bad…_ "

* * *

"A Farfetch'd?" Domino expressed her very distinct interest. "Hmmm… I want one."

Ash shrugged. "He has an owner already."

"Didn't he try to steal our Pokémon?" Misty said, slightly pissed.

The blonde smirked. "Stealing Pokémon? I think I know someone who's an Elite for an organization largely dedicated to stealing Pokémon for profit."

"We will not handle crime with more crime." Ash replied.

"But it'll be fun!" Domino gave him a spoiled look.

Ash sighed. "Fine. It'll be funny to see him get pranked."

"Yay!" Misty cheered along with the Elite.

Brock shook his head. "No wonder everone says that girls love revenge."

He pulled out the draft of his Book of Pickups, sequel to the first book of the series, Big Book of Flirts, and jotted down something.

Ash poked his over and sweatdropped. It read: _I love you like you love revenge_.

Pikachu reached over and slapped him with an Iron Tail. " _That's worse than one about the Jynx and the love spell!_ "

"What about…" Brock pondered his choices and came up with another one. "Revenge might be a dish serve cold, but I make sure the sex is piping hot!"

Dexter beeped. "You copied that off the Internet."

* * *

Misty knocked into the boy while she was 'chasing' after the Farfetch'd, her backpack falling to the floor and false tripping with an yelp.

"I'm so sorry!" The boy got up and pulled her up and handed her a backpack… not hers.

Misty sneered silently and got up. "Me too! Are you okay?"

"Fine." Keith ran off without a second sentence.

The Cerulean Leader smirked. "Step one, complete!"

* * *

Domino nodded to Noah, who had a giant, holographic screen set up in front of him.

"Initiating step two."

* * *

Keith arrived at his tent and threw the backpack down. His Farfetch'd jumped out of the bushes and waved at him. He ran over and gave his Pokémon a high-five. "Another successful mission!"

Farfetch'd chirped and gestured at the backpack with his bill. Keith pet the Pokémon and laughed. "I'm curious too."

He went over and opened it, and was promptly knocked back into Wild Duck Pokémon by a force.

* * *

"Force Palm delivered. Smokescreen initiated."

* * *

A massive cloud of smoke oozed out of the backpack. A large, pink face dotted with green eyes, a mouth and dots encircling the face formed, and pale ghost fires started lighting up next to him.

The sky began to darken, and started raining.

Blood.

* * *

"Releasing Spiritomb. Using Will-o-wisps. Using Rain Dance."

"How's Kirlia doing?"

"She still has gallons and gallons of red dye from Bulbasaur. The rain clouds are throughly painted." Domino said.

Ash shook his head at the prank in front of him. "This is so…"

"Unkind? Inhumane? Unlawful?" Domino supplied.

Ash looked at her sparkling purple eyes and smirked. "Yeah, and fun!"

* * *

Keith screamed and clutched Farfetch'd, and both crouched down in fear and shivered on the ground, screaming.

The large face hovered over them, dripping the red rain drops on them, and began in a cold, telepathic voice.

" _How DARE YOU!_ "

" _HOW DARE YOU AWAKEN ME!?_ "

Keith screamed again on the top of his lungs. "NO! It's not my fault!"

" _How dare you… you… Wait! Who are you!? You're not even her! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO HER!?_ "

"No, no, no!" Keith began crying. "Please don't hurt me."

" _WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO HERRRR!?_ "

"No… nothi… ng." Keith stuttered. "I… I bumped into her, and I guess I took the wrong backpack…"

" _LIAR!_ "

Keith's face twitched and buried his head in his hands.

The voice thundered on. " _Your pulse quickened by 20%. You STOLE me from her!_ "

"No...no…"

" _SHUT YOUR TRAP AND LISTEN TO ME, SINNER!_ "

Keith choked on his tears and looked up at the red, devious face, covered in blood.

" _STEALING IS A SIN! YOU HEAR ME!? A SIN! TAKING POSSESSION OF SOMEONE ELSE'S STUFF!? UNTHINKABLE!_ "

" _HOW WOULD YOU FEEL IF I, SAY, STEAL YOUR SOUL RIGHT NOW!?_ "

Keith fell on the ground, crying his eyes out and whimpered. "Please don't hurt me…"

* * *

Ash poked Domino lightly on the side, who was currently rolling on the ground, laughing with Misty.

He grabbed her up by aura, and she was still laughing in his grip.

Ash rolled his eyes and turned to Noah, while Misty was being dragged up by Brock. "Okay, let's not be overly cruel."

"This… is… killing… me!" Tears streamed out of the blonde's eyes from laughter, and she pounced back onto the grass, bringing Ash with her.

* * *

" _YOU WILL NEVER STEAL AGAIN! DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME!? BOTH OF YOU! NEVER!_ "

Keith and his Farfetch'd nodded his head exaggeratedly.

" _IF I SEE YOU COMMIT THIEVERY AGAIN, I WILL COME FOR YOUR SOUL!_ "

With that, the smoke began to disappear, and the face diffuse back into the backpack. It lifted off by itself and started toward the forest.

The Will-o-wisps died off, and the red rain stopped, leaving only the boy and the Wild Duck kneeling cowardly in the field, shaking. Both of them were dripped in red dye and mud.

* * *

"This is horrible." Ash remarked as Noah shut off the spy-cam. "I can't believe that was so fun."

Domino burst out laughing again and wrapped her arm around his shoulder. "C'mon, relax a little, Ashy. It's a good way to deal with stress, especially the stress of saving the world."

Ash nodded. "I guess, but I do feel a little bit bad."

"Good enough." Domino replied. "I was predicting your feeling extremely bad."

* * *

Professor Oak sat across the table from the giant white board full of equations and numbers and looked at his old friend.

"What do you think? Did I get it right?"

Celebi shot him a look. " _Yes if you only want to shoot one electron through time. With this, you can't even make ONE atom time-travel._ "

Oak shrugged. "It's a good enough beginning. Remember. I'm doing this as a mass-producing project. Imagine a thousand machines lining up to shoot electrons through space-time.

Celebi rolled her eyes. " _Then what?_ "

Oak coughed, slightly embarrassed. "It's a working project!"

He went back to working on the board, and Celebi watched with her eyes half-closed.

* * *

"I can't believe they forgot Togepi!" Meowth yelled as he gently picked up the egg in the fossil site. "This is intolerable!"

Jessie took the egg over from the talking Pokémon, with quite some difficulty, in fact. "C'mon, let's go. We need to return it to Ash."

"Return it!?" Meowth shouted. "But I want Togepi!"

James sighed. "I know you loved the little kid, Meowth, but you have to let her go."

"Misty is a way better parent than us. She's stable… when she's not following Ash, and she's a great trainer. She'll give him immense care."

"If she stays with Team Rocket, she'll grow up in an environment of darkness. We still are an underground organization, even though Boss now trust us with a lot of stuff."

Meowth looked unsure, and he looked back at the peaceful egg in his hold.

"Misty is like her mother, and they spent so much time together and had so much memories." Jessie continued. "Ripping her out of her mother's hands will be so cruel to Togepi."

James looked to the Scratch Cat. "A parent would never let his daughter get hurt now, will him?"

Meowth looked down at the egg with tears in his eyes. A drop fell on the shell, and he sighed. "I don't wanna leave you."

Jessie gently took him. "Let's pay a visit to Professor Oak. He'll know where they are."

* * *

Giratina, Mew 1, Mew 2 and Mewtwo sat at the table with giant mahjong tiles.

" _HEY! No psychic!_ " Mew 1 tossed a Psybeam at her sister, while glaring at Mewtwo. " _Just because this is your mind doesn't mean you can cheat!_ "

Mewtwo silently retracted the eye from behind Mew, while stating honorably. " _I don't cheat. I observe._ "

Giratina took out an eyeball and squashed it into its original psychic elements. " _Observe that._ "

The Renegrade Dragon shook his head. " _This is like playing poker with my brothers and Arceus all over again._ "

" _We ended up having to have Aaron be the referee to catch any violation of rules._ "

" _Rules?_ " Both Mew asked curiously.

Giratina silently took out a giant binder and tossed it above the table. " _Yep! TRAROTDPB._ " _The Rules And Regulations Of The Deity Poker Bloodshed._ "

All three psychic legends sweatdropped.

* * *

" _Ash?_ " Bulbasaur tapped his trainer with a vine. " _Can I talk to you privately?_ "

"Of course." Ash nodded and excused himself from the pool table and headed to a corner of the Pokémon Center. "What's up?"

Bulbasaur fidgeted, and finally found the courage to begin. " _We're almost at the Mysterious Garden for Bulbasaur's evolution. And… I don't know what to do?_ "

Ash smiled at him warmly. "You're not sure whether you to evolve?"

Bulbasaur nodded.

His trainer asked, "I thought you strongly refused to last time?"

" _Yeah, but this time is different._ " The Poison/Grass Type looked at his trainer with seriousness. " _We're going against a power that could contort space-time this time. THe world is at danger. I need to be strong to carry the load._ "

Ash picked up his loyal Pokémon and set him on his lap. "That's so chivalrous, Bulbasaur, but don't worry about the world yet."

"Remember, our friends are here with us, and we're going to encounter a lot more friends still. We will work together to be strong, to beat Cyrus and to defend the world. It's not a one-man job, Bulbasaur."

" _But… you've sacrificed so much yourself!_ " Bulbasaur protested, a glint of tears glistening. " _Your childhood was dedicated to saving the world, saving us!_ "

Ash smiled. "It's an honor to having been the one to stand up for what's right. It was no sacrifice. It was a privilege."

" _And I need to do the same!_ " Bulbasaur looked at him with determination.

"Listen to me, Bulbasaur. Listen closely." Ash began gently. "You're a great Pokémon. Strong, loyal, smart. Evolving may bring you a sudden surge of power, but at the end of the day, you can get the power by training hard."

"Look at Pikachu. He can probably beat thirty Raichu in a tug of electricity. Evolving isn't the only way to become powerful. In fact, evolving is just a way to show that you are powerful. As you began to get more experienced, you changed your form."

"But that's not great a lot of the times. If you evolve to Venusaur, and I know fully well you can in a heartbeat if you want, you will have to fight using your increased size, and stopped with your current style centered on speed."

"My point is, evolving isn't the only way to get strong." Ash looked at the Seed Pokémon. "Don't let any other factors influence your decision of evolution. You will evolve only because you would want to, and not anything else."

Bulbasaur nodded as he absorbed Ash's words.

"You're good enough for whatever comes our way, I promise you. Have fun. That was what Arceus said to us before he sent Domino and me down. We will do what we can, and let fate take care of the rest."

"And believe me: Fate is always on our side. Just look at all of the life-and-death situations we've been in. It's a miracle I can still stand here!"

" _Then I've decided. I want to remain in this form. We don't need to go to the garden._ " Bulbasaur sucked in a deep breath. " _And I will train harder to get more powerful everyday!_ "

Ash smiled. "Okay, Bulbasaur. That's great! I'll get you an Everstone as a present someday."

The Grass/Poison Type walked away, with tears in his eyes. Who needed fate, when you had a trainer who would support you to the end?

* * *

Celebi flashed in front of Misty and waved. " _HI!_ "

Misty choked on her milkshake in surprise and yelped. "Wha…"

" _Sorry to surprise you._ " The Time Traveler looked apologetic. " _So… how's life?_ "

"Great?" The redhead looked at the legendary in front of her. "Not to be rude but, why are you here?"

Celebi placed an egg on the table next to her drink. " _Long story short, the Rocket Trio found your Togepi's egg that you guys forgot at the Fossil Site, and they came to Professor Oak and asked him to hand it to you._ "

Misty didn't pay attention to anything she said after the words: "Togepi's egg". She looked at the dotted egg lovingly and hugged it to her. Quickly, she took out a blanket and wrapped it around the shell.

" _No need. Just ask Ash to restore her memory for you._ " Celebi said. " _Also, Meowth said that if you don't spoil her, he will rip through time space to come find you._ "

Misty sweatdropped and turned around to call Ash. When she turned back, Celebi already disappeared. She shrugged and went back to the Center.

* * *

Domino grabbed onto Ash's hand. "I want to do it this time."

Ash smirked. "Be my guest, Princess."

The girl held out a hand and placed it on the egg, which started shining.

"I guess the familiarity rule is irrelevant?" Ash said.

The Elite smirked. "Nah, it's just that I'm awesome!"

Ash put an arm on her shoulder. "You are."

The egg's glow began to be blinding. After reaching maximum, they heard a crack. When the lights died down, a giant Togekiss almost filling up the entire room emerged.

"You never told me she was a Togekiss!" Domino said, pissed, as she tried to become un-squished from the wall.

* * *

"Togekiss!" Misty sent her beloved Pokémon out again on the grass. "I missed you!"

Togekiss welcomed her hug and snuggled her head into her trainer's hair. " _I missed you too, Mama. What happened?_ "

Dexter and Noah materialized at the same time, used to the routine. Misty sweatdropped. "It's a long story. A very, very long story. Let's not let these unnecessary details interrupt us."

Dexter turned to look at his counterpart. "Did we just get called unnecessary details?"

Noah nodded with a pained look on his face. "Affirmative. We did."

* * *

 **A/N: Any clever names for Death Creature? What about Death Force? Give me ideas for something cool!**

 **Please review. They are appreciated, and it'll take you less than ten seconds.**


	37. Cha 36: Kanto 32

**Cha. 36**

Domino looked at the "gun" pointing out of the bush and rolled her eyes. "To be honest, this is pathetic. I can't believe people think that sticking a tube out of a bush is 'camouflage."

Ash smirked. "Yeah, even I noticed it last time."

"We should have Noah hack into his camera and prank him." Domino smirked evilly, to which Ash responded with a chill sent down his body, recalling her last prank which made a kid cry.

"Or, on second thought," Ash coughed.

"C'mon out! We see you." The Pallet Boy called aloud before Domino can do anything too out of line.

The blonde pouted. "Fun-spoiler."

A figure stood out of the bush and scratched his head. "I guess I wasn't hiding that good…"

He stepped through and held a hand up to be shook. "I'm Todd. I'm a Pokémon photographer. I was just hiding so I can get some natural pictures of your Pokémon and you dining."

Pikachu shrugged, barely casting a second glance as he was enjoying Zorua's massage. " _Yes, this happened last time._ "

Zorua sighed. " _The amount of weird stuff you all encounter is just… bizarre._ "

" _I guess that's the life with Ash._ "

Ash spared a look at his faithful starter and turned back to Todd as an idea came to mind. "A photographer? Nice. Our group is thinking about making a movie soon, and we would really like a professional photographer to help us with the production!"

Todd looked shocked at the offer. "Movie? Really? And you're inviting me to be your film shooter?"

"Yeah. Can I have your number?" Ash smiled and nodded.

"Of course!" Todd jumped up excitedly. "That's awesome! I've never been offered something like this. Can I see the script?"

Ash shrugged. "I'll email you the script later when everything is 99% polished out. But I guess, welcome to the team!"

Domino looked at him and deadpanned. "You know that I can have the entire top set of Cinderwood to be working for us in the snap of a hand, right? They have freakin' photographers that had won dozens of prizes! And big ones too."

Ash smirked. "Nah, that's intentionally seeking out stuff. Let fate take us on a trip. Go with the flow, and use what we encounter."

Domino stared at him. Ash smiled and continued. "I realized this when I was talking to Bulbasaur last week. I know you don't get what I'm saying right now, but just think about it."

The Elite looked at an interesting spot on the ground. "Actually, I think I do, a little."

Ash grinned and pat her back. "Good. Now treat life the same way. Treat Cyrus the same too."

"That's insane." Jessie sighed. "We are NOT creating a fake Breeding Center. Do you know the amount of revenue we need to build the place, advertise it, go through insurance, establish trust AND actually taking care of them?"

Cassidy looked embarrassed and mumbled. "Just a thought…"

James rolled his eyes. "With the amount of money we have to put on this, we'll need…"

Meowth, the official accountant for them now, poked at his quaculator. "a year and a half ta pay back da bills, and more dan three years ta get the fake business inta full launch, not countin' in the risks of discovery, revenge and financial interference from other firms."

"What if you did count in the risk?"

"Six years." The talking Pokémon deadpanned.

"Glad to meet you!" Melvin, the circus trickster and magician, shook the hand of the woman in front of him. She has a plain dress, which still could not cover her beauty and elegance, enlarged by her flowing auburn hair.

"Very nice to meet you too." Delia Ketchum smiled back. "Especially with that room trick you did. It was so realistic! I felt like you _actually_ teleported through the wall."

"Thank you." Melvin scratched the back of his head, laughing. "Teleportation is ridiculous. Only psychics can teleport."

"And if I were to be a psychic," He elbowed Delia. "I would be here working for Abra Assets for twenty bucks an hour, am I right?"  
The two fell into laughter as the circus closed.

"The Pokémon League Admissions Exam is the biggest pile of bull crap I've ever known." Ash declared. "And that means a lot coming from me because, trust me, I've seen a lot of bs."

Misty agreed. "Yeah, they don't test anything. Who cares if you know the shape of a Pokémon in near complete darkness. It's like Pokémon Tech Institute. You learned a bunch of crap, a quarter of which you would never use."

"It's easy." Domino teased. "Just look into the examiner's mind and see what HE's using as an answer."

Ash rolled his eyes, which allowed him to catch sight of three very familiar figures.

His friends followed his line of sight over to discover as well the Rocket Trio standing in line for the registration.

Raising an eyebrow, Ash picked himself up and went after them, followed by the group.

"What are you three doing here?" Ash's voice rang up beside them. James turned around abruptly, and relaxed when he saw the boy.

"Hey, what's up Ash?" He said nonchalantly. "I want to be a Pokémon master, don't you know?"

Domino approached him and scoffed. "You? Even a Weedle Trainer has a better chance."

Jessie and James did a coded salute, to which Domino nodded. "I thought you're on New Island watching Mewtwo?"

"We were, but then Dr. Fuji said we're on break for a while, and Mewtwo is busy currently."

"Busy?" Dark lines immediately formed on Ash's face. "What kind of busy?"

The trio shrugged. "Playing games with two Mews and Giratina."

The group blinked. It really wasn't common for them to be on the receiving end of well… ridiculousness.

"Jigglypuff." Ash said.

The examiner made a grunt of disapproval. "Incorrect. The diagram above shows a Clefairy."

Ash stared at him like looking at an idiot. "So you're telling me that…"

The examiner blew a whistle in his face. "Please do not interrupt until I've finished asking the question.

"Muk." Domino said in another room.

The diagram changed, and she immediately called out. "Magikarp."

"Rhyhorn."

"Ivysaur."

"The legend of fire: Moltres."

"That's a trick question." She pointed at a 'picture' of Chimchar. "Chimchar is from Sinnoh. You said the test was only on Kanto Pokémon."

"Squirtle." James said confidently.

"Mankey."

"Tauros?" Now no so confidently, failing to recall what was written on the "Guide to League Admissions Test", which contained all of the answers to the 'questions' the League expected trainers to know.

"Slowbro."

"You're doing well." The examiner nodded. "Now a tricky one."

James gave one look at the picture and shouted. "Mew!"

Jessie stood in the waiting room, tapping her foot impatiently. "Are they done yet?"

Misty shrugged. "These take a long time. And after this, there is still a live battling part where the examiner gives you Pokémon and you have to use them to show that you are winning because of skill and not a Pokémon's raw power."

"That should be easy." She shrugged. "We use Rocket Pokémon to complete missions anyways. Only until recently when I took up the job with Fuji did we start to have more stationary Pokémon."

Ash stared at the scoreboard. He swirled around and pointed at Domino and yelled. "Cheater!"

The Elite shrugged and gave him a flick to the head. "It's called leverage, Ashy."

Domino, out of the thirty who were taking the test, was currently in first on the scoreboard with, well, perfect.

James scored above average, but that was because he, like most others in that range, brought the League published guide and was forced to succumb to their 'interpretation of knowledge'.

Ash… well… let's not even go there. It's just… painful.

Ash stared at his score. Domino fell to the ground, after she saw Ash's grade. "I can't believe this! You are actually a Doughnut!"

Ash growled and pulled her up, in the process into him. "And you need to be in a mental hospital."

The blonde smirked. "Nah, I'll blow out their fuse."

Ash touched her hand lightly. "And who are you to say anything? You cheated your way through."

Domino pouted with a teasing glint. "No one ever said I can't use telepathy!"

Brock walked over and pat Ash's shoulder. "The exam is a fraud. I've been trying to vote it off for so long, so have all of the other Gym Leaders. It doesn't say anything about actual battling skills."

"Why don't you?"

"Because of stockholders." Brock said, opening his palm in a useless gesture, "Markets, businesses, school boards, etc."

"James seems pretty happy about his score." Misty walked back from a chat with the Rocket Trios. "Jessie didn't do it this year because she's afraid she'll lose control of her anger and slap the examiner."

"Good." Ash laughed. "At least I'm not the only one with that thought."

"Don't stress it." Misty shrugged. "Next part is your favorite thing in the world: battling. If they fail you on battling, I could just introduce them to my mallet."

"Articulate your name." A strict looking examiner in a white lab coat, was in charged of his battling.

"Ash Ketchum."

"Mr. Ketchum." He jotted down the name on a clipboard, "you would be given six Pokémon choices, and you are required to choose three of them to battle me. Whichever you did not choose would be my Pokémon for the match."

"In addition, you must choose one Pokémon of your own against one of mine."

Misty, spectating, raised her hand. "I don't remember that to be a rule."

The examiner shot her a look. "It is to judge whether the trainer spend enough time training his own Pokémon."

He handed over five Pokéballs. "Raticate, Kakuna, Sandslash, Pidgey and Scyther, Cloyster."

The logical choice here is to go with the three more powerful: Cloyster, Sandslash and Scyther. Not only are they diverse, but always relatively powerful.

However, Ash smiled and said, "I want a challenge, so I'll take the Raticate, Kakuna and Pidgey please."

The examiner raised his eyebrows and gave Ash a second look. "I admire your bravery, or foolishness, Mr. Ketchum."

He threw the three picked Pokéballs over, and Ash caught them confidently. "We shall see about that…"

He looked at the guy's name plate, "Dr. Heming."

"Indeed we shall."

"Both sides are allowed three Pokémon. Switches are eligible. There would be no ring-outs."

"Ready?" The referee asked, and after getting a nod from both, he raised the flag. "Begin!"

Ash quickly formulated a plan in his head. The most ideal case would be to use Pidgey against Scyther because of the Flying advantage, Weedle against Cloyster because of the Poison disadvantage against Sandslash, and Raticate against Sandslash.

However, Ash was never one for Type advantage. His plan…

Pidgey as the maneuverable offense, Kakuna is a defensive shield, and Raticate is a support.

Working all that methods into a one v one match, now THAT's the hard part.

Ash started with a conservative Raticate. Opposite of him was Dr. Heming sent out Sandslash.

Ash pointed at the Sandslash and shouted. "Thunder Wave."

The wave of electricity passed through Sandslash with no effect.

Misty blinked. "He does realize that this isn't Pikachu, right?"

Brock smirked and shook hi head. "In no way is Ash that stupid. He's faking weak, trying to lower the alert Heming has for him. He's probably preparing some really strong combo right now."

Dr. Heming, seeing the electric wave, laughed. "Kid, you know that Electric has no effect on Ground?"

Ash smacked his head. "Oh yeah…"

His opponent laughed and ordered. "Sandslash, get close to him with Rollout, and then Swipe!"

Ash smiled. Exactly as expected.

"Raticate, Flame Wheel."

"You have a higher health, Sandslash! Faster! Keep going!"

Of course.

"Pick yourself off the floor! Extreme Speed!" Ash called out.

Raticate did as ordered, but Ash noticed a slight tremble in his pace and sighed. It wasn't his Pokémon, so not up to his standards. He has to keep that in mind while battling.

"Use the momentum to roll up the wall and back. Then Ice Beam to the max!"

Sandslash was forced to keep going because of his momentum. As he hit the wall, he took a second to stop and turn around.

A second was enough for Raticate to prepare the Ice Type Attack. When Sandslash turned around, all he saw was a red ball charging at him, with a hazy cloud on its front.

Before he could react, or Heming could call an order, Sandslash was hit with a triple- whammy.

The first effective Ice Beam knocked him into shock, which was then followed by the crushing force of the Flame Wheel, which gained momentum from falling from the roof.

It melt a large part of the ice brought from the Ice Beam, but the Sandslash would rather take frozen then being crushed again.

Ash then called for Raticate to follow up with a Double Edge, but the Mouse looked at him tiredly. Ash internally sighed. Of course not all Pokémon have the stamina to follow up with his insane tactics.

"Then how about a Hyper Fang?"

Raticate complied this time, and sunk his teeth into Sandslash, still in shock from the point-blank Ice Beam.

Misty grinned. "Now THAT looks like something Ash would do."

They traded a look. Misty spoke up. "Yeah, he's gotten a lot better. When I left him last time after Johto, his battling skills are still not fully developed yet. I guess he finally found his style."

Brock nodded, and turned back to the battle. "If it was me, I would've started with a Sandstorm to give myself environmental advantage, and then press that onto Raticate."

"Yep, me too." Misty said. "But I guess he thought Ash was a noob, so he went reckless. Bad decision."

"Horrible." Brock agreed. "Never with Ash."

"Grass Knot." Ash looked at his Raticate, who was out of breath from the series of attacks, therefore settling with a less demanding move.

The Grass Knot worked, putting the already shocked and distracted opponent to sleep.

Dr. Heming stomped his feet loudly. "This is so unfair! That shouldn't be possible! It never happened on the simulator!"

Black lines formed along Ash's head. "Are you from Pokémon Tech Institute?"

"Yes!" Dr. Heming shouted. "Got my Ph. D in battling."

Misty giggled in the bystander bleachers. This guy? Battling?

Even a Rocket grunt could beat him. Okay, maybe not grunt, but agent.

Ash sighed. "Simulators are inaccurate. They fail to take into account so many things. Plus, they only indicate stuff that has been done and proven. What if someone invented something new?"

"Sure." Heming sneered. "Get to it! I stalled you long enough. The effect of Grass Knot would diminish any second now."

"According to what?" Ash shouted. "Simulator? That's just the raw amount. You didn't factor in Sandslash's tiredeness or the time.

Ash pointed at the emerging dusk. "It's almost night. Pokémon wants to go to sleep by ow anyways."

Heming was about to reply when Ash turned to Raticate. "Talk about stalling time, I have stalled YOU enough time, Raticate. Let's go for that Double Edge again."

Raticate growled and launched himself into the air. He wasn't hurt from the previous exchange, so it was easy to catch his breath. He used an Uproar while falling onto Sandslash, dealing some extra damage while waking him.

However, there was no movement due to the momentary shock from the previous outcry.

Raticate raised his fist, glowing with a white energy and launched into Sandslash's sides two strikes. A pain rose from the Ground Type's stomach, bending him over. His eyes rolled to the back of his head, and passed out.

Misty and Brock stood up and cheered from the side. "Now that's how you do it, Ash!"

Ash waved back, while Heming returned his Pokémon and gave it to the referee to take to the healing station.

"And the match continues!" The referee blew a whistle after his return, signaling the continuation of the battle.

Ash allowed the Mouse to stay in the match, since he wasn't too hurt, but just somewhat out of energy.

Another reason is that Heming couldn't use previous knowledge to send something with a type advantage, since there wasn't any Fighting Type in the picking.

His opponent sent out Cloyster after some careful choosing. In one look, Ash knew what he was thinking.

Heming was playing the safe way now. It wasn't easy to beat a Pokémon like Cloyster, or at least not without some powerful attacks to break the shield.

Good thing Lorelei had one, so he had already thought of dozens of ways to counter it. Normally, he would lower Cloyster's speed and his Pokémon's speed, most of their main styles, to press the advantage, but that clearly won't work with Raticate, who easily ran out of stamina the last time he tried.

He came to another plan immediately. Heming is probably going to start with a status boosting move, since he was playing it safe, which gives him an opportunity to prepare for something massive enough to break through the shell's natural protection.

As predicted, Cloyster shone with the light of Barrier, polishing his exoskeleton. Ash smirked and delivered his order to Raticate in aura so the others wouldn't hear.

Raticate looked back and him a nodded.

The mouse then copied himself into eight Double Teams. Then, as Cloyster was still polishing his defense, Raticate opened his mouth and Screech.

All eight, at the same time.

Immediately, the effect showed. The Barrier Cloyster was just putting on himself collapsed, and his shell darkened, losing the natural defensive ability.

Brock clapped his hands in the bleachers. "Bravo, what a great idea. He's really grown from the first time I saw him."

Misty nodded with an impressed look in her eyes. "That's right. Using Double Teams to Screech, which lowers stages of Defense. Even though each Double Team's Screech isn't as powerful as the original, it still adds up quickly. He really had put in a lot thought into his future battles with the Elite Four."

Brock smiled. "He's definitely making it this time."

"Hell yeah." Misty grinned.

"STOP IT!" Heming covered his ears, the Screech sounding as terrible to him as it to the intended recipient.

Across from him, Ash stood nonchalantly with aura coating his ears. Many people think that a Pokémon battle was just between Pokémon and trainers' intellect, but that was wrong. It was also about attitude, and the level of focus.

Distractions were unacceptable when you were battling with a Master class trainer.

Dr. Heming, focusing his priority on the Double Teams and trying to determine the real one, never saw the real Mouse hanging upside down on the roof, charging a Hyper Beam.

Raticate fell onto the floor carefully, stumbling due to the lack of stamina and tiredness from the previous battle. However, his aim was still precise, launching a Hyper Beam directly at the nullifying shell of the Cloyster, the little figure unnoticed by the Pokémon and trainer until the orange beam was shooting out of his mouth.

Cloyster released a heart-clenching cry from taking head-on the super powerful attack, especially with his extremely lowered defense.

Knocked back, he was stunned by the force, lying on the ground without movement. With one look of Aura Sight, Ash determined that it was just temporary shock, and not unconsciousness.

Ash nodded encouragingly at Raticate. "It says on your introduction card that I've used all of the moves you know?"

Raticate nodded, a bit ashamed. Ash laughed. "Nothing to be embarrassed about. People grow, Pokémon grow. Let's grow together."

A flash of gratefulness, as well as recognization, appeared on his face. All of a sudden, he was filled with a newfound energy.

Detecting his sudden burst of energy and aura, Ash continued. "But first, let finish this with a Last Resort!"

Raticate growled and ran at the stunned Cloyster with her truly last move that could be initiated only after every move was used.

Restricted moves, though inconvenient, were always strong. It was a fact. The Last Resort crashed into Cloyster, and both slammed into the wall and fell to the ground.

When the referee ran over to check the tangle of Pokémon, he found both to have passed out.

"Impressive." Misty remarked. "That was a tough fight, beating two relatively strong Pokémon with Raticate, who was no doubt weaker than him."

"He did work Raticate too hard." Brock casted a look to the Mouse, currently being sent to the healing station due to the straining of energy. "Ash's tactics is way too demanding, working only with his own Pokémon."

"Yeah. And these Pokémon the League provides aren't weak at all. They're just average… and Ash is not average, by any means."

Dr. Heming gripped his last Pokéball. He was trying his hardest to avoid this situation, but it still occurred. He had to face Pidgey with Scyther, an obvious disadvantage. To Ash, it would mean nothing. To him, a graduate of the Pokémon Tech Institute, it was mostly definitely important.

Why? Lesson One: Don't face another Pokémon with one who had a Type disadvantage.

Throughout the years, he found exceptions and began to understand the necessity to become flexible, but the teaching from before still haunt him…

Like now.

He threw out Scyther, and ordered it to take a defensive stance.

Ash gave him a look, and picked up two Pokéball, holding them to his mouth and whispering something. He then released… Kakuna.

Ash smirked. "I don't work off Types."

He called out. "Harden, my friend."

Misty sighed. "Please not this game again."

"Are you referring to the Metapod vs Metapod thing again?" Brock asked.

The redhead pouted. "Yup!"

Seeing Kakuna Harden, Heming decided to take some actions before his opponent become unbeatable. "Scyther! X-scissors."

"String Shot away!" Ash commanded, and the Kakuna successfully attached a thread to the other side and dodged away from the attack.

"Night Slash!"

"Dodge!"

Again the Dark Type attack wasa evaded by another String Shot.

The pattern continued for several more rounds, until Dr. Heming yelled. "What is the point of this!? Are you just going to dodge forever!?"

"Heming's not thinking out of the box." Misty said. "He could fake Kakuna out. Even though it wouldn't work with Ash's Aura Sight, he still should have tried it."

Brock agreed. "Plus, had he not thought about why Ash is using Kakuna if he can use Pidgey against him? Wanting a challenge isn't an answer in this case."

Misty thought back on Ash's style and realized his decision. "He needs a distraction."

The Pewter leader nodded. "Yep. Heming is about to go down right here."

Ash smirked. "Dodge!"

Another Fury Swipe landed in the air, making Heming growl. Scyther spinned around immediately, expecting Kakuna to come from a side, like before.

However, when he turned, he saw nothing. Instead, he heard a loud sound, as if something breaking the air in an extremely fast speed, and simultaneously, Heming's yell of warning.

Too late.

Ash returned Kakuna and sent out Pidgey from behind him. The Tiny Bird Pokémon zoomed at the Mantis Pokémon with a Brave Bird, hitting critically on the back of his head, sending her poor opponent down in a thump.

An overwhelming dizziness came to Scyther. In his fuzziness, he heard Herming shouting for a Bug Buzz.

He got up woozily, and sent a Bug Buzz in Pidgey's direction, which the winged Pokémon dodged.

Misty shook her head. "Heming should have taken advantage of Scyther's Swarm and Technician ability. Scyther is probably below a third health right now, so Swarm would've have doubled his weaker Bug attacks, and would be doubled again by Technician."

"So a Fury Cutter would've done even more damage than Bug Buzz."

"He probably does know, since the teachers at the Institute make them remember everything." Brock shrugged. "He probably just forgot it in the heat of the battle. They barely give ANY real-life training."

"Let's finish this!" Ash called. "Air Slash!"

The blue Flying energy connected with Scyther, who failed to dodge, and sending him crashing to the ground with the type disadvantage.

Ash smiled. "Even though I don't focus on types, they do help ease MY job."

The referee blew the whistle and held up a flag toward Ash's side. "Congratulations to Ash Ketchum, the winner of this match."

Heming blew out a breath and went over to Ash to shake his hand. "You know, kid, that was an impossible battle. I would've definitely won, according to the sim. What you did was a miracle."

Ash shook his head. "No it's not. Believe me, I've seen miracles. That was just experience."

"How old are you?" Dr. Heming looked at him curiously.

Ash smiled and released the handshake. "I'm A LOT older than I look. Age is too misleading."

" _BUILD, BUILD, BUILD!_ " Arceus cheered.

" _SHUT UP, DAD!_ " Palkia yelled. " _IT'S SO NOT FAIR! WHY DID YOU LET GIRATINA GO DOWN TO THE REALITY WORLD, AND WE HAVE TO WORK!?_ "

Sir Aaron grunted and repeated after Arceus at the same time. "Because Giratina has connections there, and you don't have a link, so you'll be trapped in the void between dimensions."

Palkia shrugged. " _I 'M THE GOD OF SPACE. WHY DOES THAT MATTER?_ "

Dialga sighed. " _Can you please stopping yelling and help me by antigravitating this moon to the top of the tower. We're almost done with the Hall anyways. If Giratina wouldn't be back by next month, I'm calling dibs on his bedroom._ "

 **A/N: The League Qual Test makes no sense to me. I have no clue why it's in the anime, though it's still fun to write about.**

 **An incoming chapter would be on Christmas, and ideas on Christmas gifts would be appreciated. What would our 4 heroes get from each other? What about 3 other unnamed legends?**

 **Please review, and I hope you had enjoyed. :)**


	38. Cha 37: Kanto 33

**Cha. 37**

"Next match would be a choice of your own Pokémon." The referee called. "No returns. Begin!"

Pikachu jumped out without Ash commanding. At the same time, Lucario dashed into the field as well.

Seeing the potential threat of his battle being stolen, Pikachu growled and slammed a Thunderbolt into Lucario for him to back off.

Lucario had the same idea, materializing a giant Aura Sphere which collapsed and exploded with the Electric attack, sending a wave of power through the air.

Before the crashing energy even began to fade, Lucario charged a Force Palm and collided with Pikachu's Volt Tackle.

Lucario was sent into the wall, while Pikachu was launched onto the bleachers and caught by Togekiss.

Ash sweatdropped and shook his head. "Come out, Absol."

The Disaster Pokémon materialized into the center of the field. " _So this is what a battle looks like?_ "

"Yes." Ash nodded. "Do you want to try it?"

Absol smiled at him. " _I'll love to. Now, what do I do?_ "

"Mostly just rely on your instincts. I don't like to give commands, unless I have to." Ash said. "I'm trying to train up everyone's independent battling skills because when I go against…"

He trailed out as he shot a look at Heming. "Anyways, the battle."

The Doctor looked at him weirdly, and then at the Pikachu and Lucario, before hesitantly pulling out a Pokéball.

"Go, Hitmonlee!" The Fighting Type landed, and Ash smirked.

"Still stuck in the traditional mindset of Type advantage?"

Heming ignored his comment and pointed. "Jump Kick! Get close to him! Double Kick!"

Hitmonlee jumped into the air and brought his foot toward Absol, whose horn shone and the disaster senses kicked in. She easily dodged the kick, and through the quick movements of the Double Kick which seemed to come at the same time.

The Dark Type smirked. " _Let me teach you a lesson: You don't get physical with a Pokémon who can sense you from miles away._ "

Hitmonlee yelled and charged at him with a High Jump Kick. It pierced through the Double Team, trapping him in midair with barely any maneuverability.

Then he was hit by a Psycho Cut mixed with Future Sight, both reaching the target.

The Kicking Pokémon roared in pain as he was pummeled back down. As soon as he hit the ground, he turned around and ran a Mega Kick through Absol… 's Substitute.

Ash whistled quietly. Even he didn't expect the diaster senses to be this op.

The real Absol appeared on top of him, in the nick of time that Hitmonlee was trapped in immobility from launching the previous kick, and bending it back to recharge.

She flew down with Aerial Ace while using Flamethrower. The two attacks successfully slammed into Hitmonlee, knocking him high in the air.

Absol finished the job by smashing a Rock Tomb down, ending the battle.

Pikachu smirked and gave her a thumbs-up. Lucario clapped. " _Fast, powerful, and deadly. I like it._ "

* * *

When Ash had trotted over to Domino's battlegrounds, he was just in time for the sight of Zorua, transformed into a Tyrantrum, knocking her opponent, evidently a Ninetales.

Pikachu ran over to her and kissed her, after she dropped her disguise. " _That was so cute, Zo. Though, you did knock her out excessively hard._ "

Zorua pouted. " _Too hard?_ _What, are you crushing on the Ninetales?_ "

Pikachu snuggled his head into her tuft of fur. " _Nah, who needs nine when I already have one?_ "

Ash sweatdropped as he witnessed the two making out in the middle of the battle field, and walked over to Domino. "How was it?"

She shrugged. "Piece of cake. I got Nidorina, Machamp and Flareon, against a Tangela, Zubat and Graveler. They put up a good fight, but not good enough."

"My Pokémon were great battler, but… I feel like something is missing. A link. But after, in the battle with Zorua, Her gaze lowered slightly. "It felt almost perfect. We knew exactly what each others are thinking, and I know her strength and weakness like the back of my hand."

"That happens." Ash replied. "Sometimes when you get new Pokémon, it takes a while for you to develop a bond. That's why I train Pokémon with care and friendship and not raw strength. The cooperation between trainer and Pokémon is what I believe to be the greatest strength."

"Agreed. I never noticed it when I use Pokémon for Team Rocket, since they are switched constantly." Domino said. "But now that I have my own, I know the feeling. This bond is so important."

"Especially with Zorua and Kirlia. I feel like they're not just my battlers, but my sisters."

"It's the same thing with Pikachu and I." Ash smiled. "That's bonding, and it creates unthinkable effects."

He then looked at her seriously. "Now do you understand why it's wrong to steal Pokémon from trainers? It's like tearing away family. How would you feel if someone steals Zorua from you?"

"I would make a clone of him, and then make him eat himself!" Domino stared back with a death glare, which softened later. "I know it's wrong, but it still has to happen. It's the way of life."

"There are the bright side, which is where you grew up." She paused. "And then there's Team Rocket, my childhood."

She looked down. "It's like Ying and Yang. You can't have one without the other. Do you know what I'm saying?"

"Don't think about it. The past is the past." Ash pulled her to him, knowing that her memories are stirring up again. "And I do know what you are talking about. I might not have last time, but I do this time. There must be a balance to the universe."

Domino buried her head into his hug, and the two stood, each thinking about their own past.

* * *

Ash pulled his hands out of his pockets and grudgingly took over his report card and shot a look at his grade: Satisfactory.

He rolled his eyes and placed it in a folder, before throwing it in his backpack, repeating for the hundredth time. "This is so stupid."

Domino giggled and waved her "Outstanding" in his face. Ash grumbled something incoherent and swatted the paper away.

The group turned around, and saw the Rocket Trio approaching them. Jessie waved. "Hey, twerps and Domino."

The Black Tulip rolled her eyes. "What did you three get on the exam?"  
James shot a look at his paper. "It says advanced, but I think it's because I bought the League-published book for the knowledge exam."

Ash shrugged. "Again, this is so stupid."

The trio laughed. "Well, well, well. We finally beat the great Ash Ketchum at something."

Ash sighed. "You three aren't getting into any more trouble?"

"Nope." Jessie shook her head. "Our primary mission right now is just to guard New Island. Boss said he's giving us more important jobs than stealing if we can take care of Mewtwo well enough."  
"Good luck with that." Ash said. "Get me if something looks wrong with Mewtwo."

"Surpisingly, he's really calm. I think he's into meditating." James said. "He invited us into his inner world a few times already, and nothing is similar to last time."

"How long is there until the end of his incubation?" Domino asked.

Meowth ran the numbers and gave a rough estimate. "A month?"

"That's a lot earlier than last time." Ash traded looks with his friends. "That's gotta be before Christmas."

"Wow, we're getting through Kanto really fast." Misty said. "What are we going to do with all the time left, besides training?"

Ash smirked. "I don't think we should ever worry about running out of stuff to do."

* * *

"Can you tell me how you're feeling?" Fuji asked the legendary in front of him.

Mewtwo tilted his head. " _I don't understand the question._ "

"I mean do you feel… complete?" Fuji said, a bit awkardly.

The Genetics Pokémon shrugged. " _I feel fine. I guess Mew's polishing of my cells really helped the cloning development. How do I have until I can move?_ "

"Three weeks, top." Fuji answered. "I'm here mainly to thank you for taking care of my daughter."

" _No problem. Anna is a great friend._ " Mewtwo smiled. " _Before the Rockets came, she taught me the basics of the world._ "

Fuji grinned gratefully and proudly. "Still, thank you. According the my calculations, originally, she has less than 25% chance of living. Now she's almost guaranteed to finish."

" _The two Mew and Giratina also contributed greatly._ " Mewtwo replied. " _Mew basically filled her with life energy, and Giratina sucked out what he called 'Death Scent.'_ "

"I am very grateful." Fuji bowed. "Anyways, if you need anything, you know how to find me."

" _I'll prefer a bowl of noodle soup right now._ " Mewtwo took up the offer, to which Dr. Fuji smiled and left his mind in search of some packaged ramen.

* * *

"This volcano is still as glamorous as the last time we came here." Ash looked at Cinnabar Island from afar. "Blaine found himself a great place to build the gym."

"Yeah, but he knows nothing about tourism." Domino pouted slightly. "Abra Assets had been trying for years to buy the land, but Blaine always refuse because…"

She put her hands into air quotes and rolled her eyes. "It's dangerous."

"And we can't do anything about it because he's backed by the League."

Ash sighed. "You need to find better ways to solve problems than just underground methods."

"No, I don't." Domino punched him as demonstration.

"Are you ready for Blaine's riddles?" Misty poked her head over. "Last time you spent all night doing them."

"Uhhh man!" Ash groaned loudly. "NOT the RIDDLES again."

"What's your problem with riddles?" Domino looked at him, surprised. "I love riddles!"

"Not when you're forced to do a hundred of them before a gym battle."

* * *

"Body Slam!" Jessie commanded. Rhyperior jumped up and slammed into Koga's Venonat, knocking it out. She smirked and stepped back.

Koga raised his head and nodded. "Very well. That was a well-trained Pokémon, and some nice tactics."

He gave the Rocket Trio a look. "I'm assuming you're one of the very high elites in Team Rocket?"

The three froze in shock. Koga waved. "Don't worry. You're not doing anything bad, so I have no right to arrest you. I battled the Black Tulip before already."

He paused. "Plus, I'll rather have you battle me than steal someone else's badges."

Meowth pointed at him. "Howdda you know us?"

"Remember that I'm a old gym leader." Koga smirked. "Plus, you don't see a talking Meowth everyday."

* * *

"Blaine. We know it's you." Ash sighed and looked at the disguised old man. He gestured to Zorua. "We have a master of disguise right here."

The elder sighed and ripped off his wig. "Hello, trainer. How did you find me?"

"From a friend. My name's Ash Ketchum, by the way." Ash neglected to go into details. "Are you still doing that rule where I have to solve riddles before the battle?"

"Of course!" Blaine said and pulled out a notebook. "Pick any fifty to do and bring it back to me when you want to battle."

He looked at the group. "Hello, Brock. Misty. I'm assuming you two aren't battling?"

Brock shook his head and spoke for them. "Nope. Only these two."

The Cinnabar Leader nodded. "In that case, solve any hundred. You can't repeat. You may get the answer however you like, just have them done."

He handed the notebook over and walked into a tunnel penetrating through the side of the volcano.

Ash looked at Domino and sighed. "At least it's only fifty each person this time. I don't know WHAT I'll do if we have to do two hundred."

* * *

"What starts with the letter "t", is filled with "t" and ends in "t"?" Ash read.

"Teapot." Domino said in the blink of an eye. "Next!"

Ash looked at her weirdly. "Okay... What gets wetter and wetter the more it dries?"

"A towel." The blonde said while sipping on her ice tea, half listening to music. "Give me a harder one."

Ash flipped through the page and finally settled on one that he felt was unsolvable.

"Using only addition, how do you add eight 8's and get the number 1000?"

"888+88+8+8+8." A bored replied came within seconds.

Ash stared at her, jaw agape. "How!?"

"I had nothing to do most of the time besides train." She shrugged. "Riddles and puzzles are one way I keep myself entertain."

She hesitated before continuing. "I also played the violin."

Ash's eyes widened. "REALLY!?"

Domino rolled her eyes. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Not… nothing. It's just… umm…" Ash coughed loudly to cover up his outburst. "Surprising."

The Elite chuckled. "I know. You're the only one to know besides Giovanni."

Ash looked at her, grinning. "Then I guess I'll share a secret as well."

"What?" Domino looked at him, eyes opened, giving him full attention.

"Well… This might be shocking." Ash smirked, "But I used to play guitar."

"WHAT!?" It was Domino's turn to be surprised. "Mr. Goody-goody, mama's boy know how to play the guitar?"

Ash poked her jokingly. "Hey!"

Domino rubbed his hand and grinned. "Play something."

"I don't have it with me." Ash shrugged. "It's at home."

"No worries." Domino waved. "I can have Kirlia teleport it here in seconds."

"Then be my guest."

* * *

"The things that happen…" Delia shook her head as Kirlia teleported off with a guitar. Then she turned back to face Mandy Hale.

The honey-haired woman chuckled. "Does this always happen?"

Delia nodded. "You have no idea."  
"Trust me, I do." Mandy smirked. "Spencer is looking back into his Unown Project again."

Delia winced internally, remembering how last time she was kidnapped by Entei to be Molly's mother.

"I don't think that's a great idea." Delia said. "In fact, a really bad one."

"Oh?" Mandy looked at her curiously. "Why?"

Delia sighed. "It's a long story. I think Professor Oak can explain it better than me."

She shot a look at her wristwatch. "Three-thirty. He should be free."

* * *

"Dinner!" Daisy called loudly as she placed finished sprinking spaghetti sauce on the pasta.

Lily and Giselle bounced up from the TV and approached the table. Daisy smirked at them. "How long do you think it is going to take from Violet and Gary to come downstairs this time?"

Lily shrugged as she picked up a fork. "Ten minutes."

"Twenty." Giselle deadpanned. "Trust me. I've seen longer."

Daisy sighed. "Wonder what mom and dad woud say about this."

Lily poked her lightly. "C'mon, Daisy. Be fun. You're being more and more..."

She made a face. "Adult-like."

"It's called growing up, Lils." Daisy chuckled. "One day, you would too."

Giselle leaned over and whispered in Lily's ear. "She's calling you immature."  
"Hey!"

The three laughed as they continued to inhale their pasta.

* * *

"Thanks." Ash took his guitar over from Kirlia and a pick from his pocket. Gently, he strummed a soft chord, and note ringing beautifully in the room.

" _No problem._ " Kirlia replied as she handed over a violin to Domino.

"What should we play?"

"How about… Für Elise?"

"I love Für Elise!" Domino said excitedly. "I made the entire Team Rocket listen to me play at a gathering twenty times."

Ash burst out laughing. "What did Giovanni said?"

Domino rolled her eyes. "He had 'diarrhea'… so did all of the elites who could afford to make me mad."

Ash strummed his instrument several more times to warm up and smiled. "Then shall we?"

The blonde picked up her bow and placed it on her violin. "We shall."

* * *

"We can do this the easy way, or the hard way." Cyrus stared at the two Rocket grunts, tied up in front of him. "Tell me then, will you, why are you here?"

The two looked at him furiously. "Let us go!"

Cyrus sighed. "I guess that means the hard way."

"Nothing will get us to tell you, bastard!" The grunt on the left shouted.

Cyrus smirked. "I admire your courage. But everyone thinks they can endure the 'advanced interrogation techniques' before they enter the room."

He waved a hand. Four Galactic grunts came forward and brought them away, as they shouted insults back at Cyrus.

Mars took a step forward and handed Cyrus a packet of papers. "These are the terms that Magma and Aqua gave to have us be the head of the alliance."

"We still have not gotten any reply yet from Plasma and Flare."

"Thank you." Cyrus took the papers over and nodded. "What do YOU think about all of this, Commander Mars?"

"I think that most of their terms are compliable, but there are some that are just outrageous."  
"No, I mean with our efforts to unite the organizations." Cyrus said.

Mars hesitated. "I think that we can most definitely achieve that, sir."

"No. The chance of our uniting the groups are minimal." Cyrus sighed. "It's almost impossible, in fact. There's a reason why Team Rocket, who has been on this land for centuries, have not done so."

Mars looked at him in surprise. Cyrus continued. "If you think about it, there is no reason to actually unite the groups. We're divided by climates, by geography, distance, Pokémon."

"Our interest would be completely different." He said. "As a result, it's natural, unavoidable to separate. Even if we are under one name, we'll still be apart."

"Then why are we doing this, sir?" Mars asked questioningly.

"To distract Giovanni." Cyrus said coldly. "We just use them, afterall. Their goals are not nearly as important, or sacred as ours. They're meant to be our stepping stones. All of them!"

* * *

Domino raised her bow and drew it across her strings for one final time, as Ash finished his last chord, bringing the sweet ringing notes to a halt.

Ash looked up to see a wide smile hanging on her lips, her eyes staring at him with intense joy.

He felt his only smile tugging away at the corner of his mouth and took a step forward toward her.

The blonde placed her violin down gently and rested her head on his shoulder. "That was amazing."

Ash gently placed a strand of her silky hair behind her ear and looked down at the beauty leaning against him.

As if with courage summoned by the hypnotizing musical notes, blinding him, or by the sight of her beaming face looking at him, or the longing that had developed throughout the journey, he bent down and gave Domino a kiss on her cheek.

The blonde gasped and looked up at him, a small blush forming and rapidly spreading. Ash smiled, "So are you."

She opened her mouth to reply, when the door was suddenly knocked opened by Bulbasaur.

" _ASH! Emergency! Pikachu and Lucario are testing out Galvanic Burst vs. Aura Storm AGAIN! No time to explain!_ " Bulbasaur yelled and grabbed Ash with a tangle of vines and ran out the door.

Domino looked at the space where he was dragged away by Bulbasaur with a slightly deformed, slightly perplexed expression, before it was overwhelmed by a smile. In the back of her mind, she wondered since when had he gotten so smooth...

* * *

 **A/N: What are they going to do with the time left? IDEAS!?**

 **Btw, I'll like to thank you all for patiently waiting for the new chapter. Life's been out of control lately.**

 **New fic out later tonight: "Part of Us."**

 **I would still be continuing this fic as well, but the gap b/w each chapter would be longer.**

 **I hope everyone enjoyed! Please review.**


	39. Cha 38: Kanto 34

**Cha. 38**

 **A/N:** **Holy God, I am back! It sure has been a hell long enough of a break. Now, let us all recall the triumph and awesomeness of the Sign of Times. Let's regather the troops and mark to victory! Please follow and favorite!**

 **Get your blood pumping, my readers!**

 **Now since it's been a long time for me too, I need to read over my own writing to remind myself of the different caveats that I had dug and mysterious objects I had infused in there for future adventures. So, guys, please give me a few more days to dream up of an connecting plotline.**

 **Besides that, here is an opportunity for you, the viewers, to significantly influence the course of the story. I have 2 storylines built: one from last year and one from now.**

 **The story can either progress into a totally different world, as in with crazy, non-Pokemon stuff, like insane science fiction technologies and magic, or it can continue to be plainly, strict Pokemon.**

 **I will put up a poll on the profile page. Be sure to vote. This is all on you guys. If you have additional comments, please post them on the site.**

 **Please review. I cannot stress enough how much it means to me. Just by reviewing, you are literally giving me the motivation to keep writing. Just with a few words of encouragement or criticism, you will acknowledge that someone out there is actually reading my chapters, and that will prompt me to go on for much longer than you will ever imagine. Thank you.**

 **And now, I shall write a few words just so that assholes wouldn't be spamming my chat saying that I can't post a sole Author's Note Page. Also to reward my dearest and most loyal readers for actually reading to the bottom of this very important Author's Note.**

* * *

" _DIALGA!_ " Arceus shrieked as the top of his lungs. " _Get your dragon butt right here THIS INSTANT!_ "

Sir Aaron was right next to him, followed by Palkia, the two of them equally as mad.

Dialga poked his head out from behind the Hall of Origins, chuckling nervously. " _Huhee, ummm, hiiii?_ "

Arceus released a major seventeen-Type Judgement at the Time Legendary.

Dialga yelled. " _Please DAD! NO!_ "

The attack blew through the west side of the Hall and continued to traveled on to nail Temporal Dragon in the chest, launching him millions of miles into the void.

Palkia roared as well as he fired a Spatial Rend. " _You blue Girafarig-looking airhead! Get back here!_ "

The attack ripped through space and hit Dialga, pushing him through a black hole which brought him in front of the three pissed off beings.

" _Hehehem…_ " Dialga said weakly. " _No hard feelings?_ "

Sir Aaron slapped the Force Palm he had been charging as the antics had been going up, which had been built up to the size of a moon, onto the dragon's head. "Do you have any idea what you just did!?"

" _What's the big deal?_ " Dialga yelled. " _I just froze time for nine months!_ "

" _THE BIG DEAL IS THAT YOU FROZE TIME IN REALITY AS WELL, WHICH MEANS THAT THE ENTIRE CONTINUUM COULD BE ALTERED, AND THE DELICATE REALM WE HAVE HERE JUST MIGHT COLLAPSE DUE TO THE ME-DAMNED CORRUPTED TIMELINE!_ "

" _Oh…_ "

* * *

 **A/N: Enjoy!**


	40. Cha 39: Kanto 35

**Cha. 39**

 **A/N: Guys, I have to say, your enthusiasm is overwhelming. I did anticipate some cheers when I decided to continue writing, but the amount of your zeal is unimaginable. I just want to say, as a writer, this is the sort of thing that gets me emotional.**

 **Looking at these comments, you faithful readers complimenting and exhilarated at my return, is what keeps me going. Now I regret ever stopping this fic due to mere school work. This isn't just a fiction I am writing: it is a lifestyle. It has worked itself as deeply into your lives just as mine, and I should have never lost that bond between us.**

 **Your reviews are what shall get me through even the hardest days, when I want to lay in bed and go to sleep, to keep on writing. Thank you guys, for not only pushing myself to be better, but also to maintain this family of SoT together.**

 **Oh yeah, also remember to vote on the poll on my profile page!**

 **I have spent the past two days reading my previous chapters, so I can finally get back on track! Now, without further ado, I present to you: Chapter 39.**

* * *

Domino yawned and rose from her bed. Blonde hair shining in the sun, her purple eyes sparkling, she looked around the Cinnabar hotel room. "Wow, this place is so comfy! I feel like I slept for nine months!"

She peered at the bed next to hers, and saw Ash slumbering on. Rolling her eyes, she kicked him with a burst of psychic.

Seeing that not working, though she didn't expect it to, she snapped her fingers. A tray of breakfast materialized and landed on the table.

Ash jogged groggily back to his senses once a powerful smell of bacon found its way to his nostrils. Opening his eyes, he saw the teen girl staring at him with a strip of the predicted meat in her mouth.

Domino smirked. "I knew this'll work."

Ash shrugged and went in for a piece, and his hand was slapped away by Domino. "Hey!"

"Get your own food!" She replied with a teasing tone.

Ash started out for the door. Domino raised her eyebrows. She didn't think he was _actually_ going to give up.

That's because Ash wasn't.

Before reaching the door, the Aura Guardian spinned around and launched an Aura Sphere on top of her, which transformed itself into a cage-like constriction.

It fell down onto Domino, and created a barrier between her and her beloved bacon, pulling her away.

Ash dove in for the tasty treat. Domino's eyes flashed with an annoyed pinkness, and a Prismatic Laser encased Ash dead in his tracks.

"HEY!" They both shouted at the same time. With an influx of Aura and psychic on both sides, their restrictions were broken apart, and both trainers snatched a piece of bacon from the plate.

But since it was Domino's plate, Ash had that victory.

Watching the boy doing a small dance, the Elite decided to let him have this one. Afterall, he got so little wins.

A flash of lightning next to Ash's bed made the two turn their heads to it. Pikachu gave the two an exasperated sigh. " _Can the both of you chill? It's only morning, and I'm trying to scratch Zorua's back._

" _Agreed!_ " Said Dark Pokémon poked her head out from under the blanket. " _And how do you have so much energy? You spent up past midnight formulating strategies._ "

The two humans shrugged. Ash replied. "When in doubt, blame it on Aura."

A knock was heard from outside. Misty's voice rang. "I'm hearing commotion, so you guys must be up."

Brock's voice echoed hers. "We're leaving in about half an hour for Blaine. How're the riddles going?"

"They're done… by me." Domino giggled and went to open the door. "Ash sat and watch me be pretty."

Ash snorted. "Or you can say be freakish."

Pikachu raised an eyebrow. " _Look who's talking._ "

The four laughed and went down the stairs, each going to take care of their own morning routine.

An invisible eye watched the entire exchange. A silent snicker was released.

* * *

"Opening up the Tomb?" Professor Oak finished reading a League report. "That's insane. Just because nothing appears to be wrong doesn't mean there's nothing wrong."

" _You got that right._ " Celebi sipped on her Grepa Tea. " _When Jirachi was still a baby, he thought a burning meteor looked like a giant cherry and tried to eat it._ "

" _Groudon had to pry him out of the mantle._ "

Oak's eye twitched, not knowing how to answer. As a result, he continued his own train of thought. "Hmmm, I wonder who we can hire to renovate the Tomb. It's actually a really great bomb shelter."

Celebi picked up the lab phone and placed it in front of the scientist. " _I already dialed in the number. Just hit call._ "

The Professor gave the legendary a look and picked up the phone after punching call. The line went through.

"Hello." The Professor greeted.

He was answered by a series of continuous beeps.

Oak looked to Celebi weirdly. "Who IS this?"

Celebi rolled her eyes and teleported the phone over, hitting speaker. " _Dude, switch on your human voice. I know you have that programming._ "

The line went silent.

After a while, a voice rang out of the other side. "H_E_L_L_O. T_H_I_S I_S R_E_G_I_G_I_G_A_S."

Oak's jaw dropped. "You called WHO?"

Celebi shrugged nonchalantly and said into the phone. " _Look, big dude. We need a guy to do some repainting…_ "

* * *

Ash placed a stack of papers onto Blaine's desk. "There, one hundred solutions to one hundred riddles!"

"You trainers are so stubborn. I cannot believe you actually solved one hundred riddles just to battle me." Blaine sighed. "Don't you have something better to do? Like courting?"

The four stared at the Fire Gym Leader. Ash spoke up. "What's courting?"

Blaine facepalmed. "Great, the current generation is both clueless and uncultured."

The four's faces turned into those of irritation.

Misty retorted. "And your gym's battle rating is ranked even under my Cerulean… mainly because trainers can't even find the damn place."

Blaine glared at her. "You know your rating is only higher because of your sisters' fame and popularity."

The Water Trainer smiled. "Still higher, Blaine."

The old man growled and decided to end that conversation. Turning to Ash, he changed the topic. "So, you ready for your battle?"

The raven-haired trainer nodded fiercely. "Ready as ever."

Domino stepped up next to him. "Me too!"

"Then follow me." The Cinnabar Leader nodded and walked toward a bunker-looking door. "Also, which one of you are going first?"

Domino contemplated, and then motioned Ash to start. Seeing her approval, Ash responded. "I'll go."

* * *

The extremely secured door led to a spiral staircase downward. The group then walked through another bunker door.

A wave of immense heat hit them directly. The group found themselves standing right in the middle of a rectangular piece of land surrounded by lava. The edges are merely several hundred feet away, barely enough for a battle.

At each end of island was a spectator's box, enclosed on all sides by fiberglass. One for the referee, one for the audience, and two for the competitors.

Domino flashed with pinkness to cool herself, while Ash slapped an Aura Shield on himself, Brock, and Misty.

A referee had already taken his spot, waiting for the group. Blaine gestured Ash to his spot, before spinning around to take his own position.

The referee, seeing that everyone was set, raised up his flag. "This is a three-on-three battle between Ash of Pallet and Blaine of Cinnabar!"

"There are no ring-outs, if you can survive the lava. The first to faint from the heat will also be counted as defeated!"

Ash took a look at his surroundings. The underground lava battlefield basically ruined all of the plans he had crafted up. He was expecting a normal battlefield with elements of fire subtly incorporated, not a ring enclosed by magma.

"May the best trainer win!" The referee finished and waved the flag.

Heck, even the air is hot as hell!

The Ketchum boy considered his choices and tossed out a Pokéball.

In the battlefield, a Charizard materialized from the beam and set his feet on the ground with a _thump_.

"Interesting and predictable choice." Blaine smirked. "Fire is the ultimate sign of power. Let's have a duel of raw force!"

* * *

Pikachu booed. " _Fire is so barbaric. Electricity is the definition of power!_ "

Domino countered. " _No, psychic is the real power._ "

"Both are wrong." Brock spoke up. "Rock is the sturdiest and firmest."

"You're _all_ wrong." Misty said. "Water is the strongest. It can break through rock!"

* * *

"Camerupt!"

A giant camel-like Pokémon, with miniature volcanos as mounds landed on the ground.

Ash frowned. "A Kanto Leader using a Hoenn Pokémon?"

"Good, you know the Pokémon. Now I don't feel bad about using him." Blaine grinned. "Dare to battle?"

" _Come at me!_ " Charizard roared and took off in flight.

"Ground him!" Blaine shouted. "Sandstorm."

A torrent of sand spurred up from the Eruption Pokémon, who was the eye of the storm.

Charizard's wings flickered with the silvery light of Steel Wing and used them as shields. He then charged down, using his tail as a guide as his wings were in front of him, toward his opponent.

Blaine blinked, shocked by such a well-maneveured move. He then quickly ordered Camerupt to dodge out of place.

Charizard missed, due to the lack of sight, but he also stopped the Camel from continuing the sandstorm.

Switching his wings over to Aerial Ace, the Flame Pokémon soared back up, avoiding an incoming Rock Slide.

Growling, he released an Ancientpower, which Camerupt smashed to pieces with a Tackle.

In return the Eruption Pokémon sent up a Focus Energy, and Charizard easily disintegrated that with Dragon Claw.

* * *

Domino observed something very crucial. "For a Fire Gym Battle, there's not a lot of fire attacks."

Misty chuckled. "Yep. I bet Flash Fire is really annoying Blaine right now."

"But neither of them has Flash Fire."

"Things are weird around Ash!" Misty shrugged.

"Ash is probably going to go ham after he maps out his new strategy." Brock pointed out. "Charizard knows just as many Non-Fire type moves as Fire-type moves."

* * *

"Charizard!" Ash shouted in Aura. "Listen carefully!"

The beast made a U-Turn in his flight back towards Ash, his Tail Flame releasing a Smokescreen to hide himself.

In the middle of the battlefield, Camerupt fired a Flash Cannon into the smoke. One glanced by Charizard without hitting as he landed beside Ash's box.

" _What do you got?_ "

"This!"

A few moments later, Charizard nodded and roared.

Camerupt, detecting the Flame Pokémon's position from the sound, fired the Hyper Beam he was charging, which crashed into Charizard's Protect, which only helped him regain the momentum for flight.

" _Fascade!_ " He shouted as he released gallons of boiled water onto the battlefield.

Camerupt growled, and used Eruption. The sudden burst of energy overwhelmed the hot liquid, which promptly turned into a massive blinding steam cloud.

Knowing that Charizard was probably using the cloud to cover up his attack, Camerupt turned into twelve Double Teams.

An Echoed Voice slammed out of the cloud, popping his Double Teams and doing minimal damage to Camerupt.

Smirking, he leapt up with Giga Impact, since he had finally identified Charizard's location from the roar.

… And missed.

In return, Ash's Pokémon charged from the back with a Stone Edge and hammered his opponent into the ground.

Before Camerupt can escape, Charizard created an Earthquake, further damaging the Eruption Pokémon, before soaring back into the air.

" _WHAT!?_ " Camerupt shouted. " _How can I not hit you!? I heard your Echo Voice!_ "

"Exactly. Echoed Voice." Ash smirked. "Let's just say that Charizard has been doing some echolocation training, which is how he knew where you were coming from based on the reflecting sound waves."

Blaine stared into the fog, growling. Camerupt didn't have any quick moves to clear the fog. There were some that could, but they all took too much energy and time. With his Pokémon in the current disadvantageous situation, he needed to play conservatively.

"Rollout into the lava!" He called.

Camerupt rolled, gaining speed… and crashed directly into Domino's Light Screens, which she put up in the nick of time to protect the audience's box.

Charizard laughed in midair, and traveled down to the origin of the sound with his jaw lit up in Dragon Rage.

He got so close that he saw the stunned Camerupt on the floor through the fog and released a charge-up Dragon Rage at point-blank range.

His opponent was launched straight into the lava by the power of that shot. Moments later, the Camel floated up to the top, unconscious.

* * *

"I'm really craving a cheesecake right now." Domino said as she downed the leftover crumbs of the previous bucket of popcorn.

"Being psychic is so lucky." Misty pouted. "You never have to worry about getting fat."

"You don't either." Brock pointed out. "I'm your cook."

"True." Misty nodded as she pulled out her leftover sushi from breakfast.

Brock then dangled some buffalo chicken nuggets in front of the girls, which they gladly took.

* * *

"And Charizard is the winner!" The referee shouted with zeal. "Mr. Ketchum, are you keeping him in for the next round?"

Charizard gave Ash a pleading look, and Ash sighed. "C'mon, big guy. Give someone else a chance."

The Fire Dragon panted, and Returned himself. Ash shook his head. "No, someone different.

"In any case," Blaine raised a Pokéball. "Go Flareon!"

The Fire Type Eeveelution landed in the battlefield. " _You're sending me out second? I thought I was your trump card!?_ "

Blaine sighed. "Just fight."

Ash smirked. "In that case, let's make this interesting."

He threw his Pokédex into the battlefield, and the machine transformed into a Porygon 2.

Blaine let out a breath. "Finally something not Fire Type."

Ash grinned. "Are you sure about that?"

Blaine puffed off his chest. "Of course. I know all of the Fire Pokémon from Kanto to Kalos by heart."

"You're stalling time!" The Cinnabar Leader said in realization. "Flareon! Flamethrower!"

"I'm really not." A laugh burst from Ash's face. "Dexter! Flash Fire!"

Blaine narrowed his eyes. "That's an ability, not a move."

"I know."

As the Flamethrower swept over Dexter, the Porygon 2 glowed. After the waves of fire died down, a purely red Porygon emerged, looking no worse for wear.

Blaine did a double take and stared at the insanity in front of him. "What!?"

Ash smirked. "Dexter's ability is to copy any other Pokémon's ability."

The Gym Leader's mouth hung open, then closed it and returned his bearing rather quickly from being in the League so many years.

"In that case, Flareon, Sand Attack!"

Flareon flushed the battlefield with sand, and then sneaked in with a Quick Attack.

Dexter waved his wings, and a boost of power from his recent evolution rushed out from his solid hologram and instantly cleared the field.

Flareon still gained a second to reach his opponent, knowing that she will have to take the fight up close.

Holding out her Leppa Berry, the Fire Eevee lashed out with Natural Gift, hoping to hit Dexter.

"I can sense your movements." Dexter shot a look at her and put up a Light Screen, which the Flame Pokémon barely cracked.

Flareon sighed. " _What did I get myself into?_ "

"Don't worry. You're not the only one thinking that when facing Ash." The Virtual Pokémon released a Hyper Beam he's been charging, and Flareon went soaring across the Gym.

Blaine held up his hands. "Stop! I forfeit this battle!"

Ash looked at him in surprise. "Why?"

"Because, there is literally no chance of my victory." He sighed. "First, I don't even know what that Pokémon is and what he does."

"Second, almost all of Flareon's moves don't work on him. I trained him to be almost purely Fire-specialized, so his Fire moves are extremely powerful… which sucks against Flash Fire."

"And third, your Pokémon is extremely powerful. He charged up a Hyper Beam in a few seconds… By the way, what is the Pokémon's name?"

"My name is Dexter, and my species is called Porygon." Dexter turned back into a Pokédex. "However, there are only two of my species right now. I am an evolved form called Porygon 2."

Blaine sweatdropped. "2 count as a species?"

"According to Darwin's Laws, indeed."

Ash took over the explaining. "Porygon is a type of lifeform who appeared out of digital infor…"

"STOP!" Domino shouted from the audience's seats. "Don't spill all of the details. I was going to battle him with Noah!"

Blaine's eyes twitched. "There are only two of the species, and both of you have one."

"Yep!" They echoed each other.

"Let's just get the last battle over with." The Gym Leader sighed.

* * *

 **Commercial Break**

 **A/N: PLEASE READ.**

 **Now that you're reading, I'll just like to thank you for taking the time out of your lives to read my humble fanfic.**

 **Now, I am pleading you to give me some feedback and reviews. Even a word "good" is encouraging. It touches me to know what my readers are thinking, to know what to pursue.**

 **Just with one review, you are boosting my motivation, and, as a result, you are also speeding up my process of writing.**

 **Thank you, and please enjoy the rest.**

* * *

"Go Magmortar!" Blaine threw out his last Pokéball.

The said Blast Pokémon yelled as he landed.

The old man pointed at Ash with his cane. "Are you letting Porygon stay in?"

"It's Porygon 2, and no, I'm leaving." Dexter turned back into his Pokédex form before Ash had to ask.

The Ketchum boy raised his last Pokéball and threw it into the ring. The Pokéball stood still, unmoving.

Ash sighed. "C'mon, little guy. Don't be shy."

The ball shook a little, but still didn't flash open.

Pikachu let out a breath on his trainer's shoulder. " _If you come out and fight, I promise you I'll get Brock to make you Berry Pie tonight._ "

Hearing the prospects of Berry Pie, the Pokémon burst open the ball and landed, revealing itself to be… Dratini.

" _Really!? Berry Pie!?_ "

" _Yup!_ "

" _Yay!_ " Dratini shouted and turned to face the opposite Pokémon multiple times his size. " _Let's get this done so I can go get my pie._ "

Magmortar shouted, feeling disrespected. In turn, he launched a Giga Impact into the Dragon Pokémon.

Dratini dodged with ease. Blaine shouted. "What are you doing!? Don't Giga Impact without trapping him into a corner first!"

Magmortar ignored his trainer's orders and turned back to Dratini, furious for some reason. He launched out a crude Hyper Beam, which also missed the first-staged pseudo by a long shot.

"STOP!" The Fire Type Leader yelled. "Calm yourself!"

Ash looked confused in his box. Through Aura Sight, he saw nothing wrong with Magmortar, which means Dratini couldn't have put some sort of charm on him… or could he?

Magmortar followed the Hyper Beam with a massive Flamethrower. Though the attack was powerful, it wasn't focused. Dratini used Endure and clashed through a majority of the attack with only minor scratches.

Blaine stared at the battlefield, speechless. How Magmortar suddenly went out of control, he did not know.

He was about to blame it on the young trainer, but a look at his face told the Leader that his opponent did not know as well.

A few minutes later, Magmortar was on one knee. He barely had a scratch on him, but his energy, whether physical or pyro, was drained severely in the past interval of wild spamming.

Afterall, he's not Pikachu or Lucario… or Mew, or Spiritomb, or Ho-Oh, or Mega Pidgeot, or Dragonite, or Zorua, or Tentacruel, or…

Dratini floated over and released a Dragon Rush, followed by a rain of Draco Meteor.

After the shower passed, the Blast Pokémon was on the ground, cold… but still hot.

* * *

"Can anyone please explain what happened there? Blaine looked confused as ever.

Ash scratched his head. "Ummm… no?"

Domino walked over from her bleachers. "Actually I think I can."

The Chosen took a look at the blonde girl. "What? I even used Aura Sight on him. There was nothing wrong."

"Because Aura sucks compared to Psychic." Domino never passed off a chance to top Aura with psychic. "When I look into Magmortar's brain with psychic, I found something."

She took a look at Dratini and continued. "What I saw was that his temporal lobe was filled with his brain fluid, compressing it immensely, and therefore pressing Magmortar into a fury."

"I also saw a trace of some sort of energy in there. Since you said it wasn't Aura, then it must be some other power…" Domino finished and turned to Dratini. "I don't know how you did it, but somehow you managed to twerk with his emotions?"

Dratini twirled himself into a ball and nodded. "Yep. I was born with the power to manipulate feelings, since my grandpa was Mespirit. I guess it skipped over mom, and I got it."

Ash slapped his forehead in realization. "Oh yeah! I remember you telling me about it. That was when you first burst out of the water, right?"

" _Yep!_ "

"Only you can skip over something as important as that!" Domino flicked Ash on his forehead. "Didn't you see how big of an advantage that could be?"

Ash frowned. "But messing with a Pokémon's feelings feels wrong in some way."

"And that's why you're a bad trainer!" Domino declared teasingly, and Ash responded by pinching her cheeks.

Blaine, on the other hand, marveled at Dratini once he heard the explanation. "A descendant of Mespirit! How astounding!"

Dratini licked his hand and scurried back over to Ash.

The Fire Gym Leader stood up and pulled out a Badge from his pocket. "There you go, Ash Ketchum! You won this fair and square."

He cast a look at the Dratini. "Even though your Pokémon did the majority of the work, but showing that you are able to catch them is enough proof of your outstanding skill."

Ash smiled and pinned the Volcano Badge on his jacket. He took a look and remarked. "That, I think, was the last Badge. We got the Boxing Badge, so this is eight!"

Misty rolled her eyes. "You're still going to go to Viridian, right?"

"Of course!" Ash smirked.

Domino shoved him out of the way and faced Blaine. "My turn now?"

Blaine nodded. "Let me take a break, and then we shall commence."

* * *

" _Is this enough YET!?_ " Dialga looked up from the mud pit. " _Do you know how much work digging a shower for Heatran is?_ "

"That was chore number thirty-four." Sir Aaron deadpanned and looked at his list. "Still sixty-six more to go."

" _But this is so much work!_ " Dialga yelped as he was launched by the Knight from the mud pit to his next chore… installing the bathroom tubes.

Arceus sat on a chair he just created in the backyard beach of the Hall and remarked. " _This is what you get for freezing time._ "

" _BUT…_ "

" _I think that you should add one more to the chore list, Aaron._ " Palkia interrupted. " _One hundred seems too perfect!_ "

" _NO!_ " The Temporal God shouted. " _Why don't you subtract one?_ "

"Because if Crator is working his ass off trying to make up for the lost time, you will be as well."

* * *

 **A/N: Thanks for reading, and remember to vote on the poll on my profile page! It is right here:**

 **Also guys, as I read through previous chapters, I made some small changes (and grammar fixes). I challenge you to go find them!**

 **Also, I know this Gym Battle isn't the most exciting. Not all Leader is as good as Koga. Plus, if Ash struggles with a Gym Leader, how is he going to save the world?**


	41. Cha 40: Kanto 36

**Cha. 40**

 **A/N:** **Domino's battle with Blaine! After this, we have the Viridian Challenge, and then a long gap until Leagues. Hit me up with ideas.**

 **I'm surprised none of you commented on Dratini's ability. I thought that would've been a hit… because it will be a major theme in the story.**

 **Also, new poll out! Remember to vote on the poll on my profile page.**

 **If you enjoyed this fanfic, please take ten seconds to follow and favorite the story.**

 **Now I present to you: Chapter 40.**

* * *

"Fast and Furious is my style. Law and Order is my Passion." The Black Tulip stuck out a hand for the Cinnabar Leader to shake. "Domino of Viridian is my name."

Ash stared at the Elite. "Did you… what!?"

"That's going to be my introduction." Domino turned around and smirked after shaking Blaine's hand. "You know how the three idiots always does that ' _Prepare for Trouble_ ' thing?"

"This is going to be my thing."

Ash facepalmed and took Domino's seat beside Misty when she was watching him battle.

Pikachu jumped onto his lap and curled there. " _You didn't let me battle!_ "

"You've got to give everyone else a chance, Pikachu." Ash sighed. "Not everyone has gone yet."

" _The only ones who hadn't went are your thirty Tauros._ " The Electric Type deadpanned. " _If you really are abiding by your Equal Opportunity Rules, then you would be battling the entire League with Tauros…_ "

"I mean, I can still win!" Ash smirked.

" _YOU ARE NOT SERIOUSLY CONSIDERING THAT!?_ "

"Don't worry. Next 'gym' is Giovanni's…" Ash patted his yellow starter. "No need to hold back there."

* * *

"Are you ready, challenger?" The referee looked at Domino, who nodded.

He turned to Blaine. "Gym Leader, are you ready?"

"Rules are the same as the previous battle." Seeing Blaine's gesture, he waved his flag, "May the best trainer win!"

Domino teleported from the box onto the top and made a psychic shield around herself, claiming that it gave a better view.

"Exeggutor!"

The Pokéball materialized into a Coconut Tree that grew out of the ground.

Blaine looked at her questioningly. "A Grass-Type in a Fire Gym?"

"What is with these people and type advantages nowadays?" On the sidelines, Ash muttered.

Domino smirked. "I'm willing to take on the challenge.

"Sure." Blaine shrugged and released the first Pokémon of his eight-badge team. "Rapidash!"

The beam from the Leader's Pokéball condensed into the shape of his Rapidash, already charging at Exeggutor before even completely done being materialized.

A Flare Blitz covered the Fire Horse. A wave of heat hit the Grass psychic even from afar.

Exeggutor waved his branches in the air, pulsing out a powerful psychic in the form of Trick Room.

The move reversed the speed of both Pokémon. Consequently, Rapidash slowed dramatically, while the Coconut Tree Pokémon sped up enough to dodge his opponent's Charge.

Rapidash turned herself around with a Flame Wheel, using her initial run as the centripetal force needed in order to curve around and hit Exeggutor on the side.

Exeggutor tried to counter with a Light Screen, which was jabbed to pieces by Rapidash's Megahorn. As a result, the Flame Wheel hit the Grass Type head on, blowing him back.

Domino cursed under her breath. Ash and Dexter did come up with a design to counter attacks like Megahorn that can break through shields easily that focuses on a single point, but it was too complicated and only suited for Aura Wielders.

"Exeggutor! Switch over to Alolan Form! Then you won't be suffering from the disadvantages."

Exeggutor grunted. His trunk suddenly skyrocketed, transforming into a thirty-five feet tall giant.

Rapidash almost tripped over herself as she witnessed the sudden growth.

The Alolan Exeggutor looked down on the Fire Type and smirked. All three mouths opened, and Draco Meteor poured out.

The Fire Horse yelped at the incoming attack and swerved in a trained pattern with bursts of Flame Charge.

The giant Coconut Pokémon looked down at his opponent's useless dodging, which seemed so childish from his angle, easily controlled the meteor storm to follow her.

Blaine's eyes twitched. Another Pokémon he wasn't familiar with… It looked similar to Exeggutor, but also severely different.

"Bounce!" He commanded. A very old fight with a familiar Elite ten years ago came into his mind, and, of course, the strategy he used to gain his Gym Leader position.

Rapidash Bounced through the gaps between the barrage of purple energy, aiming straight for the Grass Type.

Exeggutor sparkled magenta as Dragon Scale was used.

Rapidash sighted this and shouted. " _What? You don't even HAVE scales!_ "

" _I have bark, which looks like scales._ " The giant shrugged and pointed to his trunk. " _That must count for something._ "

" _No it should not!_ " Rapidash used a Quick Attack to change position and dodged a Dragon Claw from the left.

Aiming for his opponent's rightmost head, she was about to Tackled him with an Inferno. One downside to being so big is that manuvering in tight spaces is difficult.

...Which is why Exeggutor switched back to Kanto Form, shrinking him back down to his six-foot self.

" _!_ " Rapidash screamed as she traveled over Exeggutor and directly into the roof of Cinnabar Gym.

"This is just going _great_ …" Blaine facepalmed. "Rapidash! Use Take Down!"

Though she was somehow at a disadvantage the entire battle, The Fire Horse was ultimately a well-trained Pokémon.

As she fell, she quickly reverted her posture and turned herself to the now-normal Exeggutor and used the height to her benefit and used Take Down.

As Rapidash was pouncing at him, the Grass Type yelled out a Lucky Chant, rendering the power gained by the help of gravity useless. Then, he just tanked the rest of the damage with a Light Shield.

The Horse transformed into twelve Double Teams and began to circle him. Exeggutor watched carefully, and a disguised pink flashed in his eyes.

Suddenly, the two moved at the same time.

With a scan of psychic, Exeggutor located the real Rapidash and fired Psybeams at her.

Rapidash pulsed out a Sunny Day. Instead of casting it into the atmosphere, since they were underground, she restricted it to the ceiling, creating a torrent of active Fire Energy that swirled around the top of the Gym.

* * *

"Hmmm, never saw that one before…" Ash commented. "Sunny Day used as a charging reservoir. That's actually a very good idea."

Misty's eyes also lit up. "If Sunny Day can work, I can also get Rain Dance to work in a confined space as well…"

"No more restrictions for Water Pokémon!" Misty cheered happily. "I should win a Nobel Prize for that."

Pikachu rolled his eyes. " _That'll just make them easier to electrocute._

That, no doubt, earned the furry mouse a glare from the Water Trainer.

* * *

Suddenly energized, Rapidash rushed out of the way of the Psybeam easily and shot out a Fire Blast.

Instead of the usual unsteadiness and low speed, the attack zoomed through the fluctuating Fire Energy, absorbing and growing as it moved, and slammed harshly into Exeggutor, without giving him time to teleport or block.

Domino twitched, feeling the impact of the attack. Exeggutor had a giant burnt mark down his front and up to his leaves.

Quickly strategizing, she formulated a new plan. "Turn back into Alolan Form!"

Successfully teleporting away this time to avoid an incoming Flame Wheel, The Coconut Pokémon grew back to his giant size, reaching up to the ceiling.

Domino smirked. "Giga Drain on the Sunny Day!"

* * *

"That's insane." Misty remarked. "She basically just told a Grass Type to eat fire."

"Actually, that's genius." Ash stared at the blonde in the battlefield. "Sunny Day isn't an attack. It's just Fire Energy, not even real fire. Plus, Alolan Exeggutor has a Dragon Typing, which means Fire does not have an apparent advantage anymore."

"So you're saying that Giga Drain on Sunny Day will actually have no effect on Exeggutor?" Misty raised an eyebrow.

"Exactly!" Ash confirmed. "In fact, Grass Types have some of the strongest stomachs, just after Steel Types."

"Speaking of Steel Type," Brock spoke up, "Where's Lucario?"  
Ash rolled his eyes. "Still having diarrhea from eating eighty cartons of chocolate ice cream."

The two Gym Leaders stared at him, out of words.

"Ummm… why didn't he just clear out his system with Aura?"  
"Because," Ash sighed, "he said it's part of the experience… just like how some people love to get insanely drunk and wake up with a hangover the second day."

* * *

Seeing Domino's Pokémon draining the energy that is giving his Rapidash a lead, Blaine shouted. "Bounce! Take him down again!"

Rapidash hopped into the air, aiming for Exeggutor.

"I knew you were going to do that." Domino smirked. "Gravity!"

Exeggutor waved his hands, and a pink pulse surrounded Rapidash, pulling her straight down to earth.

"Speaking of Earth…" Domino thought and gave a devious smile. "Earthquake!"

Still recovering from the stun of the fall, Rapidash fell back in shock as Exeggutor initiated an Earthquake into the bottom of the Volcano.

The lava shook dangerously, threatening to pour into the battlefield. Avoiding the chances of touching it, Exeggutor shrunk down to normal size and continued to carry out the second part of the plan.

Noticing that Rapidash had jogged back to full vigilance, Exeggutor pumped out a Telekinesis, raising her into the air.

As the Fire Horse Pokémon struggled with the psychic pull, Exeggutor lashed out with a Giga Impact, knocking her across the field and slamming down with a _WHUMP_.

Approaching her more closely, he fired a Hyper Beam he had long been charging, finally pummeling Rapidash into unconsciousness.

The referee held up the red flag closest to Domino. "And the first victory!"

Blaine muttered underneath his breath. "Damn. She realized my pattern."

* * *

All of a suddenly, Absol burst out of her Pokéball and exclaimed, " _EMERGENCY! THE VOLCANO IS ABOUT TO ERUPT!_ "

Ash looked at her weirdly. "Really? I feel just fine."

" _Trust me!_ " Absol pounced into the air. " _My disaster senses are booming right now._ "

"Time out!" Trusting the Disaster Pokémon, Ash stood up. "Blaine! Hold on!"

The referee looked over at the audience. "Time out approved."  
Blaine stepped ouside of the competitor's box. "Yes, Ash?"

"This is Absol." He pointed to the Dark Pokémon. "She just told me that her disaster senses are detecting that the volcano is going to explode."

Blaine raised an eyebrow. "That can't be right. I just did an annual safety inspection last Friday."

Domino turned to look at Absol. "Yeah, I can't feel anything within a ten-mile radius either."

Absol looked uncertain, but she still sat back down. " _Something still feels very wrong._ "

* * *

"Who shall take on this challenge?" Guzma looked around the tavern.

Seeing that no one is willing to accept the risk, Mable stepped forward and bowed to Guzma. "I will, sir."

Guzma stood up from his seat at the head of the room and walked over to her. "Look at me."

Mable looked up at the Leader of the Skull Gang. "Yes, sir."

Guzma pulled out a Team Flare costume from his back, pure red, as though stained by the endless blood of the Skulls that were spilled in their countless conflicts. "Then here you go."

"I do not pay anyone gratitude." The white-headed man looked around the room. "So I will not say thank you. What I WILL say is that your brother will be completely protected here, with ME."

"Unless I die, no one shall touch him." He said to his second-in-command. " You shall be honored by the Gang as long as I live. That is your reward for being bold enough to infiltrate Flare!"

He shot another look around the look. No Skull Elites dared to meet his gaze. He turned back to the woman in front of him and nodded. "I wish you the best of luck, Mable."

"Thank you," Mable held his gaze. "Sir."

* * *

 **Commercial Break!**

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* * *

"Next battle!" The referee held up a white flag to signal that the break is over. "Domino has chosen to pull back Exeggutor."

"Blaine! It is your turn to choose first!"

Blaine withdrew his gaze from the judge and held out a Pokéball. "Growlithe!"

The container burst open to show the Puppy Dog Pokémon in his full cuteness.

Domino burst out laughing. "Blaine, if you ran out of Pokémon, we can come back in the afternoon."

A smile emerged on Blaine's face. "I dare you to keep thinking that."

"Oh I will!" The Rocket Elite responded by throwing out her Pokédex, and Noah landed in front of him.

* * *

On the bleachers, Misty ran a hand through Pikachu's fur. "Watch the Growlithe be an unevolved insanity… like Pikachu.

Pikachu rolled his eye. " _Seriously, I have twelve Thunderstones inside me. Aura Sight is saying that the Growlithe is pretty powerful, but not twelve-Elemental-Stones powerful._ "

Brock snickered. "He's right, Misty. Not all insane Pokémon is Pikachu-insane. Just regular insane."

He shot a look at Ash, staring at Domino's box. The Pewter Leader sighed. "Not to mention Ash-insane."

* * *

Noah folded himself into the Porygon 2 shape and started spinning to get momentum.

The Growlithe licked his paws and looked at him, pouting.

The Pokédex chuckled and flickered with Flash Fire. "I'm a machine. I don't get Charmed."

"Great, a Porygon again." Blaine clicked his tongue. "Ah well. Growlithe! Blast Burn!"

The four visitors blinked. "What?"

Growlithe released a massive torrent of fire and energy from his mouth. The fire glowed blue instead of the normal red and orange.

The wave of fire crashed into Noah, whose Flash Fire did _not_ activate.

The massive amounts of energy smashed him deep into the ground. When the blue fire died away, there was a giant hole deep in the arena.

Noah lied, in Pokédex form, at the bottom, unconscious.

* * *

Domino drew in a sharp breath. For a second, she looked to her opponent's box to make sure that the owner of a _Growlithe_ who was spitting out a modified Blast Burn, one of the hardest attacks, was not actually Ash.

Blaine.

She rubbed her eyes and looked again.

Still Blaine.

"That's not possible." Domino said aloud. Closing her eyes, she focused in her psychic. The resulting psychic marking is definitely not Ash's. She already had every detail of his marking memorized.

Nope, it's Blaine.

The Cinnabar Leader smirked. "Didn't expect that?"

Domino fumed at him.

"Don't ever underestimate a Gym Leader." Blaine remarked. "I used Growlithe to beat out Lance's Dragonite when I had my Gym Qualification battle. I was the only one to have ever battled and won a Gym Qual from him."

She looked to Ash, who smiled and nodded back in encouragement. Feeling a newly-formed sense of motivation, the Black Tulip smiled at the Leader with fire. "Then bring it on!"

* * *

"So when do you want to regional conference to be?" Dr. Akihabara said into the phone.

Oak shrugged on the other end. "How about after Christmas?"

"Well it better be soon." The computer scientist grumbled. "The project can't go on any longer without additional funding and research."

"Well yeah, you're the one trying to make an entire virtual world from scratch." Oak rolled his eyes. "I'm not sure if we can finish the Digi-world even if we put half of the world's computers together."

"Then we will utilize the other half!" The Doctor declared.

The Professor sighed on the other side. "How about after New Years? We'll put it in first thing next year."

Another caller clicked to join into the chat, revealing himself to be Dr. Fuji. "Sorry I'm late. I was ordering a cheesecake machine for Mewtwo. Did I miss anything?"

"Nope," Oak replied. "Just Dr. Akihabara rambling about the Digi-World again."

* * *

"And both trainers are down to two Pokémon, each with one revealed and one concealed!" The referee shouted. "May the battle commence!"

"I'm going to keep him in." Blaine looked to the other side and grinned. "Dared to play the weird Exeggutor?"

Domino gritted her teeth, knowing that Blaine's suggestion was a terrible idea. With such a powerhouse as he, Exeggutor was sure to go down, not to mention the Grass disadvantage.

If she was as mean as she first joined Ash on the journey, she would have called Tentacruel over. But since it's only a Gym Battle, she decided to hold back.

Plus, destroying such a cute Puppy with a Medieval-Level ancient Pokémon seemed unethical.

She took off her hat and threw it into the ring. "Go, Zorua!"

The hat remained motionless on the ground.

"Ummm?" Blaine stared at her questioningly.

The blonde's scarf Transformed into the Disguise Pokémon and landed in front of her. " _Mom, I'm right here._ "

* * *

On the sidelines, Ash laughed hysterically at the scene. "Dexter, you better have that on tape!"

* * *

Domino blushed consciously. Coughing, she pointed at the field. Zorua hopped out.

She took a look at Growlithe, standing next to the giant hole he just made, and giggled. " _You're like a Fire version of Pikachu._ "

" _WHAT!?_ " Next to Ash, Pikachu saw red. He flashed with a dangerous voltage, making Ash spontaneously calling up his Aura.

" _Stop being jealous, Pika. Zorua doesn't have any emotion of love toward the Growlithe._ " Dratini, who had stayed out to enjoy the rest of the fight shrugged. " _Even now, she's thinking about you. She's probably just making you jealous on purpose_."

Pikachu growled. " _Let her just wait until night…_ "

In the field, Zorua sprang into action. She turned into a Tauros and Bulldoze toward Growlithe.

Growlithe hopped into the air, dodging the hit, and wrapped around with a Flame Wheel to hit the Dark Pokémon.

Zorua kept charging and turned into a Pidgeotto, using the speed to lift off.

The Puppy Pokémon missed, but turned his head skyward to shoot a boosted Flamethrower.

The disguised Bird used Aqua Tail to escape from the center of the fire. The water then transformed into Brine, which dropped onto the Flamethrower, extinguishing it.

" _I hate water!_ " Growlithe growled and sent a Heat Wave Zorua's way.

Near the ceiling, Pidgeotto turned into a Magnemite, levitating herself. Then, a Blizzard pulsed from her, neutralizing the Heat Wave.

" _My mate is Pikachu!_ " Zorua declared. " _I don't think there's anyone in this world more used to the extremity of power than me._ "

* * *

Ash sweatdropped at that statement and turned to Pikachu. "You should go easy on her."

" _I'm not hard!_ "

" _Of course you're not._ " Dratini snickered.

Brock facepalmed. "Where is this conversation going!?"

* * *

Using the temporary advantage gained from that Blizzard slowing Growlithe, Zorua turned into Entei and rushed toward him.

Merging through an incoming Fire Blast with Shadow Force, she glanced Growlithe with Giga Impact, throwing off his balance to the side.

Growlithe reacted quickly, and a Lava Plume spun up between the two. Zorua, on the other hand, could care less.

She spit out a Frost Breath, cooling and punching a hole through the barrier, and she jumped through the hole with Quick Attack.

Using this moment to get back his bearing, Growlithe rolled back on his feet and fired a Searing Shot at Zorua, who countered with a Stone Edge.

The referee's face twitched. He had long known that Blaine's Growlithe was so specialized in Fire that he knew all Fire moves, even those that he shouldn't know. But the challenger's Pokémon too?

The Ground attack missed due to the Growlithe's gain in speed with an activated Flare Blitz.

Zorua shouted. " _Taste the beams!_ "

A pool of Ice Beam, Aurora beam, Bubble beam, Charge beam, Hyper beam, Psybeam, and Signal beam flushed at the Fire Type from all directions.

Growlithe, clearly not expecting this, yelped and surged out a V-Create. The ultimate Fire Move swept across the arena, wiping out all of Zorua's attacks and even knocking her out of her Disguise Form.

Domino stared at the insane Pokémon. "How does he know Victini's V-create!?"

"Did you expect any differently?" Blaine smiled. "I told you I beat Lance's Dragonite with him. He has unlimited _Fire_ power."

The four visitors facepalmed at the horrible, shameful pun.

"Okay! Enough fooling around!" Domino growled. "Zorua, let them see your new super move."

" _Okay!_ " Zorua turned to face Growlithe. " _As a fellow Pokémon, I'm really sorry for what is going to happen next._ "

The Dark Pokémon lit up in a torrent of colors… well actually, three.

Purple, brown, pink.

The three colors swirled brighter and brighter, and a solid shape started to condense out of each light.

Ghost, Dark, Psychic

Blaine popped his eyes wide open. "Holy Arceus…"

The solid began to take form, into the shape of three… Plates.

Zorua grinned weakly as an insane pool of energy drained out of her. " _Domino, thank Dragonite for me that this move we worked on is actually working!_ "

The three mini-Plates started to combine into each other, forming one giant Plate.

"Growlithe! Use Burn Out!" Blaine roared. "You might be able to overpower this monstrosity if you used all of your giant reservoir at the same time."

" _I call this move…_ " Zorua looked at the Growlithe, backing away in fear of the pool of energy swirling around, recombining, and bursting.

" _FORBIDDEN PLATE!_ "

" _Burn OUT!_ " Growlithe roared on the top of his lungs, and his color quickly drenched. In return, a giant, scarlet ball of crimson formed on top of his head. Growing to be as large as Zorua's Plate, the ball took from Growlithe at once his entire capacity.

The Forbidden Plate smashed down at the Puppy Pokémon, whose Burn Out sphere crashed upwards.

* * *

A blinding light more impactful than Pikachu's Galvanic Burst erupted. The entire gym detonated into flows of energy and waves of heat.

The viewers' boxes blew up into pieces, and Mew appeared and casted Light Screens on everyone.

The wave of energy continued to travel both upward and downward.

The ceiling collapsed within seconds of the energy reaching it, causing a chain reaction onward. Moments later, the whole underground gym began to fold on itself, like an avalanche.

Below the group's feet the entire island had been blown deep into its core. Through a giant hole resulting from the blast, lava spurred through.

Around them, magma flared into the air wildly. Mew flashed with a brilliant pink and teleported everyone out of the chamber in an instant, including the two battling Pokémon, who had both passed out since the initial contact of their most powerful moves.

The Formation-level Legendary stayed underground, however. She looked around at the erupting volcano and thought fast.

" _How did Groudon do it again?_ " Mew's energy began to pulsate and extend into the ground. " _I think… like this?_ "

Her magnificent psychic energy stabilized and froze the ceiling in a second, and it continued to reach deep down into the pools of lava.

" _Fire, fire, go AWAY!_ " The Legendary chanted loudly. Her eyes flashed pink, and the wild lava began to settle down.

" _Prismatic Laser!_ " She forced out chains of pink energy, stabbing deep into the ground, bounding up the uncontrolled energy into order. " _Lock everything in space!_ "

Cinnabar Island shook violently, and the lava resettled. Mew let out a long breath. " _That… was close._ "

* * *

Absol muttered from the ship they were standing on. " _Told you it will explode._ "

The six humans stood on the deck of a nearby cruise ship, jaw wild open, staring at the sight of the smoking mountain in the distant island.

The referee's face is that of horror. Blaine mirrored him. "There is going to be so many casualties…"

The younger trainers' expressions are lighter. Afterall, this is only a small segment compared to the true disasters they had been in… and still will be in for the past eight years.

Domino waved her hand. "Don't worry. Mew will probably find a way to solve it."

Ash looked to Absol. "How are you feeling?"

The addressed Pokémon nodded her head. " _My disaster senses are calming down. Domino is probably right. Mew can take care of it._ "

As she finished her sentence, said Mew flashed onto the deck in pink and dropped straight onto the floor. " _That was a lot of work. Good night!_ "

Domino looked at her and bent down to carefully pick the Cat up. In her other hand was the unconscious Growlithe and her beloved Zorua. She gestured at the group. "I'm going to teleport to Professor Oak's ranch. He'll heal them back up."

As she motioned to flash off, Blaine shouted. "Wait!"

The girl turned around. Blaine tossed a Volcano Badge to her, which Domino froze in midair with psychic. Domino looked at him in shock. "We didn't finish the battle yet."

"Nor will we ever." Blaine took a look at Cinnabar Island, his meaning self-explanatory. "I test trainers for power and fierceness. Let's just say that both you and your Pokémon fully exert that."

"In fact, maybe too much." The referee added.

Domino stared at the Volcano symbol and grinned. Walking to Ash, who was already holding her box of badges, she dropped her eighth badge in.

Ash blew into her ear. "Wow, another badge without you actually beating the Gym Leader."

"Well, there is a 'first time' for everyone." Domino raised her fist in his face. "I heard from Dexter that half of your badges from last time was without beating the Gym Leader…"

"Touché." The Ketchum boy sulked.

* * *

" _You know you could've just projected it on the big screen TV we have, right?_ " Arceus sighed exasperatedly.

Dialga tore himself away from the crystal ball Palkia made. " _If it was me, I would've just stopped time in the volcano. Makes life a heck of a lot simpler._ "

Palkia gave his brother a look. " _No, what's simpler is just creating a black hole, which will suck up all the lava anyways._ "

Sir Aaron shook his head. "Why not just dump all of the lava in a parallel universe? Even easier."

" _Because you three cannot step foot into reality!_ " Arceus shouted. " _And this is what happens when people start messing with my design of Plates! Total Disaster!_ "

" _What kind of an idiot would combine the Dark, Ghost, and Psychic Plate into one single Plate._ " The God of All continued his rant. " _Seriously! Use your brain! Their energy will become so insanely untamed! Plus the reaction will be devastating. Even the tiniest bit can create a HUGE destruction!_ "

"Like a nuclear bomb made of only a few teaspoons of reactants?"

" _Exactly!_ _You can't just go around changing the architecture of the greatest designs of this world!_ " The Original One yelled. " _Also, Forbidden Plate? What kind of stupid name is that!?_ "

The three Cosmic being sweatdropped and looked at each other. " _It's like that time Dragonite stole his Dragon Plate all over again._ "

" _Me damn it!_ " The Alpha shouted. " _Why didn't I think of combining Plates!?_ "

* * *

 **A/N: End of the Cinnabar gym battle… also end of Cinnabar gym. Good luck finding a new gym, Blaine. I'll make sure to write about it once you tell me how you found one.**

 **Also, yeah, Blaine has an overpowered Growlithe. Another piece of chess for the future.**

 **Like I said, new poll out! Be sure to vote on my poll that is posted on my profile page. This is how YOU can influence the plot of the book!**

 **One more Gym battle to go, and then LEAGUES! First League in Kanto! I haven't decided how that shall proceed yet, or who shall win, but let's just say that my League will not be like Satoshi Tajiri's League.**

 **If you enjoyed the chapter, please follow and favorite. Also, please, please, please review. As long as it doesn't say I smell like Grimer, I welcome all critiques… and praises.**


	42. Cha 41: Kanto 37

**Cha. 41**

 **A/N: Okay, a lot of things are happening in this chapter… I have a list!**

* * *

" _Fourth card._ " Giratina slapped the new card down, revealing it to be an Ace of Hearts.

" _I'm going all in._ "Celebi looked at her hand, grinning, as she pushed all of the chips into the middle.

" _So am I._ " Mewtwo looked at his cards, and followed suit.

Giratina and Mew looked at the two warily, trying to decipher whether they were bluffing or not.

Too bad three of them are psychic, so they couldn't see into each other's minds.

Giratina simply blocked his mind and cards with Shadow Force, experienced from the cheating that occurred up in the Bubble Realm.

" _I'll follow as well._ " Mew pushed the majority of her chips in and still had a little left from when she was winning last game.

" _I'm folding._ " Giratina eyed the three. " _I'm not as reckless as you three._ "

The three psychic gave the Renegade Dragon a very dubious look.

" _Okay, maybe in the world, yes._ " The Cosmic's eye twitched. " _But not in something as important as Texas Hold'em!_ "

" _Next card please?_ " Mew chirped.

The Ghost Legendary reached to the deck and flipped the next card. " _Queen of Hearts._ "

Two sharp intake of breath were heard.

" _Flip 'em cards!_ " Giratina exclaimed.

Mew turned her cards around to reveal only a pair. She shrugged. " _I think they're bluffing._ "

" _I was, until you gave me two hearts._ " Mewtwo smirked. " _I have a flush._ "

The clone psychic's hands started reaching toward the chips in the middle. His psychic projection sounded infinitely smug. " _Thanks guys for the money._ "

" _Hold on!_ " Celebi exclaimed and stopped Mewtwo's hands in midair. She calmly placed down her cards: a Jack, King, and Ten, all of which are hearts.

" _Royal Flush!_ " The other three screamed in shock. Celebi held out her hand. " _Thanks for keeping the chips warm for me, Mewtwo._ "

"..."

"..."

The Time Legendary had to forcefully pry the Genetics Pokémon's hands open to extract the chips… which were A LOT.

" _I'm done!_ " Mewtwo declared as he threw down last chip, which Celebi let him keep out of mockery. " _Let's do something more fun._ "

He turned to face Giratina. " _You came down from the Bubble into reality just to play cards?_ "

" _Good point._ " The addressed Legendary nodded. " _We should do something more fun… like going to an amusement park or something._ "

" _Or time travel?_ " Celebi asked excitedly. " _I can't manage large-scale travel like Dialga, but a few people can be accomplished easily._ "

Mew asked Mewtwo. " _But how are you going to get out of the container. Your body isn't fully materialized yet._ "

The clone shrugged. " _No biggie. I'm a freaking pool of psychic powers. I can just create a mental projection of myself and make it solid. You guys can take that as me to wherever._ "

" _Then it's set!_ " Celebi shouted happily. " _We're going time traveling!_ "

A wave of psychic curved the time from within Mewtwo's projection, and four figures were sucked into the timeline of space.

Outside, in reality, the control monitor started beeping and flashing red. Dr. Fuji looked up from Anna's container and gaped at the one cloning Mewtwo. "What!? How… But everything is going so smoothly!"

" _Don't worry, Doctor._ " A mental voice suddenly rang in his ears. " _I'm going out with my friends… which is why the monitor is detecting a loss of energy._ "

Fuji wiped his brow as he comprehended the explanation. "Okay! But tell me next time!"

" _Sorry!_ "

The Rocket head scientist sighed. Being in charge of the Mewtwo project made him feel like he was constantly walking on a bomb…

No, screw that… a giant Death Star.

* * *

Lying lazily on the beach of the ranch in front of Pallet Sea, Pikachu happily watched the seaview and the huge underwater park the giants had built… and still were building.

That was why the park was closed for today: renovation and expanding.

He didn't get much alone time with nature anymore, to enjoy the peace and quiet… afterall, his trainer was the Chosen One, and they were currently existing in a world disaster.

Pikachu shrugged the thoughts from his head and snuggled into his comfy beach chair.

A sound of stampeding broke the rare tranquility he had. Pikachu turned around to see a horde of Tauros rushing after Raikou, who was, of course, too fast for them, which only made the group angrier.

" _Raikou!_ " Pikachu shouted. " _What did you DO!?_ "

" _NOTHING!_ " The Electric Beast shouted back. " _I only accidentally electrocuted some of them._ "

" _ACCIDENTALLY!?_ " The Tauros Leader yelled. " _You charged into our pack with a Thunder trailing behind you!_ "

" _My experiment went wrong!_ "

Pikachu facepalmed and hopped in front of the group of Tauros. " _Can you guys please go back. I'll deal with Raikou._ "

Tauros growled. Pikachu glared at them. The Head Bull sighed and turned around, followed by the rest.

The Electric Mouse looked at the Thunder Pokémon. " _What experiment are you doing NOW?_ "

" _Well, I was thinking about your Galvanic Burst,_ " Raikou started, " _And I wanted to engineer a super move for myself as well._ "

" _Super move is such a stupid name._ " Pikachu grumbled. " _Show me what you're up to?_ "

Raikou nodded. " _Is this place safe?_ "

Pikachu glowed with as he activiated Lightningrod. " _Now it is._ "

A glow of yellow flushed over Raikou and started to swirl up into a storm. The circling wave of energy crackled with electricity within, producing more power the longer it was held.

" _The energy is divided into positive and negative, so I'm basically maintaining a huge capacitor._ " Raikou explained. " _Then, lightning is generated and charged within, and it will be stored up to an insane level._ "

" _When I release it all at once, the idea is to combine it all into a single beam, which will penetrate everything._ "

Pikachu shook his head. " _You're obviously running into trouble, right?_ "

Raikou nodded. " _First, maintaining the huge capacitor is a lot of work, and it doesn't charge up as much electricity as I had hoped._ "

" _Consequently, the power-up time is quite long if I wanted it to be strong, which is where I ran into another problem._ " The Beast continued. " _If the electricity becomes too much, since it wasn't generated by me directly, I can't control it, and I'm having problems combining it into one beam._ "

As he finished speaking, his electric tornado finally finished charging. The inside of the storm crackled with massive voltages.

Raikou shouted as he strained to combined the energy into one. The tornado shook and began to condense itself.

After a few seconds, it had been shrunken down to three beams. Pikachu watched as Raikou struggled to continue the process.

The Mouse Pokémon hopped over and tapped lightly on two of the beams, draining their energy instantly.

Pikachu pointed at a nearby mount. " _Fire that one there._ "

Raikou complied and shot the beam to the small hill, which blew into pieces.

" _A lot more powerful than Thunder._ " Pikachu evaluated. " _That's about the same damage as ten Hyper Beams combined into one, and that's only one beam._ "

" _It definitely has potential, if you figure out how to combine all three._ " Pikachu stated. " _I would suggest, instead of beams, you condense them into spheres, like using the Energy Ball technique rather than the Thunderbolt technique._ "

" _Why spheres?_ " Raikou questioned.

" _Because spheres are the most natural geometry, according to Dexter._ " The starter said. " _Speaking of which, you should probably go ask him for help. He has an encyclopedia on these kinds of science-y stuff._ "

" _Actually, I need to go see him too. I have a problem that I encountered while working on a move that I'm creating as well._ "

" _Really?_ " Raikou asked excitedly. " _A super move?_ "

" _There's nothing super about it._ " Pikachu rolled his eyes. " _It's just like any other move that I use._ "

* * *

"So let me see if I understand this." Dexter beeped. "You want me to engineer a way help you combine _spatial_ energy into your electricity to form _anti_ -electricity?"

Pikachu nodded. "Yeah, is there a way?"

Noah spoke up. "Since the speed a proton jumping to an electron is instantaneous, according to the Quantum Jump Postulate, it is able to reach light speed, which may reverse space."

"No. It cannot." Dexter countered. "With the Theory of Relativity in place, the molecules get heavier as it approaches the speed of light, which will continue onto infinity."

"By referring to Newton's Second Law, there is no way it can travel at the speed of light."

"But the catch is," Noah argued. "The protons and electrons are subatomic substances. If Pikachu can further divide that into positive and negative quarks, it will negate the Relativistic effect."

"Then, by going past the speed of light, he can create a hyperspace motion and diffuse the spatial energy from a chunk of the universe." He continued. "Then, we just need to figure out a way to infuse that with Pikachu's electricity."

"Hmmm, seems reasonable. I'll put that on the agenda. It'll probably take a few dozen hours of deriving." Dexter held his chin. "What's up, Raikou?"

Raikou, with swirl in his eyes from listening to that speech, moaned. " _I was just going to ask about how I can make a capacitor store more electricity…_ "

"Oh…" Dexter coughed. "That's easy. Just put a dielectric in the middle."

" _Ummm… what's a dielectric?_ "

" _It's an insulator that can't conduct._ " Pikachu interrupted. " _Like a carpet… or a block of aura manipulated with Charge._ "

Raikou's face twitched. " _How do you KNOW this?_ "

Pikachu shrugged. " _I was taught all of the basic electricity terms when Ash and I hired Dexter to plan out Galvanic Burst at the beginning of the journey._ "

Noah floated over and dragged Raikou to a nearby projector, onto which he hooked himself up. "I'll introduce you to the basic laws of electricity… then we can start a blueprint for your attack."

* * *

Domino got up from the seat that she was pinned in by the lecture on force mechanisms given by the PTI physics professor. An invisible Mew floated by her. " _Did that make sense?_ "

"Largely, yeah." Domino nodded. "What about you, Kirlia?"

" _Yep!_ " She held up a notebook. " _I made a summary of everything._ "

"Great!" Domino turned to her right. "Zorua?"

The Dark Type had long fallen asleep on the table, with a small puddle of drool in front of her.

Domino sighed. "Sometimes I forget how difficult it is for non-psychics to sit through a five-hour review lecture.

" _She lasted the first two hours though._ " Kirlia chuckled. " _If it was Ash, he would have fell asleep within the first fifteen minutes._ "

"Surprisingly, Ashy's really good at staying awake when he needs to." Domino replied. "Before I took you from the Pokémon Center, I've seen Ash listen to Dexter's speech on electricity components for the entire afternoon."

"That's how Galvanic Burst was invented."

The Rocket Elite patted her Dark Type. The Disguise Pokémon stood up and stretched. " _Is the torture over yet?_ "

"Yes." Domino rolled her eyes. "Now, we're going back to the ranch to devise a Light Screen shield structure that can't be popped easily by attacks that focuses on a single point."

" _More geek stuff?_ " Zorua groaned " _Didn't Ash already come up with one?_ "

"That's for Aura, which have different mechanics than psychic."

" _But he got it from Dexter, right?_ " The Dark type asked. " _Why don't we just ask Noah?_ "

Domino sighed. "Because those two machines are working their butt off trying to formulate a way to rip open space with electricity."

* * *

" _What have you learned?_ " Lugia shot a look at Mt. Cinnabar and asked his son, flying along with him.

Silver replied. " _It's never good to mess with an active volcano?_ "

" _No._ " Lugia shook his head. " _If you don't want any trouble, keep away from the Chosen._ "

"..."

* * *

" _Wow, the Mozart orchestra is amazing!_ " Mewtwo chanted joyfully as he exited a building. " _Seeing a live performance is so much better than listening to James's modern replays._ "

" _You mean the future replays?_ " Celebi giggled and took a photo of the Colosseum in the distance, standing in its full prime, with gladiators dueling.

Mew and Giratina dragged on behind them. " _What's so good about the music? I already listened to this so many times when the Roman Era came around the first time._ "

" _Also, Mozart is centuries after the Romans…_ " Giratina pointed out. " _Wouldn't messing with the past by reverting Mozart back a millenia cause a disturbance in the future?_ "

" _Nah. This is an alternate timeline away from ours without any Pokémon or insane powers. Plus, Arceus has already encased our timeline in a secure bubble from the second Ash woke up on his first day of the Pokémon Journey._ " Celebi said. " _So there will be no ripple effect._ "

" _In that case, what's the next stop?_ " Mewtwo asked. " _Ooo, I want to go see what it was like exactly a thousand years ago from when I was awakened._ "

Celebi shrugged. " _Sure, why not._ "

The two other legends looked at each other, clearly not as enthusiastic about seeing their past over again.

A flash surrounded them, and they teleported off.

* * *

Two of the Rocket trios sat under a shade on New Island, sipping on juice. Meowth was trying to learn how to knit, but he always ended up distracted with the yarn.

Jessie rolled her eyes and tried to untangle the Scratch Cat, which only messed him up even more.

With a flash, James landed in front of them with Metang. Holding up a Pokéball, he remarked. "Clefairy captured."

"You're late." The female Rocket deadpanned, holding up her own Pokéball. "I already went and captured Eevee."

James puffed. "That's because Mt. Moon is so dark."

"You have a psychic helping you."

The said Iron Claw Pokémon spoke up. " _Yeah, James, there's really no excuse for your losing the bet._ "

James huffed. "Anyways, how many more badges do we still need?"

"Lat's see." Meowth counted. "We have the Boulder, Rainbow, Soul, and Volcano Badge, and we get one from Viridian since dat's just Boss's badge."

"So we still needa go ta Cerulean, Saffron, and Vermillion."

"I'm so glad we went to Blaine before Cinnabar was put under prohibition…" James remarked.

"Reports are saying that the volcano is on the verge of erupting because of a gym battle." Jessie commented. "Wonder who that could be?"  
Two names instantly popped up in their minds.

* * *

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* * *

Blaine's Growlithe watched numbly as Muk, Lucario, and Spiritomb each created a giant storm, which slammed together to form a hurricane of sludge, Aura, and Shadow Balls.

Each Pokémon tried to snatch the total control of the whirling monstrosity, meanwhile wrecking havoc on the environment next to them.

To his right, Kangaskhan and Ash's Tauros Leader were having a sound-off, competing to see who could yell the louder. Exeggutor, in his Alolan Form in order to see over the cheering Tauros, was voted the judge of the competition.

Squirtle just ran by him, trying to chase after Dratini, Sableye, and Haunter to sell them his new smoothie: Rocky Shell, made of the purest and freshest clam shells…

Steelix shrugged, not understanding why they were running. " _This is really good._ "

Aron and Geodude nodded in confirmation.

On top of Growlithe, Shedinja and Pidgeot soared by, the latter teaching the former how to increase in speed dramatically… which was actually the only normal activity in the ranch.

The Fire Puppy looked to Ash's Bulbasaur and Absol next to him. " _Is this always how stuff is here?_ "

" _Pretty much. And this is with Pikachu here restraining everyone from going crazy._ " Bulbasaur sighed. " _When I'm in charge of the group, the ranch gets flattened at least twice every week._ "

" _Which is why Professor Oak learned to buy full-coverage insurance pretty early on._ " Absol commented.

Growlithe opened his mouth, then closed it, in a loss of words.

" _Following Ash around is a great idea._ " Absol said. " _I learned how to distinguish between false alarms and real disasters._ "

" _What do you mean?_ "

" _For example, nothing actual is happening right now, but my senses are blasting with warning._ "

"..."

* * *

Professor Oak hummed. "That's a really interesting idea, but combining moves are extremely unstable, even if you could do it."

Zorua nodded. " _Yeah. When I tried to merge a miniature Dark, Ghost, and Psychic Plate together, it erupted Cinnabar Island._ "

"I know." Oak looked at one of the dozens of monitors in his lab. "My Underground Vibration Detection System, UVDS, is showing large amounts of quaking from the south."

"Thank Arceus Mew stopped the volcano. If the pent-up lava was erupted, which was stored for centuries, the hurricane resulting from it would be insane."

Turning the topic back to Zorua's idea about moves, he stated. "This is a topic that will definitely require research. Can you demonstrate one for me?"

The Disguise Pokémon nodded, and she used Scratch. The Scratch attack hit a piece of paper, tearing it into pieces, which started to burn from a combined Ember.

The move acted like Fire Lash, but the two individual moves are both basic and took a lot less energy.

"Exactly like what I thought." Oak nodded his head. "A physical attack combined with a spell move work easily, because the spell has something to be carried on."

"It is when different spell moves are merged that disorder happens, since their power foundations are all fragile and can be disturbed easily."

"It's like trying to make polymers…" He held his chin. "This is a really good topic of research."

"How much time did you and Dragonite spend coming up with the Forbidden Plate move?" The Kanto scientist asked. "99% of the time, combining moves inconsiderately will just result in nothing at all, and, maybe, an uncontrolled explosion.

" _It took me about two weeks to learn._ " Zorua replied. " _But Dragonite said it took him about two millenium to come up with ways to merge Arceus's plate architecture and maximize its efficiency and power._ "

* * *

The sound of the ocean waves crashed against Ash's ears, and the familiar smell of the sea entered his nostrils.

The wind blew his hair against his closed eyes, and he felt himself transcending to heaven.

This is the real peace and quiet, Ash thought to himself. He couldn't believe Pikachu would actually think going to the ranch will earn him calm time.

He reached for the cup of lemonade next to him, still well iced. He loved the summer. Too bad it was winter outside.

The Ketchum boy opened his eyes and find himself staring into the ocean. He then turned around, and saw a small patch of forest constructed. After that, the world turned back into the virtual darkness of the incomplete DigiWorld.

He shook his head and smirked. "Even my down time is so bizarre."

* * *

" _I've always wanted to play with time, but Dialga was always like 'Don't mess with time' or 'Time isn't a game.'"_ Celebi flew into the air and did a playful flip. " _Thank Arceus he's gone for now._ "

Mewtwo took a photo as ordered, showing her upside down against the background of the half-finished Great Wall.

" _I wonder what they're doing up there?_ " Mew said. " _Actually, I should go check the Bubble Realm out_."

She turned to look at Giratina. " _I AM strong enough to get in, right?_ "

" _Not exactly._ "

" _But I'm one of the Cosmics!_ " Mew raised an eyebrow at him, waiting for an explanation.

" _Currently, you at Formation-level._ " Giratina elaborated. " _While you are strong enough if you combine with the Tree, you are not individually, since you were the one who decided to pour your power into the Tree so you can be in reality without messing up its axioms._ "

" _Then I'll just bring the Tree up._ Mew shrugged.

Giratina shook his head. " _No, Arceus don't want the Tree to link reality and abstract yet._ "

" _Okay, then what if I take my sister and we go up together?_ "

" _Two Mews should do._ " Giratina nodded his head. " _Also, find a way to bring wi-fi up there. Arceus and they still haven't figured out how to install that yet._ "

" _Okay! But during my visit, I need to ask you for a favor._ " Giratina motioned for her to continue. " _Can you temporarily take my place beside Domino? Someone has to guard over her when she's still young._ "

The Ghost Dragon considered that, and nodded. " _Sure. But you better explain everything to her first. I don't want her to think I ate you…_ "

* * *

The bush hid his tracks from the moonlight. Peering out between the gaps, he could see the men dressed in blue sitting by a campfire.

Silently, he counted eight. Motioning to the troops behind him, he waited for the right time to pounce.

The opportunity came in a couple of minutes. Six of the men decided to return to their tents for the night, leaving two for firewatch.

The masked man stood up and, without a sound, stalked up behind them.

Then… he attacked.

Immediately immobilizing one guy with a gripping headlock, he threw him to the ground without a sound besides the landing _thump_. The man in blue hit his head on the back on a rock and passed out instantly.

Turning to face the other guy left, whose only motion was to merely get up, he went straight for his face.

The other man managed to raise his hand to protect his head, while opening his mouth to scream.

Seeing this, the intruder moved his hand down and flicked his opponent's throat, which reduced the incoming scream to a small grunt.

The other man's head snapped down as a result, and the masked attacker launched a swift and powerful kick to the enemy's stomach, knocking him down.

He then bent down and hit him directly on the head, knocking him unconscious.

The entire process only created minimal noises, barely audible unless to the most trained professionals.

Standing back up, he pointed to the tents. From behind him, four elites jumped out at the constructs.

Giovanni took off his mask, reminiscing to himself how nice it felt to be in the action again rather than sitting behind the big desk.

He then looked at the grunt on the ground. "Aqua wants a fight? I'll give Archie a fight alright!"

* * *

" **Day 42**

 **The research is going well. I just prove that the distance between the effective ranges of Keystone is based on the connection between trainer and Pokémon and has an exponential relationship.**

 **Professor Oak had suggested that there is a correlation between evolution lights and Mega Evolution, which is the next topic I will explore.**

 **The next few months will be stagnant, however. Leagues are coming up, and I fully intend to win this one!** "

His writing was interrupted by a beeping of his Pokédex. Picking it up, he saw that Professor Oak had sent him a message.

"Giselle!" Gary called the girl after he finished reading the email.

The brunette quickly paced her way to Gary. "Yeah, what's up?"

Gary handed her his Pokédex with the message pulled up.

Giselle picked up her head once she was done, eyes sparkling. "That is actually a great research topic. Combining Pokémon moves and investigating their powers."

The Oak boy grinned. "I know. I don't think anyone is doing something like that. You could be the Mother of Polymoves."

Giselle laughed and wrote something down on her notepad. "Definitely a topic that is interesting!"

* * *

" _For the love of me,_ " Arceus exclaimed. " _What are you doing here? You're not allowed to be here._ "

Mew 1 pulled out a router and a server… and a bunch of other items that were involved in wifi-generation. " _I brought you the Pokenet. What about now?_ "

" _Welcome to the Hall of Origins!_ " Arceus exclaimed while instantly snatching them over and levitated it to Sir Aaron. " _You can go set it up._ "

"I'm on BREAK!" The ancient Knight yelled.

" _Too bad! Dialga, Palkia! Do you want wifi?_ " Arceus shouted.

From the half-finished kitchen, the two Dragons raised their heads. " _HELL YEAH!_ "

Arceus shrugged. " _See, three to one._ "

Sir Aaron growled and faced Mew. "So what brings you guys here?"

" _Celebi was taking us, Mewtwo, and Giratina around and messing with timelines, and Giratina mentioned the Bubble Realm, so I decided to come and check it out._ "

Dialga's ears piped up. " _Celebi is doing WHAT?_ "

Mew 1 covered her mouth. " _Oops, shouldn't have said that._ "

" _Actually, that's a great idea!_ " Dialga chirped. " _If Celebi can do it, we can do it too. Have Aaron take us around different parallel universes, and I can control the time._ "  
" _Instead of sitting here building this stupid Hall…_ " Palkia shut up after receiving a glare from Arceus. " _C'mon Dad, can we go?_ "

Arceus sighed and looked at the almost-completed Hall. " _Fine, we can go universe-hopping._ "

"YES/ _YESS!_ "

* * *

 **A/N: For the record, Mew 1 is the one from the Tree. Mew 2 is the other Mew from underwater.**

 **Also, once again, PLEASE review, I beg of you. Acknowledge me! I'm a six-year-old begging for attention. ADORE ME! xD**

 **Anyways, thanks for reading, and remember to check out my NEW Orange Island poll on the profile page.**


	43. Cha 42: Kanto 38

**Cha. 42**

 **A/N: Thank you for all of you guys' reviews. It really encourages me to keep writing. Also, I'm extremely good with replies (you can ask the people who frequently comment in my review section).**

 **Therefore, if you have questions, please comment and address them. I'll be sure to reply to them rapidly!**

 **Also remember to check out my poll on my profile page!**

 **With that note, enjoy the fic! Please follow and favorite.**

* * *

" _This is a protective enough shielding._ " Domino's giant Alakazam looked at the large psychic wall he had built. " _Try singing._ "

The giant Jigglypuff began singing a tune, unconsciously using her Sing ability.

" _This should do it._ " The ancient psychic nodded. " _Whenever you want to sing from now on, just come in here and…_ "

The Pokémon fell over into the ocean, put to sleep.

Tentacruel chuckled. " _Guess the barrier still doesn't negate the sleep effect._ "

" _No, it's not Jigglypuff who's doing that._ " Dragonite observed. " _It's_ that _Jigglypuff._ "

Tentacruel whipped his head to where Dragonite was pointing, and saw a normal-sized Jigglypuff.

Seeing that the giant Water Type's attention was on her, the normal Jigglypuff turned to him and started Singing as well.

A wave of tiredness overwhelmed him. Tentacruel quickly Screeched to drown out the sound and downed some Stun Spores to chase away the tired feeling, before swallowing the Lum Berry in his mouth.

Dragonite covered his ears with a layer of Draco Meteor, before bending down to examine the Bubble Pokémon. " _Wow, you're pretty talented. I've never seen anyone put an ancient Pokémon to sleep before just by using pure Sing… beside other ancients._ "

Jigglypuff waved at him, before hopping over to the fallen Alakazam. Taking out a sharpie, she went to work.

* * *

"What's up next, Dex?" Ash asked his Pokédex. "Viridian Gym?"

" _I call dibs._ " Pikachu yelled.

" _I call second._ " Lucario followed.

Ash took a look at the two. "This time, I might actually give you guys first and second."

" _Yes!_ " They echoed.

"Unfortunately, we still have some events in hold." Dexter stated. "You skipped a lot of the activities that had happened in the way last timeline… even though a lot of the other activities were caused by your own fault and Team Rocket, both of which shouldn't be a problem now."

"Like what? What else did he do last time?" Domino giggled.

"Well, Ash had a stupid rivalry with Gary last time, which caused a bunch of trouble." Misty said.

"We also randomly went around to different places, which ultimately had no purpose at all…" Brock continued.

Dexter cleared his throat. "It's December right now. What we have on the schedule is a Jynx getting lost near the northern Pallet Sea in a week or so, the Princess Contest coming up, and visiting the Turtle Island."

"Let's go to the Turtle Island then." Domino said. "It's been a while since I last got another Pokémon."

* * *

"003, come in." Giovanni placed down his radio.

A few moments later, the Masked Marauder walked in and bowed to the Rocket Boss. "At your service, sir."

"I'm sending you over to Hoenn… Your job is to immobilize Aqua by destroying as much of their resources as possible." Giovanni gave the Elite a look. "If you need support, phone in."

The Masked Marauder nodded. "Understood."

He bowed one more time and exited the room.

The Boss picked up the phone and dialed in a number. "Hello."

The other side contained no reply. The Rocket Leader, familiar with this routine, whistled three times.

The other end echoed a cough. As a reply, Giovanni knocked on the table twice.

He then called out several short, choppy words. "Unova. Plasma. Espionage. N. Resharim."

The line ended abruptly, and he put the phone back on the desk.

Giovanni then turned to his secretary, Matori. "Infiltrate Magma and do the same thing. But don't get caught. I want you to ultimately sway Maxie to have a total war with Archie, which will put both of their teams at their weakest point.

"Then Rocket will come in and sweep out the rest of the Teams and plant our own people there." He said with a fiery glint. "In the past, Rocket Leaders had been afraid of expansion because they deem it unfitting and unnecessary."

"But the Chosen has arrived, and a new world disaster has dawned!" The Boss took in a deep breath. "This is the one precious chance since Sir Aaron's time a thousand years ago to completely take over the regions with the PEOPLE's approval, and ultimately purify ourselves."

"My predecessors had failed, but I will not!" Giovanni whispered, determined. "I will lead Rocket to become the PEOPLE's government, and no more of the underground hiding!"

"You cannot direct the world from the shadows."

* * *

Unlike the last timeline, standing foot onto the island was amazing.

Around them, Wartortle, Squirtle, and Blastoise roamed around the island, just like a heaven built only for the Kanto Water Starters.

Dexter materialized and began snapping photos like there was no tomorrow, auto-sending them as well to Professor Oak. "Professor must enjoy this! I think this may be the first Turtle Breeding Ground in recent records that are actually functioning. Too bad most of the Turtles left last time."

Ash smiled at the crowd of Pokémon joyfully. Kanto was the most advanced in infrastructure in the Regions, besides Sinnoh. Seeing this high of Pokémon density within a small space was almost impossible.

The mood of the island also felt perfect, as serene as Bulbasaur's Secret Garden, which they did not visit this time due to his unwillingness to evolve.

Domino looked around the place excitedly. There must be one guy who wanted to follow her!

Misty also watched in awe at the island full of Water Types.

Meanwhile, Squirtle burst out of his Pokéball and shouted. " _This is the place of gathering! I can feel the power of friends, bonds of unity, the ultimate champion of the forces that will dominate the skies!_ "

" _This is the place where I shall advance, shall triumph, shall gain the power I need to conquer the WORLD!_ " Squirtle let out a massive torrent of water, rising up to the skies, attracting the attention of nearly a fourth of the island's Pokémon.

Blind white light began to pour out of him, and they swirled to form a cocoon.

On the other hand, Ash sweatdropped at Squirtle's evolutionary lights. "Did he seriously just evolve at the sight of seeing a hundred Turtles?"

"Are you surprised?" Domino poked him. "Squirtle probably had enough experience to evolve to Blastoise… he just never felt like it because… well, it's Squirtle."

Squirtle's evolutionary lights started to fade, revealing in all glory, Wartortle.

" _Well, that's one thing accomplished._ " Lucario remarked.

* * *

The Pokémon circus was crowded with people, even as it neared 9p.m., its closing time. After all, the program was a part of Abra Assets, which dominated Kanto in tourist attractions.

Melvin took off his hat and walked to congratulate his partner on such a successful day. Mr. Mime highfived him back.

He patted his seat, and Mr. Mime sat down next to him.

Melvin began. "You, know all along, don't you?"

Mr. Mime nodded his head. " _Yeah. I did bounce in on you materializing breakfast._ "

The clown and magician chuckled. "And yet, Mimey, you didn't say anything… that's why we're great friends."

Next to him passerbys looked at him weirdly, talking to Mr. Mime as though he knew what the Psychic was talking about.

" _So since you finally mentioned that I knew you're a magician…_ " Mr. Mime paused for effect. " _I'm guessing you're about to do something drastic?_ "

"I wouldn't say _drastic_ exactly." Melvin corrected. "Also, from where I lived, we're not called magicians. We're called wizards."

Mr. Mime nodded, using another Calm Mind to avoid being brain-fried.

"I'm leaving this world." He said. "I don't belong here. There are no wizards here… this is a world of Pokémon."

"It is a very long story, Mr. Mime, and I know that you are confused, and maybe you think I'm crazy." Melvin continued. "Just know that we will probably never see each other again… you can think of me, in a sense, as a bug in the programming of the universe with magic powers."

" _I believe you, and I really enjoy the time we had together._ " Mr. Mime held his partner's hand in his own. " _Is there any way we can communicate to each other?_ "

"Yes, I have a little something for you, Mimey." The wizard sighed and pulled out a radio-like device. "This is called a portal phone. It is allowed up to three uses to talk trans-universally with me."

Mr. Mime held the phone close to his chest. " _Is there no way you can take me with you?_ "

"Definitely not…" Melvin refused the request instantly. "From where I'm from, seeing a living Pokémon walking around will cause… insanity."

" _Then at least take me out of this circus._ " He said. " _I think I need a break from performing as a clown._ "

"If that's what you want." Melvin nodded. "I will go sign your release forms. I've earned enough to pay off the fee for breaking our contracts.

Mr. Mime nodded.

"Do you have a place to stay after this?"

" _No, but I'll figure something out._ "

"Actually, I have an idea." Melvin snapped his fingers. "A few weeks ago, I met a very kind and friendly woman at the circus. I've been to her house for a few times, and she became one of my greatest friends at my short time here on this world."

"She is super nice to both humans and Pokémon alike." Melvin said. "Would you like to go meet her and see if you can stay there until you come up with a plan?"

" _Of course._ " Mr. Mime approved the suggestion eagerly. To be honest, he had to admit he was not fond of the idea of being wild.

"In that case," Melvin snapped his fingers and teleported off, along with his partner.

* * *

Blaine shook his head at the architect. "Are you crazy? $3 Million for this gym?"

Tonio nodded. "Nothing less. I can make your new gym indestructible."

"Don't you think 'indestuctible' is a bit arrogant?" The Fire Trainer asked.

"Of course not." Tonio said proudly. "My great grandfather built the space-time tower, and I have all of his notes with me."

"In fact, I also do research in the tower, so I'm both a scientist and architect."

Blaine considered his options. He wanted this to be the last gym he needed to ever built… but three million!

The referee who had been following Blaine whispered in his ear. "Remember that the League pays for over 90%, and your personal account from being twenty years of trainer and ten years of Gym Leader is so much more than what YOU have to pay."

"Fine!" Blaine signed his name on the contract with a swift move and his pen. "Can you finish in a year?"

"You will not be disappointed. Tonio smiled.

* * *

Seeing that the Water Pokémon had finished gathering around them, Domino spoke up. "Hello, dear Turtles! Please excuse me for my intrusion, but allow me to remark that you all are magnificent creatures built with some of the highest capabilities in the world!"

"Suck-up." Ash muttered sarcastically."

Misty poked Ash. "Starting out with praises never fails."

Domino continued, sensing overall that most Turtles were now displaying a mood of friendliness.

"My name is Domino, and this is Misty, and we now embark on a Pokémon journey to find and train the world's strongest Pokémon." The Black Tulip said. "And since you are one of the most powerful species in this world, I now invite you to join me on this expedition."

"And only I can train you to be the very best." Her body shone in pink and levitated, drawing gasps from the Water Pokémon. "Because I am the most powerful human psychic in this world!"

She pointed at Misty. "She's the Princess of the Ocean, as well as a Water Pokémon Master."

Ash held his forehead. "Now she's just making up titles that are not confirmed yet."

 _Yet._

The Turtles turned amongst themselves, and discussion burst out. The blonde waited patiently. She knew at least one would take the bait.

There were a lot more than one who stood out. Even a Blastoise decided to fall out of the ranks of the Turtle Island and join hers.

Misty smiled wholeheartedly at the sheer number of Pokémon willing to join her on her quest. She looked around the herd, filled with a rising Water Energy that resonated with her.

Her eyes fell on a Squirtle. She was not the bulkiest among them, nor the most attractive, but Misty, as a devoted Water Trainer, could feel the purity of the Water in her. She didn't know how, but she knew instantly that this would be her Pokémon.

On the other hand, Domino had a more measurable method. The girl shut her eyes, and a burst of psychic reached out. Before her closed eyes, she searched for the one with the largest reservoir of brain waves.

Like aura, brain waves also determined the potential of a Pokémon. Aura judged the physical capabilities of a Pokémon, which further represented the power of attacks and rapidity of speed.

On the other hand, brain waves showed how quickly a Pokémon could comprehend and use super-complicated moves, such as Blast Burn, or moves that they did not exhibit a main Typing for.

If a Pokémon had an uproaring amount of both, well, they turned into a monstrocity like Blaine's Growlithe.

And with a bit more luck and insanity… Pikachu.

Domino zoomed in on three who were all swirling with brain waves. She then whispered to Ash telepathically.

Ash closed his eyes as well, a shade of blue sparkling under his eyelids, and reopened them. He pointed at a certain one, and the Elite nodded.

"I pick you!" A psychic beam shot out of her hand and levitated the said Wartortle from the ground.

The other Turtles chirped in awe and jealousy, and the chosen Wartortle shouted with excitement.

Domino smiled at him. "Would you like to have a conventional battle for me to capture you or do you want to just come join?"

At the same time Misty walked through the crowd to the Squirtle and smiled. "Same question for you, Little Turtle."

* * *

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* * *

Melvin smiled at the woman in front of him who had just opened the door. "Hello again, Delia. This is Mr. Mime."

He gestured at the Pokémon next to him.

"Hello, Mr. Mime!" Delia shook hands with the Pokémon. "Do you mind if I call you Mimey?"

" _Not at all._ " The Barrier Pokémon projected psychically into her mind. " _You don't seem startled at all to hear a mental voice._ "

Delia smiled. "My son is a Pokémon trainer, and a very close female friend of his is a psychic herself, so I'm used to all of the mental projections."

"Wow, you two hit off better than I thought." Melvin exclaimed.

Mrs. Ketchum grinned. "Thank you. I was told that I get along with Pokémon well."

"Not just Pokémon." Melvin winked. "Anyways, I have a favor to ask."

"Yes?"  
"Mr. Mime and I just got out of Abra Assets's circus, and we have no intention of going back, which proposed a problem." The wizard started. "Mr. Mime here has no place to stay, and I…"

"Let's just say that I will be going on a very long business trip, so I can't take care of him." Melvin paused. "I came here to ask you whether you can take care of him for… as long as I will be gone."

"Of course I'll take care of him." Delia smiled and motioned the Psychic Type to come closer. "I guess we will be seeing a lot of each other from now on."

"Thank you so much, Delia." Melvin smiled. "Now, if you would excuse us, I may need a few last moments or two with Mimey before I leave."

Delia nodded and head back inside. "Just remember to take off your shoes when coming in. The door's opened."

Melvin turned to look at Mr. Mime. "So this may be the last time."

Mr. Mime nodded sadly. " _You really can't stay?_ "

"No." He said softly. "This is not a world I belong in. I got here by accident, and I had to stay until my powers charged back up."

" _And they're up now._ " Mr. Mime said quietly. " _I just want you to know that, despite the short time we knew each other, you are probably my best friend in the entire world._ "

"And I can say the same for you, Mimey." The magician gave his partner a big hug. "Thank you for being my best friend, and I will never forget you, wherever I go."

With that, Melvin teleported off with a flash of rainbow, instead of the psychic pink. Mr. Mime could feel a powerful ripple in space-time with his psychic senses, a power that would crush him if he dared to enter.

The Barrier Pokémon looked down at the radio in his hands, the device that was supposed to be trans-universal. " _Good luck, Melvin Crumbs._ "

* * *

Kirlia appeared in front of the lawn before Wartortle's home and bowed. " _Hello, fellow Pokémon._ "

Domino's Turtle candidate returned the gesture. " _Hello to you too. I welcome an exotic battle._ "

Determined to show off in front of his future trainer, Wartortle moved with speed. Water started shooting out in a controlled pace behind him, and he Aqua Jet into the sky, creating the same effect as flying.

Ash's Wartortle's jaw dropped. " _This is actually a really good way of Flying… why didn't I think of that!?_ "

Ash took a glance at the Water Type's face and groaned, pitying Professor Oak's ranch as his Pokémon, undoubtedly, would venture deeper into other modes of Transportation using Water… destructively.

Kirlia placed a Trick Room on the Pokémon, slowing him dramatically, so she could go in with a well-aimed Gravity.

The attack hit and threatened to pull Wartortle down, who smirked. " _I've already seen at least a dozen counters to the counters to that strategy. This is Turtle Island!_ "

The stream of water that was flowing everywhere from Wartortle's original Aqua Jet turned into Water Shurikens, which interrupted Kirlia's move as she teleported away from being hit.

Wartortle followed her rapidly on his liquid flight. The water poured down, creating a pool around her.

Deciding to drain the pool of water, Kirlia shone with bursts of Psychic to remove the annoying barrier.

However, the water suddenly froze, as Kirlia realized that it was not normal water, but a torrent from Brine, which she was not prepared for and rendering her unable to move it.

Casting more energy into her psychic, she shone with a greater pink. However, before she could remove the giant block of ice, Wartortle smashed down with a Hydro Pump.

The Emotion Pokémon countered with a powerful Psybeam, blowing apart the concentrating water, which only created more problems for her to deal with.

Kirlia knew what her opponent was doing: He was trying to trap her in so much water that she would end up losing her teleporting ability… since she would be in water anyways. Then he could manipulate the water to his liking to defeat her.

Her eye twitched. She had to end it fast.

This time she flashed right above the flying Wartortle, who put up a heavy shield of liquid as soon as he saw her.

Kirlia shot off a light beam of Hypnosis, which went through the shield… and glanced off of Wartortle.

She raised an eyebrow and fired another one at the Wartortle behind the shield of water, which glanced off as well.

Her eye twitched, knowing that there could be no way she missed twice in a row, and the psychic looked to her trainer for help.

"The image across the screen isn't Wartortle! The water refracted his image a few inches to his right!" Domino patted her forehead in realization. "Kirlia, don't shoot at the image directly! It's the natural properties of water."

" _Too late!_ " Wartortle declared as his shield burst in pieces of Ice Shard and shot at his opponent.

Kirlia tried to flash away, but a Whirlpool of water suddenly rose and pulled her down, interrupting her spell casting.

Domino muttered. "There are still so many ways to counter teleportation in battle…"

Kirlia lit up with Light Shields, which protected her from the strangling water and ice.

Then, the water all froze from a Brine attack, trapping her in the ice. Instinctively, she wanted to teleport out, but as a trained Pokémon, she knew this was a bad idea. Wartortle was probably waiting outside for her to teleport and then hit her with a Hyper Beam.

Reaching out with her powers, she locked onto the figure of the Wartortle and pulsed out a Shadow Ball. The Ghost Type Energy traveled onto the surface of the ice , she created a Substitute of herself, teleporting that out.

Wartortle, as predicted, released a massive Hydro Cannon onto the Substitute, popping it on contact.

He was taken by surprise, and a bad feeling rose from his stomach. Turning around, he saw a giant purple sphere inches away from his face, and he was blown back by the attack.

Seizing her chance, the Emotion Pokémon teleported out of the ice and on top of him, firing down a Hypnosis, which finally hit, putting Wartortle to sleep as he fell onto the ice.

" _There we go!_ " Kirlia smirked. " _I've been working on this move for an entire week. I can finally test it on someone._ "

The psychic formed a pink sphere in her hands and threw it at the unmoving Wartortle, traveling at human walking speed.

The attack didn't get to Wartortle for fifteen long seconds, and all of the audience sweatdropped at the speed.

Before it got there, Kirlia used Dream Eater, instantly waking up the sleeping Pokémon, who was hit with the pink sphere first thing he saw.

The ball landed, and the Water Type immediately passed out, even at near full health.

She bowed to the audience. " _Thank you for witnessing my super move: Anti-Psy_."

* * *

"Explain." Domino requested.

" _Sableye and I were discussing how to ignore the physical shell of an opponent and attack the brain directly, since that is where he wants to venture with his super move._ " Kirlia grinned. " _That gave me an idea. What if there is something that can travel through the body and can directly cancel out the brain waves?_ "

" _Sableye said that it would still require physical contact, so he refused the idea._ " she continued. " _However, I persisted and came up with a type of wave that is the opposite of regular brain wave and can neutralize them. And, it can travel through the body since it is in wave form._ "

" _Now, the only downside is that to neutralize the entire brain in one shot- or else it wouldn't work- I needed to condense the waves into a compact construction and maintain it… which is what the pink ball is. It travels so slowly because the configuration cannot be distorted through flight._ "

" _There are actually still a bunch of downsides. For example, I have to stall for half of the battle until I analyzed all of his brain wave patterns to create an anti-solution._ "

Brock wiped his brow at the explanation. He recalled how last timeline, all of them were just kids who traveled around the region like everyone else.

Now, he was literally walking with insanity.

Domino threw a Pokéball at the fallen Wartortle, who was promptly captured. "Onto you Misty!"

* * *

Misty's chosen Squirtle jumped into the water, followed by Misty's Kingdra. The two pulled apart and waited for the cue of the start.

"GO!" Ash shouted, and both Pokémon plunged into motion.

Kingdra began with a Dragon Dance while chanting a Rain Dance, which boosted her speed threefold.

Squirtle shouted. " _You shall be cleansed!_ "

A pure blue flow of water was shot out by him. Unlike how normal water merge, Squirtle's water naturally pushed apart Kingdra's water shield, just like oil and water.

" _Your water is not pure!_ " Squirtle shouted. The pure water completely separated the water shield, and Kindra had to stop his boosts and counter with a Dragon Breath.

The fiery breath did not evaporate the water, which kept going.

Squirtle shouted. " _Pure water stays true forever!_ "

The Dragon Pokémon shot an ice beam as well, which was also nullified by the pure stream.

" _The phase of purity will not change!_ "

Misty's eye twitched. "So this is why my senses said that he is… pure."

Kingdra divided into twelve Double Teams to evade the attack. The ball of water kept following him, however.

" _Purity will cleanse all fakeness and illusion._ "

The ball of water released eleven smaller flickers, which landed on the Double Teams, popping all of them.

Kingdra's fins twitched. " _How are you doing this!?_ "

Squirtle shrugged. " _Not everything has to make sense._ "

" _WHAT DO YA MEAN!? OF COURSE EVERYTHING HAS TO MAKE SENSE._ "

" _Let my water purify your anger and frustration._ "

" _NO YOU WILL NOT!_ " The frustrated Pokémon shouted. " _Draco Meteor_."

A giant storm of a hundred meteors at the sizes of a small building smashed down onto the water around the two. Torrents of water formed giant waves, crashing and washing up against the coast.

Flickers or Light Screens and Protect instantly lined the shore, their users familiar with the side effects of powerful moves.

A few moments later, the Squirtle floated to the top, unconscious. Kingdra smirked. " _If I learned one thing from Pikachu, it's that you don't need to care about special abilities people have._ "

" _Just overpower them._ "

Misty's eyes twitched at her Pokémon. "Was that your super move? Just an enlarged Draco Meteor?"

" _Yep._ " Kingdra confirmed. " _Why invent a whole new move when you already have one made for you?_ "

" _Just exponentiate it!_ "

* * *

" _Portal complete!_ " Sir Aaron declared, pointing at a rectangle in front of the front door of the Hall. " _Arceus, can you charge it up?_ "

" _Mmhmm._ " The Original One hummed as he powered it up with a Judgement, " _You seriously call this a portal? It looks worse than the door Palkia built._ "

" _Hey! It's called art!_ " Palkia retorted.

Arceus snickered. " _That was what Smeargle thought as well when he vandalized my room._ "

" _And then you demoted him from legendary status._ " Mew deadpanned.

" _Rules are rules._ "

Sir Aaron interrupted their constant exchanges and shouted. "Do y'all want to enter or not?"

" _Okay, what's the first parallel universe?_ " Dialga asked.

Sir Aaron smiled. "I'll give you a hint. Just entered the portal."

The Temporal Dragon shrugged and step foot into the activated gate.

Suddenly, the Knight grabbed him by the leg and snatched him back, while flipping over his shoulders and landing in front of the portal.

Pulling out his staff, he smashed it on the ground and roared. "YOU SHALL NOT PASS!"

Arceus groaned. " _Great… it shall be fun seeing Eru again after twenty Big-Bangs… He still owe me a ring he borrowed for his wedding._ "

* * *

 **A/N: Magic in Pokémon!? Crator, what are you DOING!?**

 **Parallel Universes? Alternate timelines? Are you out of your MIND?**

 **Yes. Yes, I am. I've said in the prologue this story is going to be distinct from every single one on this site, and I shall fulfill this promise.**

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 **Please follow and favorite if you like it. Please, please, please review. It's how I improve and feel acknowledged! Take 2 minutes, and it will make my day!**


	44. Cha 43: Kanto 39

**Cha. 43**

 **A/N: Enjoy the fic! A week or so until Leagues! Tell me you're excited!**

 **Fourth of July is coming up. Perhaps it would be celebrated with a 4-part Adventure scene. Completely original and not a do-over of any Movie or Game Plots. They will be uploaded 6 hrs apart, at 12:00 a.m., 6:00 a.m., 12:00 p.m., 6:00 p.m. of Eastern Time Zone (ET).**

 **Hit the favorite and follow buttons, and be sure to review!**

* * *

Wartortle and Squirtle stared in shock at the animations of the ranch, completely distracted from Bulbasaur's welcome speech. Blaine's Growlithe trotted over and patted their shoulders. " _Don't fret. When I first came here, I felt the same way._ "

With Pikachu and Zorua, the leaders of the gang, gone, the instability of the ranch skyrocketed.

Bulbasaur stopped in the middle of his speech and ran after Muk. " _Dude! That's not a marshmellow! That's Professor Oak's notebook!_ "

A few minutes later, the Grass Type could be found chasing after Kingler chasing after Dratini for stealing his cupcake.

In the clouds above him, a pink shiny Moltres grinned. " _I love how this place always makes me realize how not-weird I actually am._ "

* * *

"Noah?" Domino asked. "What do we have for now?"

"Loading list of training sequence." The Porygon beeped. "One: Find a counter to the common counter of teleportation that uses area of effect."

"Two: Casting moves while teleporting."

"Three: Help Sableye with his super move."

"Four: Help Zorua find proper moves to combine."

"Five: Limit Spiritomb's Ghost energy output during Shadow Storm."

"Six: Make…"

"Okay, okay!" Domino put up her hands. "We've got a lot to do this weekend!"

"Well, whatever you're going to do, you better postpone it." Ash, hearing the commotion, walked over. "Check this out. It's from Team Rocket."

The Elite took Ash's phone over and rolled her eyes when she saw the name of the sender: JJM.

"Those three idiots CANNOT represent 'Team Rocket.'" Domino snorted. "What does it say? I'm too lazy to read."

"The Clefairy Ship crashed early this time." Ash said. "Had I ever told you about that?"

"No, but I have heard it from Dexter's summary of your life." Domino smirked. "Thank Arceus. Now I have an excuse to procrastinate."

Ash laughed. "Same here. Praise Clefairy!"

"Giovanni hates it when I procrastinate." The girl laughed. "When I was eleven, I was sent out to a Rocket mission. I took a week-long vacation in Orange Islands before I got to the job."

"He threatened to make me go to Sinnoh next time if I kept it up." Domino's eyes sparkled. "I kept it up."

"Were you sent to Sinnoh?" Ash asked.

"Yeah." The blonde laughed. "But I outsmarted him by bringing a teleporter."

"Teleporter?" Ash questioned. "Team Rocket has teleporters?"

"Ooops." Domino looked at him with a purposeful glint. "You're not supposed to know that."

* * *

" _Dude, no one's going to steal your ring!_ " Dialga looked at the deformed shape in front of him. " _I already have infinite powers._ "

"My preciousss!" Said shape hissed. "Leave me and my preciousss alone!"

Sir Aaron flared up in blue aura. "Seriously, no one cares about that ring…"

" _Wait, not so fast!_ " Arceus shouted. " _That looks eerily like my ring I gave to Eru._ "

Palkia rolled his eyes. " _How about we just go up to Eru and find out instead of bugging this little pest._ "

" _Yeah, I agree._ " Mew 1 said. " _Why are we here in the first place?_ "

"Everything's RANDOM when I cross the realm!" Sir Aaron exclaimed.

" _And you just have to teleport us in front of a hairless albino freak…_ " Mew 2 deadpanned.

* * *

" _Hmmm, use Flamethrower again?_ " Lucario asked while closing his eyes.

Growlithe complied, and a massive burn of blue flame emerged.

In Lucario's Aura Sight, he saw the fire to be blue as well, not the typical red aura of fire. " _Yep. Your fire is definitely modified. In fact, it is so condensed to the point that it has become almost like pure aura, but in fire form._ "

" _Is that a good thing?_ " Growlithe asked the Aura Pokémon.

" _Of course!_ " Lucario said. " _That means your fire is so concentrated that it can burn through anything, including water, rocks, and steel._ "

" _Even Death Forces._ "

" _What are Death Forces?_ " The Puppy Pokémon asked.

" _It's a long story._ " Lucario began his reminiscing. " _You see, a few weeks ago, Ash and I were down in a tomb at Pewter…_ "

* * *

The giant, odd shape of rock had "there's something wrong with me" written all over it.

No, really, Domino actually took a marker and wrote that on there.

Which is the reason why the group is confronted by a crowd of angry Clefairy for vandalizing their spaceship.

Ash gave the girl a look for causing more problems than actually solving, which earned him a cheeky grin.

He sighed and turned to the Clefairy. "I'm really sorry about her misbehavior…"

"I'm not!" Domino giggled.

Ash held his forehead. "Why are you being so bad today?"

The blonde snuggled up to him. "So you think I'm bad today? What are you gonna do about it?"

Misty whispered to Brock. "I think the sexual tension had built up to the limit recently."

"Agreed." The Rock Gym Leader nodded.

Ash struggled against the girl's pull, forcing her attractive image out of his mind for a few seconds that he needed to deal with this.

"Look, you guys are from the Moon, right?"

" _Yes, we are._ " The Clefairy exchanged a look. " _And since we crashed, we can't return._ "

Ash hummed for a few seconds. Mew still hadn't returned from whatever expedition she had gone onto, and he knew no other psychic strong enough and familiar enough to lift an entire flock of Clefairy up to the moon.

Suddenly, something Professor Oak mentioned a while ago came to his mind.

"I got it." He exclaimed. "In Hoenn, there is this place called Mossdeep. The city is known for its Space Program, and the place had already successfully sent many drones up.

"If you want to go work with them, I'm sure they'll be happy to sent you back up to the moon." Ash paused. "Given that you provide some very good insights about the Moon to them to help them with their research.

" _So you're blackmailing us!?_ " Clefairy asked uncertainty.

"No, think about it more like leveraging." Domino smirked. "Plus, you're the ones who crashed your spacecraft, so it's your fault."

Ash tapped the girl's shoulder. "Hey, be nice!"

"I am nice." She pouted. Ash gave her a look. "Okay yeah, I'm not nice."

" _Wait! What about this vandalism!?_ " The head Clefairy pointed to Domino's markings.

Ash glared at the blonde and sent out Wartortle and Kingler. "Hydro Pump!"

Misty added to the team of washers her own collection of Water Pokémon.

Looking at Domino's face, he decided. "And you, princess, are going to teleport all of them down to Mossdeep.

The smile of the Elite's face from seeing how annoyed she could make him dropped as she was assigned more work.

Before she could start pouting, Ash pulled her to him and blew into her ear, sending chills down her spine. "Do it, and I will reward you."

Her eyes lit up. "With what?"

"It's a surprise." Ash stared into her eyes and smirked.

* * *

Ghastly looked at the lonely statue, standing there against the falling sun. She looked desperately into the sea, trying, as though, to spot her dreams.

He sighed at her misfortune. " _How long will you still be frozen? I've guarded you for over two hundred years, and so have my ancestors for much longer._ "

The Maiden's hollow voice echoed from within the stone. "Not for much longer."

A light shadow popped out from the statue, but it stopped within ten feet of the statue. "I can feel that a major change is coming, and that would be my chance to break the ancient spell."

"My lock is breaking, and my powers are coming back. They are now like a stream, no where near the ocean-like reservoir when I was at my best, but they are continuing to recover."

" _I know._ " Ghastly replied. " _You can already travel from the statue ten feet. Twenty years, ago, you could only go three feet._ "

He paused. " _When did the lock start decaying anyways?_ "

"Three months ago… and whatever it is, it woke me up from my sleep as well."

* * *

" _So yeah…_ " Bulbasaur said to the normal Jigglypuff. " _Do you think you can help me here?_ "

Jigglypuff nodded contently. " _How many songs do I get to sing?_ "

The Grass Pokémon smiled and finish putting the last Lum Berry on his plate. " _As many as you want, until the last of them fall asleep._ "

He looked to the crazy Pokémon producing havoc in the Kanto Professor's Ranch, refusing to listen to him. " _Can't believe I shall see the day when Ash and Domino's absurd Pokémon will actually be countered by something._ "

A wave of exhaustion hit him as Jigglypuff started singing. He quickly swallowed the prepared Lum Berries to prevent the induced sleep from the sweet tune.

As the music travelled across the ranch. Certain Pokémon fell asleep, while others swayed on their feet.

Endless pulses of Thunder started to repeat from the southern side, with Raikou blowing up his lawn, succeeding in covering up the sound.

Dratini fought his sleepy mood by activating his anger emotion. Now frustrated for no reason at all, he began to pummel the eastern ranch fence.

Spiritomb floated in the center with miniature ghosts howling at him and throwing Shadow Balls around, with the cruel screeching overpowering the song and ringing across the field.

In the western side, three turtles gathered.

Ash's Wartortle shouted. " _No sloppy music shall prevent my soul of burning passion from reaching to the peaks and breaking through the barriers and limits of reality!_ "

Domino's Wartortle yelled. " _The most purified of water shall erased this world of the sickening sweet that only causes cavities!_ "

Misty's Squirtle. " _Please just let me go to sleep. I can't hang out with these two weirdos anymore. I'm becoming schizophrenic._ "

After three hours of singing and the failing attempts of all of the Pokémon to stay awake, the last one… Ash's Wartortle, fell.

Bulbasaur's eyes trailed from the tired Jigglypuff clutching her throat, to the disastrous sight of the ranch, which looked like a hurricane had ran through, completely blown apart by the Pokémon's wicked, insane efforts to stay awake.

He coughed consciously. " _This may not be the best plan I've had…_ "

" _Ya think!?_ " A levitating Moltres uncovered her ears in the clouds.

* * *

Dear Diary,

This is my first entry. I only bought you from that weird man in Mossdeep because your cover looked so cute. Don't even expect me to write stuff that is heartfelt or important in here.

That being said, let's just say that my day sucks. I had to run around with Kirlia transporting fifty Clefairy to the Mossdeep Space Center.

THEN, I have to explain everything to Professor Cozmo, who actually have some ties with Team Rocket. Who knew?

Anyways, there was way too much talking… and I have to sign, like, forty documents.

I hate Ash so much right now! Why did he make me do stupid things like this!? Also, why am I allowing him to command me around!? I'm supposed to be the evil, dominant one here.

Although, Ash being bossy once in a while is kind of fun. I rather have him be slightly mean to me than the constant Mr. Goody-Two-Shoes from the last timeline.

And he finally did learn something from me! Blackmailing! Ha, that was so not leveraging…

Also, I read Ash's journal and his plans to kiss me at Leagues… why am I squealing right now?

Can't wait! Four more months!

Signed,

Princess

P.S. Love it when he calls me Princess.

* * *

"Boom!" Oak said on Skype. "Your meeting is the first event on the agenda of the Kanto Regional Research Conference."

"Are you happy?"

"Very." Dr. Akihabara chuckled. "Thank you, friend."

"Good." Dr. Fuji echoed. "I think Mewtwo would finally be finished with incubation by then… a week before probably."

"Then you will join us too?"

"Indeed."

"Now, back to business." Oak said to the computer genius. "How are you actually going to persuade them that DigiWorld is a system worth investing in, since you can't actually bring the monitor there."

"Very simple. We can bring them here to my lab." The Doctor shrugged. "Also, there could be endless simulations, immortality, space-time continuum calculations, and not to mention infinite chocolate ice cream in the DigiWorld."

Dr. Fuji raised both of his hands. "I'm sold!"

* * *

"Spencer!" Christina called from the garden. "Come check this out!"

Spencer Hale walked out with his daughter, Molly, and looked at the weird hole his wife was pointing to. "Yeah? A hole?"

"Look closer."

The physics researcher put on his glasses and bent down to look closer. As he carefully examine the thing, he felt a torrent of energy brushing up against him, a feeling that he had never experienced before.

He bent down more and stared into the hole. There was no end to the hole, just continuous darkness into which his soul felt like it was getting drained.

"Wow, that was…" Spencer pulled back and rubbed his eyes. "Interesting. I've never seen anything like this. I feel like I was going to get sucked in."

Christina nodded. "We're not going to mess with this then?"

"No." Spencer confirmed. "We investigate seemingly illogical things, but not weird and potentially dangerous things."

He turned to Molly Hale. "Did you hear that? Do not mess with that hole. I'm gonna build something to cover it up tonight."

The honey-haired girl took a look at the mesmerizing hole and nodded. "Yes, Daddy."

* * *

 **Commercial Break**

 **On Day 1, God said, "There shall be light!" Light and Darkness began to cycle, forming Day and Night.**

 **On Day 2, God said, "Let there be Air and Water!" Thus, Sky and Sea formed.**

 **On Day 3, God said, "May land float and plants flourish!" The Land floated out of the Ocean, but not to as high as the sky, with forests growing.**

 **On Day 4, God said, "There shall be eternal lighting shining down on the Land." Stars, suns, and moons materialized.**

 **On Day 5, God said, "Fill the ocean with populous life!" Sea creatures joined the ranks of the seaweed.**

 **On Day 6, God said, "Rise on land, mankind and animals!" Humans and numerous species flashed into existence.**

 **On Day 7, God said, "Damn I'm tired. Let me go chillax a bit with the brilliant Sign of Times."**

 **On Day 8, God said, "This book is too good. I'm done with creation. Let's all go and read, follow, favorite, and review Crator's book!"**

* * *

"Princess Contest starts in two days." Dexter rang. "Address is the Central Square of O-Hina Town."

Misty poked Domino. "This is your chance to become a real Princess. Last timeline, they actually crowned me."

The blonde smiled at the Water Trainer. "Since you've won before, are you still competing?"

The redhead winked. "Of course I am… also, Jessie is probably going to be there as well."

"Whatever. I can beat her with Zorua alone." Domino waved that off. "I'm trying to think of anyone else coming that may pose a threat…"

"What if Agatha shows up?" Ash laughed.

"Seeing Agatha in a princess crown makes me want to sacrifice myself to Muk." Brock gagged.

"Then what if Lorelei shows up?"

"You really think one of the Elites is going to a competition as plain and useless as this?" Brock raised an eyebrow. Receiving glares from the girls, he sweatdropped and apologized. "You know what I mean! We men don't get to do anything there but to hold your merchandise."

"Men?" Domino asked. Misty continued her train of thought. "Where?"

The two genders each exchange some fiery looks, before Kirlia decided that enough is enough and teleported all of them.

* * *

"He says: 'So dat's why they're currently trapp'd on dis planet!'" Meowth finished translating Clefairy's story.

James and Jessie exchanged a look. "That shouldn't be hard to fix. We'll just have Mewtwo teleport you up there."

"Wow, I can't believe we are actually fixin' someding!" Meowth exclaimed. "But can Mewtwo be dat strong? He's st'll not finished yet."

"Of course he is!" Jessie stated. "Last week he made a psychic projection of himself to go exploring previous timelines with Celebi."

"I mean, people don't call him the strongest Pokémon for nothing." James nodded. "Although, we should go ask him first before we make any promises."

Seeing Clefairy had still not returned to her Pokéball, Jessie pulled James and Meowth aside. "Are you actually planning to let a Pokémon in our hands leave?"

"Yes. It's perfectly fine." James said. "Remember what Boss said: You can't have gains without sacrifices."

"Oh really? What's the gain in this one?" The redhead asked unsurely.

"Remember wat Boss said b'fore when he made us admins?" Meowth said. "He said that our job as Rockets is to maintain order."

"Yeah, bringing Clefairy back to the Moon so Cresselia doesn't go bonkers have to mean _something_." James agreed.

* * *

"So the next order of business." Oak pulled the conversation back from a tangent involving the volume of frosting on Professor Ivy's wedding cake. "I'm writing up a report for the League to give Porygon official Pokémon status."

"That would be hard though." Dr. Akihabara interrupted. "Afterall, there are only two cases, and a few incompleted others, including mine."

"Actually mine has gotten a lot more "awaken" from maintaining an entire world." The Doctor said. "It's like he's blending into our world more because he had more experience merging in the DigiWorld.

"This is why I need both of your help." Oak said. "The League cannot refuse three of the top scientists in their own field all confirming the existence and potential in the Porygon species."

"When's that meeting?"

"The second thing after Akihabara's."

* * *

Ash was meditating at the top of a cliff…

Screw that, he was only on a small hill that he claimed made him feel like an Aura Master, thus easier to concentrate.

… when Dexter rang sharply, a different sound than the ones they usually heard.

Ash opened his eyes. "Remind me what that means?"

Before Dexter could reply, Noah rang the same sound immediately after, catching Domino's attention as well.

Dexter explained. "That's the code for 'an egg is hatching.'"

"Ohhh." The two trainers stated in realization and sat back down.

Then, they bounced up at the same time as the message finally reached their brains. "WHICH EGG!?"

The sound drew Misty over from her fishing stream, and Brock from his mini-kitchen.

Ash reached into his bag and pulled out, from the bottom of his pile of stuff, a shining incubator. He grumbled. "I need a bigger bag. I have so much more stuff than last time…"

Domino reached her entire arm into her tiny purse, smirking, and pulled out an incubator, placing it gently on the ground. "That's why I modified mine with psychic."

Ash stared at her bag, its volume significantly larger than externally displaying. "How?"

"Spoon Method 2: Spatial-kinesis." She shrugged and looked back with a teasing glint. "If you're willing to write a hundred reasons why I'm awesome, I'll make one for you too."

"Nah, I can't think of any." Ash stuck his tongue out at her, which earned him a punch from the feisty blonde. "I'll take care of it my way: Aura!"

As he finished that statement, both incubators inhabited by the Ponyta eggs they won from the Laramie Ranch race glowed. The top of the containers flipped opened, and the eggs began to crack.

In a few seconds, a cute Ponta head popped out of Ash's incubator first, followed quickly by her sister's from Domino's.

The group cooed at the cuteness of the new hatchlings. Domino bent down and picked her Fire Type up, while Ash also did so with his Pokémon.

"Awww, you're so adorable." The blonde carefully pinched the baby Ponyta's mane. "I'm your Mama."

" _Okay, Mama!_ " Ponyta exclaimed happily, rubbing herself against her trainer. She then gestured to Ash, who was holding her sibling. " _So is that my Papa?_ "

The four froze, and Brock and Misty burst into laughter they hadn't had since Ho-Oh mentioned Domino to be Ash's Queen back when they first met.

" _Don't listen to her!_ " Ash's Ponyta wiggled in his hands, already demonstrating sibling rivalry.

At that moment, Ash had not loved his Ponyta more for getting him out of the range of a ticking bomb… granted that he didn't know her for more than five minute, but that was beyond the point.

What's within the point was Ponyta's next question, bringing the subject Ash desperately wanted to escape from back. " _Are you MY Papa then?_ "

The Ketchum boy chose his words carefully. "Yes, I am YOUR Papa."

Ponyta turned to her sister. " _He said yes._ "

"NO!"

On the other hand, Misty and Brock, who had just gotten up from the ground, fell down again, laughing.

Zorua rolled her eyes as she adjusted her position on top of Domino's had. " _Stop being stupid, you four. You didn't even act like this three months ago when I asked that question as I hatched._ "

"Then you must have recalled wrong." Misty clutched her stomach. "Because we did act like this."

* * *

" _No problem._ " Mewtwo's mental projection grinned. " _Of course I can take you guys to the Moon. It's only two hundred forty thousand miles away._ "

The Rocket trio's eyes twitched at the word 'only,' but ignored the feeling of ridiculousness and cut to the chase. "We found a Pokémon from the Moon whose spaceship accidentally crashed on Earth. Do you think you can take us AND fifty Clefairy up there?"

" _Of course, why not!_ " Mewtwo shrugged. " _It's only an additional 825 pounds._ "

The three's eyes twitched again and turned to Clefairy. "Do you know where your friends are?"

Clefairy held up a pink radio shaped like a crescant moon. "They said they're at the Mossdeep Space Center."

Mewtwo's projection flashed off, and a few seconds later, flashed back in with fifty additional Clefairy levitating in midair.

" _To the Moon!_ " The Genetic Pokémon chanted, and the Rockets fell into a black hole.

An instant later, they reappeared on a white, rocky, dusty surface. Mewtwo created a psychic, anti-radiation barrier around them and filled it with oxygen.

"Mewtwo, you definitely have some…" Jessie clutched her head, overwhelmed with dizziness. " _interesting_ methods of teleportation."

Meowth interrupted her motion sickness by pointing directly above them. "Look! It's da Earth!"

On top of them was a miniature Earth, in its full blue and green glory. From here they could see the Great Frontier of Aura Sir Aaron built a thousand years ago, and half of the regions.

" _Sorry. I'm not used to teleporting without a physical body yet. Mew wrote nothing about that._ " Mewtwo apologized. " _But we're here, aren't we?_ "

The three nodded mindlessly and continued to stare at the beautiful scene before them.

" _Yes, you are._ " A powerful psychic projected over the group. " _And may I ask, for what reason, young legendary?_ "

The group looked up to see Cresselia floating down gracefully behind them, a charming light pink and yellow light fluctuating around her.

Mewtwo's eyes misted for a second, and he huffed. " _I'm not young. I have all of Mew's knowledge._ "

" _Please excuse me, Mewtwo, as you are called._ " Cresselia chuckled. " _I admit that you are not young._ "

" _Thank you._ " Mewtwo responded.

" _Because you are not even born yet._ " Cresselia smirked teasingly.

Psychic energy crackled off the Genetic Pokémon. " _Listen, OLD hag, I will not stand here and be insulted._ "

The Lunar Pokémon had a fiery glint lit in her eyes as well. " _Do you really want to do this, child?_ "

" _No. I cannot stand talking to you._ " Mewtwo retorted. " _You'll probably forget everything I say because of your Alzheimer's._ "

Jessie poked Meowth and whispered. "What are they saying? They seemed tense."

Meowth replied with wide eyes. "Oh, it's bad alrighty."

" _Crude child, I must must ask you to leave my domain._ " Cresselia hissed.

" _Gladly, ancient crone._ " Mewtwo snorted. " _I only came here because these good people asked me to teleport your lost Clefairy back to the Moon._ "

" _Oh, is that right?_ " Hearing this, Cresselia turned to the Rocket Trios after getting confirmation nods from the Clefairy. " _In that case, I must thank you three for your help. If you need a favor, just come up to the Moon and ask._ "

" _Now, you!_ " The female Psychic Pokémon said to Mewtwo. " _Please step off my land. This is an adult-only zone._ "

Huffing, Mewtwo took one last, unnecessary look at Cresselia, scanning her up and down, before teleporting back with the trio.

Cresselia looked at where he disappeared and turned to her minions. " _Clefairy, which part of Earth did he come from?_ "

" _I think they call it New Island._ " James's ex-Clefairy said. " _It's in Kanto._ "

" _Hmmm…_ " She smirked. " _Earth seemed pretty cool. I should go visit it more often._ "

* * *

"Professor! PROFESSOR!" A man ran up to the Head of the Space Station, tripping over himself and panting. "Clefairy… Clefairy…"

"Calm down, mister." The Professor pat his back. "What about the Clefairy?"  
"They disappeared!"

"..."

Twenty-four hours later, the Mossdeep Space Station was still under Code Red.

* * *

Eru coughed and looked at the Pokémon deities in front of him. "So I see you have finally come back for your ring?"

Arceus snorted. " _You thought I would forget?_ "

"Well, yes." Eru sighed. "It HAS been twenty Big-Bangs."

" _Give me back my ring!_ " Arceus's face hardened.

"Fine!" The All-Powerful of the Silmarillion Universe waved, and a ring flew into his sight.

Arceus snatched it over and examined it. A few seconds later, he looked up with a darkened expression. " _Why the hell does it have senseless carvings on the side?_ "

"Some idiot in charge of the Dark forces carved it in using a stupid language he created." Eru said. "I think it means 'one ring to eat them all.'"

Arceus gave him a look similar to one he gave while staring at morons.

Eru rolled his eyes. "Don't give me that look. It's not like your universe is not as messy as mine."

" _True that._ " Arceus sulked.

* * *

A pained and desperate shriek echoed across the cavern.

" _MY PRECIOUSSSSSSSS!_ "

* * *

 **A/N: More Skillshipping… a lot more in this chapter than the bare hints in previous ones. I have to do some reminding!**

 **As well as a bunch of other side plots that foreshadows future adventures.**

 **First parallel universe Arceus and co. went to: Lord of the Rings.**

 **For the record, I have nothing against LoR. In fact, it is my favorite movie of ALL times.**

 **Also, is that a Mewtwo and Cresselia shipping that I see in the distance? Someone hand me a pair of binoculars.**

 **Once again, if you liked my fanfic, be sure to hit those follow and favorite buttons. Please be almighty kind enough to leave a review. One review will keep me excited for an hour! That's how much I appreciate my readers!**


	45. Cha 44: Across From You

**Cha. 44**

 **A/N: I wish everyone a very, very happy Fourth of July! In celebration of the holiday, there will be a four-part adventure being uploaded! Yes, while you will be celebrating, I will be writing, for you guys!**

 **I hope this can prove to the negative people out there that I am a dedicated writer, and I will sacrifice my time away from my friends and family to push this great story along!**

 **This 4-part adventure "Movie" (Though it's not based off any movie) will probably be the greatest plot I have ever written.**

 **Anyways, please enjoy and comment. Hit that follow and favorite button!**

* * *

"Christmas is tomorrow!" Ash chanted cheerfully. Misty and Brock looked at each other with the same joyful expressions, each eager to go back to their homes and families.

In the midst of his enthusiasm, Ash noticed that his fellow blonde companion was not as zealous as he was.

He went over and tapped her shoulder. "What's wrong? You don't seem excited."

"I guess I'm never so into the Christmas spirit." Domino shrugged. "On the streets of Viridian, Christmas was just another day, maybe with a little more food from the increasing amounts of people… and more reason to feel lonely and isolated."

Ash's expression softened, and he wrapped an arm around her, pulling her away from the group.

Domino continued, unknowingly adding to her tone an obvious hint of depression. "And in Team Rocket, Giovanni never cared enough for the holiday. We were still required missions and tasks."

Ash hugged her against him, carefully stroking her blonde curls, afraid that too much force will break the precious gem in his arms. The strawberry and vanilla smell of her hair and perfume mixed together to form a small sphere of bliss.

The girl leaned her head against his, her arms feeling the strong pillar that supported a large part of her life, especially the events in the lit side.

The Elite had learned to control her feelings, not letting the sadness affect her. That wasn't because she was strong. It was because she never found someone to fully lean on… not even the Rocket Boss. She shook a bit under the weight of her past, almost unable to prop up everything anymore, since her walls had been melting more and more in his warmth.

The boy tightened his hold, unable to say anything. He knew not to say it was okay, because it wasn't. Nothing would make her better, besides him just holding her, letting his princess know that he would always stand by her, to the end of dusk.

And she, she embraced the enclosure, enjoying the dense built that she held onto, knowing that this was the one life raft she had as she drifted through the empty ocean.

It was all she needed.

It was all he needed.

* * *

"The lost Jynx is the last event, and then you can return home!" Dexter chirped. "Merry Christmas Eve, Ash!"

Ash nodded, smiling, and began walking toward the stranded Jynx.

"Don't worry!" Ash said to the her. "We'll get you back to the North Pole in no time."

"Yeah, I can just teleport you there." Domino pat the Jynx's shoulder.

" _It's not that simple!_ " The Human Shape Pokémon shook her head. " _You can't teleport there. Santa said there is a barrier that stops all human or Pokémon arrival. Only WE and specific Pokémon can get in._ "

Domino snickered. "I've heard about anti-psychic shields all the time from Mew. Besides the Head Rocket HQ one, I know none others of the hundreds she mentioned that worked."

"Even the magnet Rocket bases don't work."

" _NO! Seriously, you guys can't go there._ " Jynx continued to stop them. " _Weird things will happen. Can you guys just find my Lapras and tell him that I am here?_ "

"Weird things happen all the time." Ash shrugged. "You get used to it after a while."

"Teleporting is faster. We need to go home for Christmas Eve, and teleporting is a lot faster." Domino grabbed onto Ash in one hand and Jynx in another. "Let's separate. Ash and I will take her to the Arctic. You guys go and… do some Gym Leader stuff."

"I get it." Misty smirked. "Not enough alone time with Ash."

"Now I feel bad." Brock chuckled. "Misty and I are like the third and fourth wheel."

Domino blushed. "No, I'm just giving you guys a chance to do something else… like the annual Gym Leader Party that you guys missed last timeline."

"How do you know about the Party?" Brock asked, alert. Then he relaxed when he recalled her identity as the Black Tulip.

He shook his head. He had been getting along with the Elite for way too long… Although she really was not a bad person, at least around his younger male friend.

Ash tended to have that effect on people… last timeline, even the Rocket Trio became not-so-bad after being around Ash for five years. They had really toned their attacks down by the end of Sinnoh, and even helped in a few disasters in Kalos, as heard from Ash.

Misty pulled Brock away by the shoulder. "You know what, we really should go to the party. I heard a bunch of new Veterans are thinking of opening up Gyms. We need to go pre-initiate them into the League."

"I can't wait to dump pickle juice and sprinkles on people." Brock's eyes lit up in delight. "Dad always made it sound so fun!"

"Then see you guys in a few hours!" Domino and Ash waved and teleported off with Jynx.

Four thousand feet above the group, a pink Moltres flew by, sighing. " _Great, now I have to follow them to the North Pole!?_ "

" _I hate the cold. The freeze will mess up my beautiful feathers._ " She muttered as she ran her beak through her feathers. " _Well, at least I can teleport… thank Arceus for my psychic abilities._ "

* * *

The teleportation this time felt… strange. Usually, her psychic powers lock onto a destination in a constant field of time, and she used her psychic to pull herself across space, landing at the destination instantly.

In its course, she never got to see anything, besides a quick swift of light.

This time, it was drastically different. She felt herself getting pulled through the time-space continuum slowly. The meaning time, however didn't really matter here, since there was no time, no space in the continuum.

It was just that her perception was different… was faster than normal, making her surroundings slower, which allowed her to look around her. In the continuum, she saw numerous, mysterious shapes that she had never seen before.

Black holes were everywhere, and bolts of intense light flashed at great speed, even on the scale of light-speed, toward her, and past her.

She reached out with a strand of psychic near a dark patch, and instantly it was swallow. Domino could sense it being spat out a far distance off, so far off that she would never be able to recall it.

She tested out the streaming beams of light as well. As a strand of her psychic approach it, the Elite could feel her powers in that strand diminishing rapidly, hundreds of times faster than normally.

In the blink of an eye, that strand ran out of energy and disappeared. Domino whistled quietly. That was the power of time, speeding up the process of decay by hundredfolds.

She took another look at her surroundings. It felt like being in space, but space was only constrained to the third dimension. This continuum, this was advancing into the boundaries of time!

Ash was apparently doing the same thing, messing with black holes and time sequences with Aura. She smiled. She wouldn't be anywhere else other than here.

* * *

Sand tornados are common in the desert. Whirlpools are common in the ocean. Hurricanes are common near the coast. Blizzards are common in the North Pole.

On top of Santa's shed, a hole opened in midair, leading to nowhere. The ongoing blizzard filed into the hole, which closed mysteriously after a few seconds.

No one seemed to noticed this, however, at the North Pole. The Jynx continued packing, and the Stantlers continued to drag boxes along.

Santa sat in front of the fireplace, throwing a piece of charcoal into the burning embers. He suddenly looked skyward, eyes staring at the wooden ceiling, but his gaze seemed like it could travel onward and onward for miles, for infinity.

The eyes sparkled with knowledge, with power. He stared into space for a while and picked up his pen, crossing off two names in his notepad.

"Two less gifts," He muttered.

* * *

In the continuum, a sudden wind blew across Domino's path of teleportation. Her psychic-encased bubble seemed to destabilize, withering under the pulse.

The group shook violently, and a torrent of energy seemed to pass right through them, like they were put under five g's of pressure.

"What was that!?" Ash shouted.

"I don't know!" Domino yelled back. "This never happened before!"

" _This was what I was telling you about!_ " Jynx screamed out. " _Weird things happen if you tried to teleport to Santa's Realm._ "

The sharp wind blew the blonde's entire psychic course apart, and she groaned. "Hold on everybody. I need to relocate the North Pole's coordinates before we can continue."

Ash raised an eyebrow. "So, technically speaking, we're trapped in space-time right now?"

"Yeah…" Domino sighed. "The things that happen… even if you're trying to do something as small as helping a Jynx."

"Our lives are really difficult, ain't it." Ash smirked.

"I wouldn't have it any other way." The Rocket replied.

* * *

" _Uhhh… Domino?_ " The Jynx suddenly jumped on the said girl, grabbing her by the arm. " _Are you done yet?_ "

"No, give me a few more minutes." Domino ignored the panicking Pokémon and continued to draw markings on a hand-made map in front of her.

"I don't think you have another few minutes." Ash's eyes widened as he traced in the direction Jynx was looking in. "I don't know what that is, but it doesn't look good at all."

Domino spinned around and did a double take. In distance, or whatever the space in the continuum is called, there was a giant contortion of figures, mainly black holes and time sequences of lights, blowing towards them.

All of the black holes and time slots in their paths was suck inevitably into the bending construction, like a giant hurricane. Domino's eyes turned to horror as she identified the abominable form.

"HOLY ARCEUS!" Her eyes shot wide open. Her mouth slurred open, and a look of terror masked her face.

"What is it!?"

"Storm of the Continuum." She responded, voice sounding distant and off. "It is listed as one of the Top Ten forbidden forces in Spoon Method 1… I never thought I'll actually see this…"

"Okay, so how do we get out?" Ash questioned.

The blonde turned to him, a helpless glint in her eyes. She grabbed onto his arm and leaned her head on him. "There is no way to get out… or at least I can't."

"Only spells in the First Spoon Method can get us out."

"Okay?" Ash asked. "Then what's the problem? Arceus taught you all seven!"

"The first volume can only be performed by Cosmics." Domino whispered. "Like Dialga…"

Ash's eyes widened as well. "So what do we do now?"

"I don't know." The Ketchum boy watched powerlessly as she, the quick-witted of the duo, the genius in street smarts, gave up. "Just me hold tight."

Ash grasped onto the girl as ordered, and she looked into his adorable face. "I don't know what will happen… I'm sorry Ash."

"I'm sorry I dragged you into this." She said quietly and reached a hand up to smooth out his hair. "I should've listened to Jynx. I shouldn't have teleported."  
"NO!" Ash shouted. "This isn't your fault! There must be some other way to get out of this. We always think of something!"

"You don't understand, Ash." Domino finally gave up on holding back. A stream of tears went down her face. Her indifferent expression broke down completely. Staring at him with a desolate expression, she cried. "The Storm of the Continuum can take us anywhere!"

"I can be thrown a million years in the future, and you can travel to another universe without even the bare concept of Pokémon… a world made purely of humans."

"We can end up losing all of our powers, never able to break the walls that separate reality and the continuum, never to return, or meet…"  
A stream of realization hit him. He shut his brain down, unwilling to listen or comprehend anymore. He just held onto the girl, as the storm came roaring closer and closer.

As if they had hugged for a billion years, or maybe it was just a second, the storm swept in front of the couple. The concept of time was nonexistent. Only the perception and awareness counted.

A power far greater than anything, a power that could match Arceus, pulled Ash and Domino apart.

Ash let out a heartbreaking scream. "DOMINO!"

"ASH! I'm SORRY!" The blonde girl casted him one last despairing look, hands wailing. "I L…"

She was sucked into a black hole to her immediate right. In Ash's eyes, the hole seemed like the most malignant pest in the entire universe, like the opening jaws of a vile monster, dripping from it the blood of heroes mixed with its own deterring saliva.

"NOOOO!" He screamed at the top of his lungs and desperately tried to crawl toward the abhorrence of space.

He was destined to not succeed. The black hole contorted itself into waves, which then turned into nothingness as the entrance to Domino's world closed forever in the howling winds of the Storm.

Eyes almost balling out and filled with streaks of rolling blood, Ash lost all of his energy, his soul. He stared at where she disappeared, along with the Jynx they were saving.

For the first time in his life, a voice within him screamed evil. He wanted to turn against the world. He had done so much for this place, and was to this day, still trying save the entire universe.

And it, it repaid him like this? By taking away the most precious treasure of his life?

Ash fainted in the current of space and drifted into a separate hole, disappearing.

* * *

The continuum kept on flowing. After all, it was just a force of nature. The storm kept on swallowing… it's what it does.

A while later, it had another victim: a massive pink bird.

* * *

Domino's sense of touch was the first to fade in. She felt herself laying on what seemed like a surprisingly comfortable bed. The surprise referred both to the quality of the bed and the existence of a bed.

Then, she started to hear noises around them. It seemed like talking, but it was in some very high-pitched tone.

As her ears stopped humming, she recognized the noises as Pokémon speech… or more specifically, Jynx speech.

A realization came to her mind and she forced her eyes open. The vibrant intensity of the light made her close them again, like they had just been jabbed by streams of needles.

But from the instant of opening her eyes, she still barely identified the scene in front of her.

She was indeed lying on a bed and surrounded by Jynx. Her mind began to become sharper, and her sense of smell also came in.

The smell of pine trees and cinnamon entered her nostrils. Combined with the group of Jynx standing in front of her, the smell brought a preposterous thought came into her mind.

She opened her eyes again, this time reacting not as harshly to the rays of sunlight. Her psychic senses also came back in, though she felt very sore using them.

Domino used them nonetheless. In her mind, she saw a familiar pulse of psychic markings among the group of strange ones.

She looked around the room and saw a Jynx laying on a bed next to hers. Quickly identified that Jynx to be the one who was lost at the coast, the Elite couldn't believe that she actually got here with someone familiar.

She was expecting a completely different alien world without any consolation, as a complete stranger to everything.

Consolation! The word triggered a lever in her brain. She snapped her head around the room, looking for another, third bed.

Her eyes twitched when she saw none. Not losing hope, she closed her eyes and pulsed out a wave of psychic, trying to find the marking of her beloved companion, the marking that she had engraved into her heart.

Twenty feet out, nothing. Fifty feet, nothing. A hundred feet, nothing!

Domino let out a breathtaking scream, making the Jynx around her stand back in fear. The cry sounded like a desperate roar of a mother dog seeing her kids fall into a streaming current, or a daughter chick seeing her parents get picked off by a soaring eagle.

She wasn't strong enough! She wasn't strong enough to save him!

She was weak! So what she became a psychic!? She squandered the time after she left the Bubble Realm, fooling around with her Pokémon, not concentrating on her training, pulling pranks, being a genuine moron!

If she had trained harder, if she had dedicated all her time to perfecting her psychic abilities, if she would've listened to other people instead of being arrogant!  
If she was different, she could've saved him.

Domino abruptly extended her radius of search from a hundred feet out to ten miles. A painful strain settled on her psychic abilities, a pain that threatened to tore apart her consciousness, sew them back together, and then burn them in buckets of lava, and freeze them into solid ice.

It was the feeling of hell, but Domino struggled through the pain, the memory of someone overpowering the pain that made her feel like she was getting dismembered.

The stress was still too much. She was far off from her climax, still incredibly weak from the Storm of Continuum.

She fell straight back and uncontrollably spat a mouthful of blood into the air. Messy hair covered her expression, face paler than sheets of paper, her formerly shining eyes dulled to coal, and a mixture of tears and blood dripped down her withered chin.

The surrounding Jynx rushed forward to examine her.

"Where are you?" Domino whispered, staring into empty space, and passed out.

* * *

"NO!" He heard himself scream. Flashes of light zoomed by him. Black holes emerged left and right.

Images appeared before him, and a blonde figure appeared repetitively in front of his eyes. Dark streaks poured out from everywhere, staining her face into blackness.

He watched in horror as she was completely covered in the black goo, turning her face, then her body, into blackness.

And then, she was transformed into a black hole, which came crashing at him.

"NOOO!" He screamed again, hand grasping in front of him, trying to grab onto a strand of his dear life.

Failing.

He was instantly swallowed and then…

Darkness.

"Ash! Ash!" The Ketchum boy felt someone shaking him from the side. "Are you okay!?"

Ash moved slightly, and a severe headache instantly made him scream in pain.

"Ash! It's okay! It's me… Serena."

What? Serena? Images flood across his mind. This isn't right… is it? But he was with…

Wait, what!?

He struggled to open his eyes, and a familiar, yet distant, face appeared in front of him.

She shouted happily. "You woke up!"

The girl stood back a little to hold him up. Ash got a better look at her. Honey-haired, pink, white, and red dress. Standing next to her was Clemont and Bonnie, both looking at him with a deep concern in his eyes.

"Where… where am I?" Ash breathed out. "What just happened? Why am I here?"

The three in front of him exchanged a worried glance. Serena bent down and helped him up. Her touch sent goosebumps up Ash's arm, and not the good kind.

Instinctively, he pulled his arm back. A look of shock and hurt flashed across Serena's face. Ash was too occupied to care though.

"Don't you remember?" The girl said quietly. "You just walked down from the stage, getting your second-place award, and you collapsed to the ground."

"Wait! Second-place!?" A realization of his time and location flashed in his mind. "Did I just lose to Alain in the Kalos League?"

The three nodded nervously. Serena continued.

"The EMTs came, and they said you had a mild stroke, which was triggered from one of your earlier injuries to the head, which we speculated was from saving the world that time with…"

"Screw saving the world!" Ash picked up his head and roared. The three took a step back in fear. "F*ck saving this Arceus damned world!"

"He created this sh*thole of a place and filled it with evil himself!" He screamed. "Let him do the saving himself! I just want to live my life! I just want to be a Pokémon Master!"

"F*ck being the Chosen One! If someone wants it, TAKE IT!"

"Ash…"

"NO! I am not your Ash!" The boy turned around, his eyes bloodshot, a drop of tear dripping down his face. "I am NOT supposed to be eight years in the future!"

"I'm supposed to be right in Kanto, with HER!" Ash turned his head toward the sky. "Arceus, I know you can hear me, I know you are watching."

"When your damn world ends again, don't you dare come back and recruit me."

"F*ck you and your plans!"

"I know what I experienced for the past three months was a not just a dream. It is real! You can take away my world. You can take away my TIMELINE! You can even take away my MEMORIES! My passion for her still stands."

The brunet boy pointed at the sky, with a shaking finger. "I know that wasn't just an illusion, because my love for her is burning! Nothing you can conjure up is that realistic."

"Because, ultimately, you're just a llama living in the crevices of the universe! You have never experienced love, and you never WILL! I will find her! Not the girl of this universe, but the love of my life!"

The earth behind his feet suddenly shook, and Ash laughly wildly, like a crazy man burning off the last strand of attachment to the world. "Oh yeah, that's right, 'God'! You can't do anything, because right now you are cuffed by Cyrus, and so is the other Cosmics!"

"Enjoy your last few days in this timeline, Arceus!" Tears began to spill over like rainwater. "All I want is HER!"

A flare of blue suddenly exploded out of his body, as his emotions reached to a peak.

Ash clutched his hands tightly together, and a gigantic Aura Sphere materialized between his fingers.

Casting a look at his former Kalos companions, heart feeling stone cold, he blasted out of the hotel they were in. Jumping off the eleventh story balcony, he landed onto the ground with a thump and sped off into the distance.

"What… what?"Serena gulped, eyes filled with fear.

Clemont took a deep breath. "Did Ash get possessed… again?"

Bonnie walked back into Ash's room. "Oh my Arceus!"

Serena and Clemont joined her. They saw the Pokéballs laying on the floor, full. Even the one with the lightning-marker on the front, the that lasted for eight years, was full, sitting on the ground.

He didn't even take his Pokémon…

* * *

The second time she woke up, the weakness in her limbs died down, replaced by a splitting headache that was worse than the most painstaking hangover.

What hurt more, however, was her heart.

The only one left, standing by her, was the original Jynx. The Normal Type nodded and engulfed her in the hug. " _Please, calm down. Don't be too emotional._ "

Domino struggled to maintain a clear mind as she spluttered. "Jynx, did… did he…"

She choked on her words. "Did Ash come… in?"

Jynx sighed. " _My friends did find a third landing on the North Pole._ "

A spark of hope erupted from the bottom of her eyes, like the big bang that had happened from a single particle.

" _But it's not Ash._ "

A overwhelming wave of disappointment instantly flooded her, and she would've fainted again if it wasn't for a Calm Mind casted on her.

Domino's face bunched up, tears threatening to overflow again. "Thank… thank you."

Jynx looked at her weirdly. " _What are you thanking me for?_ "

"Your Calm Mind." The blonde replied without giving a second thought.

Jynx paused for a moment and pointed behind Domino. " _That wasn't me. I think you were referring to her._ "

"Huh?" The Elite turned around and saw a giant pink bird standing behind her, a massive Pokémon reaching almost to the ceiling. Taking a second look, she realized it to be a shiny Moltres.

" _I don't believe we have met._ " Moltres said in a psychic projection instead of directly speaking, hoping to be more calming. " _I'm sorry… so sorry for what happened._ "

Domino stared at her, agape. "You were the third victim? To the Storm?"

" _Yes, my Queen._ " She said quietly. " _I followed you into your teleportation route to the North Pole, and this happened._ "

"Why were you following me?" She questioned, trying to not make her words sound like a demand.

" _I've been following you for a long time… or stalking, whatever you want to call it._ " The shiny said. " _I have been following you for two months now._ "

"But why?"  
" _You're the Queen, and you were with the Chosen._ " Moltres stated. " _I would like to think of myself as a smart legendary, so I followed the Code Arceus set in place and volunteer to be with the Royals._ "

" _As I watched you, you intrigued me more and more…_ " The bird gave a self-mocking laugh. " _But I guess I wasn't smart enough to avoid following you to the North Pole._ "

"What am I going to do!?" Domino broke down once again from the legendary's repeated mentioning of Ash. She hugged onto the nearest thing possible, which was Moltres's wing. "Tell me! What should I do?"

" _I don't know._ " The shiny extinguished the fire on herself. " _These are the kind of problems for the humans. Y'all are the most intelligent beings out there. That's why you do the training and commanding, and we do the competing and fighting._ "

" _But I do know that if you have any hopes of fixing anything, you have to do it soon!_ " She patted the Queen's back and said gently. " _The long the diversion stays, the harder it is to revert it._ "

Domino picked up her head, eyes lit again by a will that was inspiring a crazy pursuit. "Then we will leave right now. Leave for Team Rocket. I need to do some research!"

* * *

Ash reached into his backpack, pulling out some leftover sushi from his last meal, his Last Supper. His Pokéballs had disappeared, replaced by the ones from this universe, which he abandoned since they were not his Pokémon.

He didn't feel connected, and thus, they were not his.

Besides those, he had the rest of his stuff from the other world… So what?

He didn't have the most invaluable thing anymore.

The boy looked up at the darkening sky, lit up by a torrent of blizzard as he stood atop Mt. Silver. His emotions stirred back up, and with it, an oscillating wave of Aura.

He controlled himself to stop swearing at Arceus, knowing it would be of no help, and that he already did that for the entire afternoon.

He planned to stay up here for the night, needing the cold to calm his nerves and his ultra-boosted Aura.

Ash needed to control the Aura infused in him. Currently, he was sparkling with the power of a Lugia, of an Ancient, but he could only manage so much as a Pseudo Level. He needed to control it fast, or else he would destroy everything he laid his hands on.

First, he had to learn how to not to recall the memory of her. Whenever her image arose in his mind, his body would go out of control.

He stood up from the fire and casted a weary look into the darkness, full of blowing snow, and retired to his cave.

* * *

 **A/N: I hated this chapter so much! I was crying as I was writing this, and I truly felt Ash and Domino's grief as they were torn apart by the blasted force of nature.**

 **This is part one of the 4 parts today as the 4th of July special.**

 **Review and Comment if you want, Follow and Favorite if you got emotional. I just want to keep writing so I can save the two from this heartless tantrum I put them in, so I'll just end this note with a sloppy conclusion:**

 **Enjoy. Next update in 6 hrs.**


	46. Cha 45: Across From You

**Cha. 45**

 **A/N: Part 2 of 4. Just as much grieving. More action. Please enjoy and comment.**

* * *

The Rocket Headquarter still stood as tall as she remembered it, but it now looked barren in her eyes.

The giant R sign used to represent the Restoration of the world, done by Team Rocket, an organization she was a Top Elite in.

Now, it looked like an ostentatious piece of metal taped to the giant building. Its new red paint seemed forced and repulsive, struggling to cover up the rust and stains of the material within.

But no matter how hard they tried to show off the brilliant external and hide the rotting interior, she knew it was there.

Like Giovanni said, it was a part of ying and yang. The miserable and horrifying part, the one no one wanted to know about, since everyone hoped to live in happiness.

But it was there, waiting to show itself when the exterior collapsed, to extend its jaws of madness and corruption into the world.

Domino headed into the Rocket offices. She didn't want to go look for anyone. She just needed time alone.

And alone time would she never get. Only minutes after she walked into her room, a knock sounded.

She wanted to say 'go away,' she wanted it worse than anything in the world, because she knew whomever across the layer of wood was not Ash…

So what's the point?

But she never got the chance to command that.

Her only Pokéball on her belt flashed with a slight pink, and the door opened on its own, revealing Giovanni's secretary.

The blonde glared at the Pokéball containing the psychic Moltres, then turned her head up to the blue-headed woman walking in. "Hello, Matori."

Now, if she was just a secretary, she wouldn't have noticed Domino's red, puffy eyes, and residue of the tears, even though the Black Tulip had tried to brush herself down before entering the HQ.

However, since Matori was also 007, she recognized all of the signs of a heartbreak on her fellow Elite. The dimming of the eyes, a shadow over her face, a resonance that shouted isolation and cluenessless.

And blame.

"Would you like me to come back later?" She asked carefully.

Domino gave her a look. Not wanting her to know, even though the blonde knew she knew, and Matori knew that Domino knew she knew, she stood up. "What is it?"

Her voice cracked, and her eyes flinched as an obvious display of turbulence and agitation.

Matori gave a light sigh. "Giovanni needs to see you."

* * *

Ash Ketchum closed his eyes. A wave of blue formed a pattern beneath his eyelids. That was the lock he had engineered for himself in the past day.

He had gotten his discipline to be able to control the aura of a Medieval level and managed to get her figure out of his mind for the necessary time to focus on a battle, had one ever came… or at least he hoped there was enough time.

He still had a large amount of aura left, which was able to wreak havoc in the blink of an eye. No matter how hard he tried, there was nothing he could do to control the power.

Nothing at all, just like how he can do nothing at all when the Storm swept Domino away.

A pang of pain rang through his chest. The lock Ash installed for himself shook and threatened to crack, and the Aura Guardian forcefully pushed the feeling down. Knowing that he couldn't get distracted now, he clutched his head, thinking back on the ways that he could reverse this entire situation… anything at all.

The Cosmics are all imprisoned by Cyrus, so to get them to send him back to Domino's realm required him to save them…

Which he did not plan to do in a million years. After what they did to him, after seeing how he was repaid after saving the world not less than twenty times, he was done with doing businesses with the legendaries.

Even if he did save them, he couldn't guarantee that they would help him. They would probably just trap him in another loop of morality that turned him into their 'Chosen.'

Then, he would keep going around saving the world, keep having them live his life for him.

Yeah right, Chosen.

More like Chosen slave.

Speaking of Cyrus… Ash thought back onto the events of the last timeline… or this timeline…

He remembered the world ending as he got off the plane from Kalos to Kanto, which, according to last time's schedule, was only a week from his losing the Kalos League.

Ash realized that he had already squandered two days. If he couldn't find a solution to the problem within the next five days, he would lose her forever.

* * *

Giovanni pointed at the map of Sinnoh. "So are you down for the job?"

Domino's eyes flickered, knowing that she needed as much time as she can get for her current quest.

But at the same time, the mission gave her a month. If she would succeed in her own quest, she would be long gone by the time the due date rolled around.

And she'll get some additional funding for her travels.

If she refused the mission, which she had never done before, Giovanni would be sure to suspect something, if he hadn't by now.

Even with all of the elite training revolving disguise and hiding her emotions, Domino still couldn't pretend as if she did not just lose the most important thing in her universe.

Her step-father is a sensitive man. He probably saw something swayed in her, but he just neglected to mention it.

After all, Rockets didn't talk emotions. They talked business.

"Yes," The Elite replied. "I accept."

* * *

"What happened!?" Gary Oak caught the girl, who fell over as soon as she saw him. "Serena! Are you alright?"

The honey-haired girl looked like she hadn't been sleeping for days on end. Huge, black circles formed around her eyes, and her hair was a total mess.

"Help! Ash!" Serena saw him and echoed out a bare sentence before passing out.

Gary flinched as he heard Ash's name. He looked up at Cilan for a more elaborate explanation. Bonnie was fast asleep in his brother's arms. The connoisseur looked as though he could faint at any moment as well.

"I think," He sat down hard, tortured both by the emotional and physical trauma. "Ash is possessed."

Gary fixed him a hard gaze. "Again?"

"No, not like last time." Cilan panted. "He's so much stronger now."

"I saw him jump from a eleven story building without any damage, and he was running at the speed of a Greninja on ground right after."

Gary took a sharp breath. He had never heard of anyone doing that, even out of Ash's adventures. "Holy Lord! Anything else?"

"Yeah!" Cilan said. "When he first woke up, blue energy shot out of him to as tall as seventy feet."

The Oak boy stood up abruptly. "You mean Aura!?"

"Yes! I think that was what Ash calls it."

The young researcher paced the room, trying to think of anything close to a solution, or at least something to relieve the situation.

"Give me half an hour." He said abruptly. "I'm going to go pack, and then we will take the next flight back to Kanto to see grandad."

"On the way there, we're going to notify every one of Ash's companions. Maybe with everyone's minds together, we can think of _something_."

* * *

The shiny Moltres landed in Pallet Town. Domino flipped off the legendary and walked to Delia's house. She decided not to use teleportation since both she and Moltres's psychic abilities were still healing from the Storm's destruction.

Before she started any operation, Domino needed to find out if Ash actually exists in this realm.

As the thought ran through her mind, she couldn't bear the pain followed by the idea of his nonexistence. She understood that even if Ash did exist in this world, he was not HER Ash.

Still, she just wanted to see his face again, and not in just her memory.

Domino knocked on the door of the Ketchum house and waited.

A few moments later, a tall man opened the door for her. A bad feeling rose up from Domino's stomach.

The man cleared his throat. "How may I help you, miss?"

The blonde twitched. "Ummm… I'm looking for Mrs. Ketchum?"

"Mrs. Ketchum?" The man's head tilted in confusion. Domino's heart sank.

The man then hit his head as if he just had a moment of realization. He chuckled. "I'm assuming your parent is a old friend of Delia?"

Domino nodded. Why not?

"She hadn't been married to Hector Ketchum for a long time." The man stated. "She is now Mr. Hale."

Domino did a double take and stared at him in horror. She blurted out. "Then who's Mr. Hale?"

"Why, silly!" The man laughed and stuck out a hand to be shaken. "That would be me!"

With a shaky breath, Domino asked the next question in line. "Then… do you know Ash Ketchum?"

"Ash Ketchum?" The man thought for a while. The Elite felt like her heart had been raised to her throat, and then clutched by a powerful hand. "No, I haven't. Is he Hector's brother or cousin or something?"

Domino froze. A potent pulse of psychic spreaded uncontrollably from her. Delia's garden was immediately annihilated, and the man flew into the house due to the impact of the force. Every window in the neighborhood shatter, and everything made of glass bursted.

The girl let out a ear-piercing scream. Mid-scream, she was teleported away by a pink bird supervising cautiously from an away roof through the entire process.

* * *

Closing his eyes, Professor Oak sat down hard. He had withstood years, decades worth of withering.

He had seen what most trainers never got to in his seventy years, including time traveling.

He recalled the boy's face ringing with excitement each time he told his tale of rescuing the world. The scientist just smiled and listened, not letting his inner-fretting show on his face.

If he did show any lack of confidence, Delia would freak out and break her promise to keep Ash free.

However, deep down, he was always worried. Ash was like a second grandson to him, and seeing him go around as a teenager, putting himself into risks most adults had never even dreamed of terrified him.

Thankfully, Ash had gotten through all of the disaster, like a miracle on Christmas Day.

But the side effects had broken loose, the Kanto Professor reflected. From one of the disasters, there must be an evil spirit or something that was taking over Ash's mind… something related to Aura.

He could only think of one thing that could be possible.

Sir Aaron's ghost.

Picking up a phone, he dialed a number to Rota.

"Hello?"

"Hello, Riley. This is Professor Oak."

* * *

Domino blew into her tissue and reached for another one. This time, her hands grabbed nothing but air. She looked down. The tissue box was empty. Around her was a mountain of wasted material.

The pink Moltres sat opposite of her, watching. She also had a few tissue thrown on her, but she didn't care too much.

" _Let it out._ " The Psychic Fire Type said. " _Let the sadness and frustration all out._ "

Domino looked at her with blood-red eyes. Her mouth opened a little, and a small strand of saliva dropped out unconsciously. Her brow furrowed in the way a bunny would if she was just kicked in the stomach, her eyes full of rejection.

" _If you need another box of tissues, I'll go get it right now._ "

Domino sniffed. "No! I'm good."

Moltres sighed. " _You don't look too good._ "

"No! I have to be strong though! For Ash!" Domino's eyes twitched, no more tears pouring over from crying themselves dry. "He's probably trapped somewhere, not know what to do. Only I can save him!"

" _Then let's get to it!_ " Moltres's voice suddenly became potently serious, like that of a mentor talking to her student. " _You've been acting like nothing by a little, weak girl who had just lost her favorite doll to the school bully!_ "

" _You can either keep crying and complaining about it like the other brats or weaklings, or you can take back your toy, to show yourself to be strong, to be the ultimate Queen!_ "

" _To be the greatest Queen ever existed._ " The shiny said. " _To be the greatest partner any Chosen could dream to have._ "

" _To be the partner of the greatest Chosen ever lived!_ "

Domino's eyes regained a small spark of the fury and courage that she had. She refused to be weak.

SHE REFUSED TO BE WEAK!

No more of hiding, no more of fooling around, no more of concealing herself, no more of procrastination!

They were what tore Ash away from her.

Now she would earn him back by destroying these defects that had poisoned her from Pandora's Box.

When she met Ash, she was eroded by his delicacy, by his passion. But that was not how it was supposed to be.

They were partners! She wasn't supposed to lean fully on him, or vice versa.

They should be working together to improve themselves, to push each other, to achieve magnificence.

She would work to win him back, even if it meant she had to go against the world.

The world, nor its people, had done anything for her. However, Ash had done in any minute they were together more than anything anyone had ever done…

Combined.

He showed her what it meant to be kind, to have friends, to forgive, to be passionate, to care, and, most importantly, to love.

* * *

Ash thought hard back to his past. There was a few ways he could maybe reverse this parallel universe problem, but all of them have their improbabilities.

First, he could just go find Jirachi and wish himself out of here. However, Jirachi had long fallen asleep, and his next comet cycle is in nine hundred something years.

By the time that comes, even if Cyrus didn't end the world, the world would have ended Ash.

Besides that, all of his other ways revolves around crazy time traveling ideas that were all speculation. Plus, there was no way he had enough time for them.

He could also recruit Celebi to put him back into his past, and he could start working out a solution from there… but that would also take too long.

Plus, this was not his universe. Ash was afraid that if he stayed here for too long, the world will automatically merge with his identity, which will forever trap him in this strange, parallel world.

He needed a way to get back, and he needed it soon.

Ash walked at a very brisk pace down Mt. Silver, passing by dangerous cliffs and potential Pokémon hazards like they were tricks for children.

Once he reached the bottom, he broke into a run. He had decided to retrace his journey, seeing if there were anything he missed in his recount that would help him.

ANYTHING!

Because if there was something strange and exotic in the world, Ash had encountered it, or at least anything in the eight regions.

He would start from Kanto, from the moment he left his mother's house, to Professor Oak's lab, to his rocky journey to Viridian…

If he couldn't solve the problem, no one could.

Ash knew that he would solve it. Despite his refusal of it, Ash Ketchum knew deep down that he was still the Chosen One.

That didn't mean it was for only one timeline.

That meant he was the Chosen of the entire Universe of Pokémon.

* * *

" _Got a plan yet?_ " The shiny Moltres asked her friend.

Domino picked her head up from the books that she got in the Rocket Research Center. "I have two halves of a plan."

" _What does that mean?_ " The Legendary tilted her head. " _Two halves makes a whole._ "

"Not when the two halves are different." The Elite responded bitterly. "Mixing half an apple pie and half a pizza doesn't make an integral."

"It just makes a freakish looking circle that I want to throw into the Continuum."

" _So what are the two half-plans?_ " She asked.

"Half of Plan A is to get Jirachi." Domino said. "If we can make a wish with him to return to our own dimension, then everything would be set."

" _How are you going to wake him up though?_ " The Fire Type questioned. " _The Millennium Comet doesn't come for another year and a half, and there is no way you can stay that long without getting merged with the universe._ "

" _You get at most seven days._ "

Domino sighed. "I know, which is why it's only half a plan."

Moltres restricted the urge to facepalm, knowing the girl probably couldn't take the extra pressure and stress.

" _Okay, then what's Plan B?_ "

"I'm going to go find Professor Oak."

* * *

The group gathered in the conference room of the Kanto Professor's lab. Gary began. "I'm Gary Oak. I am Ash's childhood best friend and rival during his journey through Kanto."

"Most of you have heard of me, from Ash." The young scientist shot a look around at Ash's companions through Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, Unova, and Kalos. "Which is the topic of discussion."

"In the case that I haven't made myself clear on the phone, I will explain the situation again."

"A few days ago, Ash went wild, after he lost the Kalos League Championship. He fainted after he received his award." Gary said, getting a nod of confirmation from the Kalos group.

"When he woke back up, he was different." The Oak boy continued. "He possessed the full power of Aura, and he was as destructive as a crazy Pokémon."  
Gary's voice cracked. "But what's more is that Ash had turned, for a lack of a better word, corrupted."

He casted a look at Serena, whose eyes were filled with tears of desperation. He motioned her up. "I will let Serena describe the details."

The honey-haired girl took the stage, and she stared down at the audience, each of whom had eyes filled with an undeniable grim.

Her voice was small and fragile, torn by the strain of the past several days. "When Ash first woke up three days ago, he was miserable."

"He pushed all of us away, and he screamed at Arceus for making him the Chosen One, for making him saving the world."

"He talked about his life getting messed up, and he mentioned." The tears in her eyes poured over. "A girl."

The audience burst into loud muttering. Gary raised his hand to motion them to quiet down so Serena couled finish.

"NO! I don't believe that was Ash!" Serena cried. "He was definitely possessed by something, so he's not thinking straight."

"Then, he just ran off, leaving all of his Pokéball, even Pikachu, behind." Serena pulled out a lightning-marked Pokéball as demonstration and placed it gently on the table in front of her. "It was horrible. I've never seen anything even close to this."

The floor fell into silence. A moment later, a tall, well-tanned teen raised his hand.

Serena recognized him to be Brock, the Pewter Gym Leader of Kanto. She nodded at him.

Brock's face was full of gloom. He hadn't seen anything like this either, and he had been with Ash for five years and through four regions.

"Wait. If he is possessed, then why did he mention himself as the Chosen One as he ranted?"

Serena's mouth opened, then closed, not able to give an answer.

A few moments later, she began in a small voice. "Maybe… the spirit didn't fully take control of Ash's mind? It only distorted some of his… emotions?"

A light murmur went around the room again, and numerous people spoke out against that idea.

Gary raised his hand to calm them down again, and he spoke up. "Actually, my grandad came up with a plausible hypothesis to that."

"Where IS Professor Oak?" A brunette in a bandanna asked, and Gary knew her to be May, Ash's female companion through Hoenn.

"He is away at Rota, trying to find a solution." Gary said.

"Rota?" A blue-haired girl, Dawn, companion of Ash through Sinnoh, questioned. "Is that the Town of Aura?"

"Yes." Gary nodded. "Grandad said that the evil spirit may be Sir Aaron's ghost!"

A sharp intake of breath was heard around the room. All of them had heard of the undying legends of Sir Aaron, the great, honorable knight that founded the Second Bountiful Empire.

Brock's eyes widened. "That WOULD explain the 'Chosen One' statement."

"Sir Aaron was a Chosen One in his time, yes." Gary took in a long breath. "Ash had said that he met the ancient knight before, and he died in battle after sealing his Lucario in his staff."

"When his ghost entered Ash's mind, Ash turned into a fragment of Sir Aaron, which was why he was exclaiming that he was the Chosen One."

"Think about it. When was the last time Ash referred to himself as the Chosen?"

"Never…" Brock muttered. "Besides once in Shamouti."

"Exactly." Gary agreed. "The female that Serena was mentioning about might be Sir Aaron's Lucario that he sealed."

"Sir Aaron had dedicated himself to creating peace in a time of disturbance and destruction, just like Ash."

"However, at the end of his life, he couldn't enjoy the fruits that he had planted, and he lost the 'most valuable companion' in his life, which was his Lucario."

"Which is why his spirit still haunts the Earth to this day, unwilling to leave because of the unfair treatment he felt he was subjected to."

"When Ash met him, he entered Ash's body, which explained why Ash was suddenly an expert at Aura when he went up to save the Tree of Beginning with Lucario."

"Sir Aaron was normal when he was with Ash because he could be with Lucario, and he knew 'she' was alive."

"However, after Lucario was drained by the tree and died, Sir Aaron probably went bonkers and turned evil, and have since then hid in Ash's body…"

"Until he broke out again three days ago." Gary concluded.

The room fell into silence. If they were normal people, they would have laughed at Gary's insane speculation.

But they're not normal. They had each been with Ash through an entire region, and have each seen at least one disaster.

A wave of horror hit them as they realized what Gary had said must be true.

* * *

Domino arrived at Pallet Town for the second time in one day. She didn't dare to wander near Ash's former neighborhood, afraid that her heart would be shattered by the pressure.

Instead, she went straight for Professor Oak's lab, hoping to consult the scientist for any advice at all.

If anyone was going to believe her and help she, it was Ash's most respected mentor.

When she reached there, the Elite flinched. The lab was a lot larger than she remembered, and its ranch covered almost half of the town.

The biggest change of all from the outside was that the lab was, instead of a mixture of blue and white, a hot pink.

Pink… she hated that color. Why would Professor Oak change his lab to PINK?

" _Ash's disappearance could affect the universe by cause and effect._ "

"But Ash hasn't done any world-saving at this point in time. First thing from the last timeline was the Mewtwo disaster!" Domino shouted, getting emotional again. "Professor Oak built the lab way before Ash was even born."

" _Then I don't know. Ripples in time maybe?_ " Moltres said. " _You should probably teleport down there yourself. I'll still be up here._ "

Domino agreed, and she flashed down in a light pink, her psychic energy gradually recovering from the after effects of the storm.

* * *

Ash walked onto land from the Indigo Sea. Shaking the water off his boots, he took a long drink.

Orange Islands were too cheery for him… Now that he looked back, the gyms were so disorganized and the Final Competition so bland. No wonder it never became an official League.

He pulled out a map. His fingers traced from his current spot to Johto and looked up.

Checking with the sun and his compass, his stride turned west, and he began running again.

* * *

A wave of pink dispersed as she landed. Domino walked up to the front door and rang the doorbell.

Half a minute went by, and she resisted her impatient urge to ring it again.

Abruptly, the door was pulled open. A man with sloppy hair, bare feet, and a stained lab coat so dirty it looked like it hadn't been washed for years appeared.

Domino stared in disbelief at the man's familiar face. She closed her eyes to check with the psychic marking… yep, it was him.

She asked in shock. "Professor!?"

"No, I'm not the Professor." The man looked at her lazily. "I'm Samuel Oak."

* * *

 **A/N: I CAN'T WAIT FOR THEM TO GET BACK TOGETHER!**

 **For me to write stories, I need to imagine myself being in their shoes. I need to keep feeding myself the feelings that I've too lost MY most precious possession, and then amplify that tenfold.**

 **Basically I'm putting myself through what Ash and Domino are going through… I swear, this is why so may writers get Multiple Personality Disorder.**

 **But anyways, I hope you enjoyed Pt. 2 of Movie 2 (1st being the Tomb). Please favorite and follow.**

 **I will dearly appreciate it if you make me feel at worth by providing a review.**

 **Next update in 6 hrs at 12 p.m. Eastern Time Zone (ET).**


	47. Cha 46: Across From You

**Cha. 46**

 **A/N: Pt. 3 of Movie 2! Some major action's going to be happening, so this chapter is going to be longer than usual. Each chapter, on average, takes 18-20 pages in Google Docs. This took 27 pages.**

 **The plot I have built up in within is crushing me. The tension and pressure of the previous 3 parts all leading up to an ultimate finish… Seriously, I, I can't wait to finish this and create what will probably be the best adventure I had ever dreamed up and written.**

 **Last Part coming in 6 hrs! Home stretch, Crator! Come on, you can do this!**

* * *

"WHAT!?" Domino shouted, almost spitting on Oak's face. "What do you mean?"

Oak looked at her weirdly. "I'm the lab assistant. Professor Pine is still finishing up some chemistry work. She'll be down shortly."

"NO! Nononono!" She shouted. "What are you saying!? YOU'RE supposed to be the Professor."

Oak chuckled. "You're not wrong. I should be getting a raise."

"NO! You don't get it!" Domino grabbed the man by the shoulder. "YOU!"

She pointed at his face and continued pointing. "YOU ARE supposed to be the Kanto Professor."

The man finally frowned. "Look, Blondie, I don't know what tricks you're playing here, but get your damn hands off me."

Domino would have slapped him if she wasn't in shock about hearing one of the greatest scientist and most dignified man she had ever known call her "Blondie."

Tears formed in her eyes again. "What _happened_ to you!?"

Oak was taken back by the girl's burst in emotions. "Miss… seriously, should I… know you?"

Domino, on the verge of crying again, gasped. "You are supposed to be the undefeated Champion of Kanto, Pokémon Master, Kanto Professor, and, and…"

"You're supposed to be Ash's mentor!" She couldn't hold her tears any longer. They started pouring down, and Domino grabbed him and buried her head into his chest.

Yelling into his ear, she kept crying. "You're supposed to give Ash Pikachu and Dexter!"

"And then he's going to go on his crazy Pokémon journey, and then we could meet!" She broke down completely, sobbing profusely. Oak looked at the unstable girl, not having the heart to push her away.

"Then he would go around all eight regions, saving the world and each of the legendary's butt forty times!" Domino did not care about having Oak think she was mentally insane anymore. She felt her mouth spluttering, and she cried more.

"Mewtwo! Lugia! Arceus! Celebi! Latias! He have saved you all!" She screamed into the sky. "Where are all of you!? Why can't you help me!? Help _HIM_!?"

The girl released the shirt of the man in front of her and sank to the ground, head buried in her knees. " _Whhyyy!_ "

Her shoulders oscillated, and she felt herself on the verge of being torn apart. Even the wisest man she knew was gone.

An arm wrapped around her. She glared at the man and pushed him away. "DON'T touch me!"

"You're not Professor Oak!"

"I know." The man looked down. "I gave up on that dream, and the dream of becoming a Pokémon Master a long time ago."

Domino whipped around and began to walk away.

Samuel Oak rushed next to her and grabbed her by the arm. Fighting the urge not to punch him, the Elite turned around. "If you want to keep that arm, mister, I suggest you let go."

Oak ignored her. "Did you… did you just say…"

Domino snatched her arm from his grasp, no longer trusting the elderly man.

"Did you just say Cel… Celebi?" The man finished.

"I don't know! Did I?" Domino roared. "Do I care!?"

Oak didn't flinched this time. A burst of grief emerged in his eyes. "I don't know who the guy you were talking about was, or what he did. But I do know one thing."

The man stared into the blonde girl's eyes. "He did NOT save Celebi."

Domino froze. That's impossible. She remembered Ash telling her about it. She had an eidetic memory after becoming psychic. Ash saved Celebi in Johto when she time traveled forward with a boy and got caught by the Masked Marauder.

Wait!

… the… the boy.

The boy!

His name…

A chill went down her spine.

Sam. The boy's name was Sam. Sam for Samuel. Samuel Oak.

Professor Samuel Oak of Kanto.

Domino looked at the man in disbelief. "You… you were the boy Celebi teleported forward fifty something years!"

The man tensed, alarmed. "How did you know about THAT!?"

Before the girl could explain, Oak relaxed unexpectedly. "You know what, probably the same way I did."

"You time traveled, didn't you?" He said. "You come from the future too, and I was a successful Pokémon Champion and Kanto scientist there!?"

Domino didn't answer. That was a statement, not a question, or at least the future part. She could detect it in Oak's confident tone. She didn't feel like responding either.

"Why didn't you LEAD with that?" The man grasped her shoulders again. This time, Domino didn't protest.

"You would've thought I was crazy if I led with that."

"Your introduction wasn't much better." The man grinned.

Domino managed a small, weak smile. "Tell me. Tell me, Professor. What happened?"

"Why don't we go have a seat in the lab?" The light in the man's eyes dimmed significantly. "Professor Pine wouldn't be finished for at least another hour."

* * *

Ash Ketchum stopped dead in his tracks. He looked at Greenfield. A familiar pool of memory was stirred up, and he took in a sharp breath.

Greenfield. Hale. Entei. Unown. Unown Dimension. Keystone of Timelines.

Eyes sparkling with a sudden hope, he raced at top speed toward the little brick house in the middle of the field. From the distance, he could see a girl playing.

A girl with honey-colored hair, wearing a white top, blue skirt, and pink shoes, just like from his memories seven years ago, only older.

* * *

"And then Celebi teleported me back to my time. The last thing I saw was her getting captured by the Masked demon before time swallowed me up." Samuel Oak concluded and sank in his chair.

Domino was speechless. She remembered Ash telling her the story, but with a drastically different ending.

In his story, he saved Celebi from the Masked Marauder. Celebi was then revived by all of the other Celebi from different instants, all photocopies of herself. And then, she teleported herself and Sam back to their original time period.

But since Ash is gone… the girl shook at the realization… Oak never successfully stopped the villain. As a result, Celebi was gone forever.

"I've never seen her from that day on, and I have never told anyone about it." The man said quietly. "Since then, I stopped training Pokémon. What's the point? I can't even take care of my best friend. I'm useless to them. I'm weak, from the heart, WEAK!"

Domino knew exactly what he was feeling, because she was feeling the same thing as well. Only if she had studied the Spoon Methods more, or if she was more powerful, or if…

"I graduated high school, and I took a job down at the local market and kept living in my mother's house." He said. "Mother passed away when I was forty, and I turned to the streets. Some of my friends allowed me to stay a few nights in their house, and I rotated houses."

"However, after a while, they stopped. It's not their fault. I'm too much of a nuisance. I began to live fully on the streets, begging when I stopped working." Oak's head dropped deeper. "Until Professor Pine came and took me into her lab."

"She taught me the basics, and I became her assistant. Life basically was held at a constant…" The man turned to her. "Until, well, you came."

Domino closed her eyes. The most esteemed man she knew, even respected by the Rocket Boss himself, who had expressed his respect on multiple occasions aloud, became one of the futureless, decaying souls because Ash wasn't there.

"Oh Ash…" She breathed quietly.

Promptly, Oak looked up at her. "Miss! I don't know who this man is, but I know he is very important to you."

"If you want him, go get him!" He said in a strong voice, a confident tone he hadn't used in fifty years. "I can tell you are strong, strong enough to do this. It is only covered by an outer layer of fear you need to burst through. Do not be weak like I am."

"Or else, you will miss the most precious thing you will ever have, like me."

"Thank you." Domino's gaze met his. "And you are not weak."

"Professor."

With that, she teleported off, in front of him.

He stared at the spot where she flashed off, somehow not surprised at all, not having the heart to be surprised.

His heart had been dead for over fifty years… or until today.

"Professor, huh?" He muttered.

* * *

"Hi, Ash!" The girl said cheerfully.

Ash could feel an aura on her that he had never sensed before… at least not after he got his powers.

The signature of the Unown.

It still hadn't died down… That meant there were still cracks around Greenfield, cracks that led to the Unown Dimension. That was how the energy was dripping through. It never fully closed after the Unown incident seven years ago…

All Ash needed to do is to find the crack, tear one open and get into the portal, find enough Unown so they could bond together and grant his wish to be with Domino…

The Ketchum boy took a deep breath and smiled at Molly, with a natural sunshine on his lips that had finally peaked through after the rampage of the cumulonimbus thunder clouds.

* * *

" _Any luck?_ " Moltres asked.

"Nope." Domino said, but with a sense of confidence. "Because Ash wasn't there, Professor Oak changed as well. For example, he is no longer a Professor."

"But that doesn't matter!" She exclaimed. "I will go save Ash on my own!"

The shiny legendary was shocked. She didn't know what happened in there, since her psychic powers didn't recover enough for her to listen in across four thousand feet from the sky, but the potent look on Domino's face told her that her Queen had regained her strength.

"I'm supposed to be Ash's partner!" She said fiercely. "Knowing Ash, he's probably searching for a way out too. I can't give up! I need to parallel him!"

"Onward to Millennium Town." She pointed in Hoenn's direction.

" _How are you going to find Jirachi?_ " Moltres asked.

"Don't worry." Domino smirked. "I've got a detail Ash had mentioned that would be giving us plenty of help… whether he wants to or not!"

* * *

"Hey!" Delia greeted into the phone happily. "Long time, Spence! How's researching going!"

"Pretty well." Spencer Hale replied just as cheerfully. "Astronomy is really taking off for me. I just got done writing a report for a new constellation that I uncovered."

"Congratulations!" She grinned. "What are you naming it after? I heard that the first astronomer to discover a star gets to name it."

"Molly." The scientist responded. "She's going to be so happy once she hears of that."

"Awww… You need to send a picture of the look of her face when you tell her!" Delia cooed. "How's Molly doing?"

"Pretty good!" Spencer said. "She's right now playing in the field with Ash, actually."

"Ash is in Greenfield!?" Delia said, shocked. "I can't believe the first thing he does after a League isn't to come back home to visit his OWN mother."

"Don't fret about it." Spencer laughed. "You control him too much. He's a teenager, almost an adult now."

"Fine!" Delia grumbled. "But tell him to get back so he can change into clean underwear."

* * *

Without people around and vendors setting up their carts like during the Festival, Millennium Town seemed barren. There were few people on the streets, and relatively few houses around the place, which made her job of finding a particular one easy.

Smirking to Moltres, she linked her psychic powers with the legend. Then a powerful psychic projection oscillated outward. She wasn't strong enough right now to protrude the mind of everyone of this town, so she used a different tactic.

"BUTLER OF MILLENNIUM TOWN!" She was strong enough, though, to resonate her voice through the entire town, and that was exactly what she did. "YOU HAVE OFFICIALLY BEEN CHOSEN TO BE THE RECEIVER OF THIS YEAR'S LEAGUE PEACE REWARD!"

"COME AND AND RECEIVE YOUR PRIZE OF A MILLION DOLLARS AT THE TOWN SQUARE!"

To make herself seem more like a League official, she allowed Moltres to stand tall next to her, as a symbol of the League.

People began to file into the Town Square rapidly. Domino casted several Light Screen around themselves to keep them from getting in too close.

Even with a spell as powerless as Light Screen, she still felt strained.

A few minutes later, a bunch of people came into the Town Square, pushing along a man at the front.

Domino looked at him. "Are you Butler of Millennium?"

"Yes, yes!" The man shouted unbelievably, taking out his ID. "I am Butler."

"In that case, lead my to your house." The blonde said. "We will sign a few documents, and the prize money would be yours!"

"Of course!" Butler grinned widely. "Please follow me."

A few minutes of walk later, Butler led her into his house. Other people tried to come in, but Domino blocked them with a Light Screen and locked the door behind them.

"Sorry for them. They're a bit excited. Nothing ever has happened here." Butler smiled apologetically. "Now, can I sign the documents for the money?"

"You're really as dense as Ash said you were." Domino stared at him, her pupils shrinking, and a cold gaze floated on. "You really think you randomly received a million dollars for doing absolutely _nothing_?"

"Wait! What!?" The man's eyes shot open. "You're not… Then WHO are you!?"

"Who I am is not important." Domino seized him by the collar and put on her mean face. "What is important is whether you have what I need."

"What… what do you need!?" Butler pleaded. "Please don't hurt me!"

The Rocket's psychic projection searched the house. Doubtlessly, she found a secret closet storing his Magma equipment.

"Now, don't act like you don't know what's going on, Magma!" She threatened and took out a Rocket Elite Badge. The man's face turned into one of horror as he saw the symbol. "So you know who I am then… I guess you also know the amounts of torture methods we Elites know."

"I'll… I'll give you anything!" Butler panted. "Do you want Team Magma secrets? I don't know much, but I'll tell you everything I know!"

Domino slapped him, trying to get him out of his terror. The man shut up immediately. "I know you're an expert on Jirachi. Where is he?"

The Magma agent froze and stared at her. "How… how did you know…"

Another slap quieted him again.

"I'm the one asking questions here." She said maliciously.

"I'll tell you!" Butler yelled. "I'll lead you there. He's disguised as a rock in a cave in Tamdom Forest!"

"I'll do the teleporting, you do the leading." Domino checked beforehand to make sure he wasn't leading her into a Magma trap, and teleported off, with Moltres disappearing at the same time from the Square.

* * *

"This tea is really good." Professor Oak said to Delia. "How did you make it?"

"Really?" Delia glanced back at the uninvited Professor. "I just put some mango leaves into it. You kind of did show up for a visit without any arrangements."

Professor Oak sighed. He had to come see if 'Ash' was hidden here in Delia's house, which he wasn't. "Sorry for the inconvenience. I had something at the lab that was really… repelling, so I came to refresh my mind."

"Speaking of which, random question." Oak coughed. "Do you happen to know where Ash is? Say, did he call you after the Kalos League?"

"So you think he's been away for too long too!" Delia exclaimed. "You know, he didn't even call me when he finished! I heard from Spencer that he was at Greenfield playing with Molly this morning, but before that, I didn't even where he IS!"

"Can you believe that he didn't even…"

"Wait! Spencer Hale?" Oak confirmed.

"Yeah, Hale. Ash is becoming so…" Delia stopped as the Professor got out and ran hurriedly out the door. "Where are you going?"

"I just remembered…" Oak tried to think of an excuse. "that I had an explosive mixture centrifuging that I needed to take out!"

"See you later, Delia!"

* * *

She picked up the rock and infused a pulse of aura into the specimen. A resonating pink floated out, and the stone started to break.

A few moments of corrosion later, the rock had fully broken into a Jirachi-shaped structure. Domino levitated some water in from a nearby stream and doused the Pokémon with it.

As the dust cleared, showing a white Pokémon, Jirachi started to squirm. His eyes then opened, though his third Eye on his chest did not. " _Is the time here already?_ "

He floated up and frowned. " _I don't feel the power though… what year is it?_ "

"Hello, Jirachi. It's 807 AE." Domino said softly. "The comet is yet to come for another few months. It is I who woke you."

Jirachi did a double take as he felt her psychic markings. " _Hello, my Queen. For what reason do you wake me?_ "

"Call me Domino. I'm here to ask of you a favor." The Elite responded. "I know the comet isn't here yet, but is there any way you can grant me a wish?"

" _No, my Queen… all of my powers surrounds the Millennium Comet. If it is not here, I cannot grant wishes._ " Jirachi shook his head. " _In fact, I can't even be awaken for too much longer… maybe for another few days, then I would fall back to sleep. Is there something I can help you with manually?_ "

"Do you know how to travel across a parallel universe without the help of the Creation Trio and Arceus?" She asked dubiously.

" _I'm sorry, your Majesty._ " Jirachi said. " _I do not. Maybe my wish does, but I do not know how my wishes work. I only know that they somehow tie in with the will of the universe, and it executes it._ "

Domino sighed dejectedly. "In that case, do you want to just follow me for another few days… just in case something happens?"

" _Of course, ma'am._ " The Steel Psychic said. " _Can you put me back here once I go back to sleep? I'll automatically turn back to fossil form._ "

"Yes." She said softly. "If I make it back here."

* * *

Ash clutched his head in frustration. He had been searching for the past three days at Greenfield. Still, nothing! He had two more days left before the universe started to merge him into this timeline… then Cyrus would destroy it, ending the world forever.

He yelled out in exasperation. His aura could not trace where the Unown Energy was coming from. He could only sense it when he was extremely close, like Molly's case.

A sharp soprano voice that he hadn't heard in years suddenly rang out. "Ash!"

He turned around and did a double take. In front of him, marching on toward him, was closed to twenty people, all of whom he recognized and had once traveled with… in another timeline.

In HIS timeline.

* * *

Domino sat down hard on a log. "I can't give up! I can't give up! I can't!"

Moltres finished explaining to Jirachi the situation and floated over. " _So what's Plan C?_ "

"I… I don't know." Domino's eyes squinted and her brow furrowed. "Do you have anything?"

" _I'm a legendary. I'm supposed to be the muscle. You're the brains._ "

Domino sighed deeply. "Time to go back to the Rocket Library and hit the books again."

" _You're running out of time._ "

"I know."

" _Actually, I have an idea._ " Jirachi bounced over. " _Moltres told me about your conundrum and I think I know somebody who can travel parallel universes._ "

The other two psychics' eyes opened wide and shone with light. " _WHO!?_ "

" _Hoopa._ "

Domino instantly confirmed that decision. She recalled Ash's tale about Hoopa. Her rings can travel through anywhere. Maybe, she could also get her out of this timeline.

" _Then what are waiting for!?_ " Moltres yelled. " _Let's go!_ "

* * *

Ash's eyes narrowed. A bad feeling rose from his stomach. Why were they together? Why were they looking at him like they were seeing evil.

Why did they look like they wanted to prosecute him like in every one of those bad "Ash Betrayed" fanfics?

Professor Oak took the lead. Pointing a finger at Ash, he shouted. "Sir Aaron, I know you can hear me! Stop pretending to be Ash."

"Ash has been nothing but kind to you!" Dawn cried out. "How can you claim his body for your own!?"

"What…" Ash stared at them, confused.

"Where is your honor?" Brock demanded. "We're all sad about Lucario's death, but do you think she would want you to be evil!?"

"Your time has passed, Sir Aaron!" Gary shouted. "Leave this world to us. Leave Ash's body!"

Ash's mouth moved, but no words came out. They really think that _Sir Aaron_ POSSESSED him?

If he wasn't in a dire situation, he would be rolling on the ground, laughing right now. But he was, so he gave the group a cold glare. "I'm not Sir Aaron. Now leave me. I have to go find the most important thing in my life right now."

"Your acting sucks!" Misty screamed. "Ash would never use this attitude with us!"

Ash turned to her, exasperated. "If you think I'm Sir Aaron, prove it."

"Okay, fine!" Misty held out a Pokéball. "Starmie! Water Gun!"

Misty's Mysterious Pokémon landed next to her and fired a powerful Water Gun at Ash as commanded.

"HEY!" Caught by surprise, the Ketchum boy held up a Protect shield. The Water Gun splashed up against it, barely shaking it.

The Aura from the shield flared up, the blue shining distinctively in the sun. Misty's eyes narrowed. "And you said you're NOT Sir Aaron?"

"I know Aura too!" Ash shouted and turned to Dawn and Brock. "Remember when I saved the Tree of Beginning?"

"Exactly!" Brock's gaze hardened. "The Tree drained you of all of your Aura. Everything is pointing to you being Sir Aaron's ghost."

Ash's expression turned into anger. "Leave me! I do not have much time left!"

"If you're not going to leave Ash, we will make you leave." Serena shouted.

"Oh yeah? With what?" Ash clutched his fists. A giant flare of Aura spiked up. "If YOU don't leave, I will make YOU leave."

"I didn't want to do this, Sir Aaron." Professor Oak said, stepping back. "I hoped you would be the Honorable Knight who founded the Second Bountiful Empire. But you disappoint me, _Sir_!"

"Come on out!" Oak waved behind him.

Ash extended his gaze, and froze.

Behind the group levitated up Mewtwo.

* * *

" _That is most certainly a heartbreaking tragedy._ " Hoopa said as Domino finished the retelling of her story. The blonde was so glad that legendaries' capabilities of accepting seemingly ridiculous information are so much better than humans.

Or maybe it was just because they already had seen these insanities already…

"So can you help us?" Domino asked eagerly.

" _I feel for you._ " Hoopa said gently. " _But no._ "

The blonde's face twitched. She tried to not sound desperate as she pleaded. "Why not?"

" _Because of Hoopa Unbound._ " The Ghost Psychic sighed. " _It is the evil half of me. Traveling trans-universally takes a lot of power, which will make Hoopa Unbound overpower me._ "

" _Then, this world will have a Hoopa Unbound wrecking havoc everywhere._ "

"What if we can defeat her!?" Domino suggested.

" _You actually look like you could._ " Hoopa took a careful look at the psychic trios. " _How about I make you a deal._ "

" _I'll release Hoopa Unbound when you're ready. If you can manage to defeat her to drain her of her energy, then she wouldn't be able to overpower me when I perform the spell to get you back to your original realm._ "

" _If you don't, well, I'll still have the energy to revert back. However, I'm afraid then you won't get your wish._ "

Domino's gaze hardened. "So we have to beat a crazy legendary to get our wish?"

" _Indeed._ "

The Elite grinned. "Just what I'm good at."

* * *

Ash and Mewtwo stared at each other. "You, huh? Trying to mess with my life again?"

Mewtwo's eyes flowed with a pink energy. " _I do believe now you are Sir Aaron. Your current psychic marking is not the one that I detected before?_ "

"You mean at New Island?" Ash chuckled coldly. "By the way, your flawed memory block was lifted."

" _No doubt. Your power as Sir Aaron is strong enough to lift the block._ " Mewtwo echoed. " _After all, I was just born at the time._ "

"You don't look much stronger now!" Ash growled. "Are you really going to try to stop me?"

In the blink of an eye, Ash's companions were teleported miles away.

" _Try?_ " The so-called most powerful legend sneered. " _I will succeed._ "

As he finished his sentence, Mewtwo teleported from his spot.

Ash recalled the training he had with Domino, and he pulsed a massive wave of Aura from himself.

Behind him, Mewtwo was knocked out of space by the powerful attack. " _And you still dare say you're not Sir Aaron? Ash would've never been able to do that!_ "

Putting a Aura Shield on his backpack, Ash stopped replying and raced at the Psychic. A Light Screen was formed by the Legend, just like he planned.

Manipulating his fingers into a drill, reinforced by Aura, Ash dug into the defense, shattering it on contact.

"This is why you shouldn't live in isolation, Mewtwo!" He smirked. "You don't get any experience."

With that hit, Ash felt himself become lighter, as if the frustration and pain were vented out by fighting this insanely powerful punching bag who could withstand his attacks.

Ash roared, and the lock on his extra Aura dissolved. His level of power immediately zoomed up to the level of Ancient, and it kept rising until it barely fell short of Formation. A twenty-foot-tall projection rose from behind him, acting as his Shadow.

A blue gloom loomed on top of him, and Mewtwo saw an Aura-infused boot flying at his face.

The Psychic tried to teleport, but the giant Aura projection forced the space around him to suddenly collapse. As a result, he couldn't get his brain waves out to lock onto a place to teleport.

Ash's boot struck his face head-on ( **A/N: Please, no pun inteneded.** )

The Genetics Pokémon flew back and crashed onto the ground. Ash Bounced into the air and punched down with a Force Palm.

Mewtwo cried and released a Psybeam, clashing into Ash's fist. In a raw power competition, Ash was still off by a bit.

Therefore, he jumped back, using the recoil of the attack, and started circling the legendary. His plan was to use his experience and technique to operate around Mewtwo's untrained power, which will hopefully defeat him eventually.

Mewtwo took the initiative to start the next round of attacks. He spun up thirty Psycho Cuts and flung them at Ash.

The Aura Guardian materialized his own Aura Spheres and countered flying attacks with flying attacks. Then, a light flashed on the Chosen, almost unnoticeable against the background of his glowing blue.

Mewtwo charged at him under the covers of the explosion. " _Psystrike!_ "

Ash smirked. "Here's another thing wrong with you. You're too specialized."

The Psystrike pounded against Ash's Substitute, who exploded into a dust of blue hue, engulfing and trapping Mewtwo for a second, allowing Ash to dash in and smashed a Giga Impact against the Pokémon, before jumping away.

Mewtwo screamed with pain and frustration. Getting hit straight-on by Ash was nothing less than getting an Aeroblast from Lugia or a Sacred Fire from Ho-Oh.

His eyes narrowed, and he shone with Barrier.

Ash circled him again, waiting for his opponent to make the first move.

Mewtwo, younger and more inexperienced, attacked as anticipated. Since he was a clone of Mew, he knew all of the moves she did as a result of ancestry DNA.

" _Genesis Supernova!_ " Mew's signature attack came zooming in at Ash.

Ash roared and put on a Protect, which shattered after a few seconds of resisting. After all, it was Mew's strongest attack.

The Ketchum boy was knocked back across the strip. He caught back his balance quickly and saw the Legendary charging a Future Sight.

Ash split into twelve Double Teams, each encoded with enough Aura to ensure Mewtwo's psychic could not penetrate it immediately. They all rushed at him, causing the untutored Pokémon to pause for a moment.

The tiny second was enough for the Aura-boosted Ashes to get to Mewtwo. Lashing out with a Force Palm and avoiding the Psychic Attack, Ash smirked. "Get some training, you big lump!"

Mewtwo's body shined with Mirror Move, and he raised his head and smiled slyly. " _Don't ever underestimate the learning potential of a Legendary Psychic._ "

Ash cursed as a similar burst of power flung him away. Mewtwo was learning as he battled him. He needed to finish the fight quickly if he wanted any chance of winning.

Ash Charged back to him. Mewtwo tried to lift him with Psychic, but gave up on trying to overpower the weight of Aura.

He put up a Light Shield instead. This time, Ash flipped over the obstacle and lashed out with a Triple Kick at the back of the Legend's head.

Mewtwo dodged two, but the last kick launched him forward. Ash landed and snorted. "Do you really think I'll show you how my anti-shield work again so you can use it against me?"

Mewtwo huffed in anger and fired a Prismatic Laser at Ash, trying to lock him in place.

Ash's twenty-feet Aura Shadow fluctuated and turned solid as the Chosen pumped a huge amount of energy in. The Shadow lashed out a punch at the cage-like attack, shattering it into pieces.

Ash burst into a dozen Double Teams again, and Mewtwo blew out a Psywave to pop all of the fake ones.

The Guardian, who, unbeknownst to his opponent, had used the temporary cover of his clones to Dig himself underground and progressing quite speedily toward the already close Legendary.

Domino always used Psywave when he formed Double Teams. He had engineered many ways to counter that.

The thought of the beautiful figure filled him with adrenaline, making him ignore the sore spots from the attacks and dug faster.

On the ground, Mewtwo looked at the popped Double Teams and blinked. Instinctively, he looked to the sky to see if Ash was going to drop down on him, since that was what Mew did seven years ago when they had their battle on New Island.

Ash burst out of the ground. Much to his delight, the legendary was even less aware of his route than he had planned, and he launched a well-prepared Aura Sphere into the beast.

Mewtwo cried out in pain and rolled forwards. On his body, the Aura residue formed in mysterious symbols instead of disappearing.

Rather than keep attacking, Ash stepped back, much to the Psychic's surprise.

Mistaking his opponent's retreat as a sign of wariness, Mewtwo stopped trying to clear off the symbols and ran toward Ash.

Ash held up two hands. In one hand was a pure blue sphere that was growing geometrically. In his other hand, blood poured out and formed a pattern according to an Aura trough he formed on his hand… in the form of an Eye.

The blood evaporated into the air, and Ash's face paled. He chanted. "Trading my life for your death, bring me your Death Force!"

In the air in which the blood vaporized, a shadow of pure black emerged. This wasn't the purple of Ghost Energy. It was the darkness of pure Death.

Ash smiled weakly. In the Tomb of Pokélantis King, he had witnessed the insane and mysterious element of the Death Forces.

It was a power that could trap Mew, a Cosmic-Level Legendary and manipulate both the Chosen and the Queen together, at least for a few days.

Since then, Ash had been trying to think of ways to obtain that force. Having never to mention it to anyone else, since he was afraid that they would stop him, deeming it evil, he had never tested it out either.

Until today, when desperate times met desperate measures.

When the Aura of a Guardian meets the pure blood of the same Guardian arranged in a similar technique as Miracle Eye, Ash discovered, the ability of the Life Force turned into Death, the same power wielded by the possessed spirit of The First King.

The condensed ball of Aura in his right hand, representing most of the Aura within him, stopped growing, and it discharged in an even faster rate into his left hand, carved with the symbol of the Eye, of the mirror of Life, of Death.

Mewtwo's attack slammed hard against Ash, who had given up all attempts to evade and focused solely on the transformation of Forces before him.

His chest gave in, as the sickening sound of numerous ribs cracking and breaking echoed, and Ash threw up a giant puddle of blood.

The blood evaporated rapidly, turning into a dark Force.

Mewtwo never had the chance of attacking again.

The conversion became faster and faster as more Aura was turned into Death. In an instant after Mewtwo landed his attack, the transmutation finished.

Ash's right hand had nothing. In his left hand, hovering over the scars of an Eye that had bled out completely, was a massive sphere of condensed darkness, as if Giratina's Shadow Realm had been shrunken down in a sphere with a eight-foot diameter.

The Chosen's shadow had long collapsed. The only thing now levitating above the Guardian was the black hole, sucking in all life as men knew it.

Ash cupped the sphere with both hands and closed his eyes. A familiar method of manipulation came into his mind as his eyes shut, as if it had been there all along.

He identified it immediately. That was Lucario's super move that they spent hours and days, buckets after buckets of sweat working on.

Ash operated the same procedure on the ball of Death Force. Time seemed to slow due to the motion of the mysterious energy. The Ketchum boy didn't notice it, however.

His eyes were still closed, trying to get used to the feeling of the foreign force flowing through his veins. His right hand spun to the side, left right foot dragging onto the ground behind him, completing the last step to Aura Storm.

No, Death Storm.

The mysterious power of Death flowed past him into the environment. Only did he finish discharging did he open his eyes.

Even he, saver of worlds, had never seen anything like the sight before him.

The Death Energy separated, and separated more, until it diluted and formed a tornado-like construct, just like Lucario's Aura Storm, but much larger.

The storm was of pure black. The sun seemed to dim in the regions covered by the black forces, until it completely disappeared, pulling both Ash and Mewtwo into a vacuum.

Mewtwo seemed to have lost all freedom of movement… or even thought, as darkness encased him.

Balls of pure Death exploded within the storm, smashing against the disappearing Psychic.

A second later, or maybe days later, as time seemed to have frozen within the mysterious realm, blackness began to lift.

Just as rapidly as it descended, it withered away at the same speed.

On the ground lied Mewtwo, lifeless… but not dead. His eyes were still open, staring into empty space, without even a single strand of thought or brain wave within. He just lied there, like a man in coma.

Ash was not much better. His face was pale white, whiter than the first snowflake of winter, whiter than the first beam of Arceus's Judgement that opened the Universe.

Most of his blood was gone, along with the Aura in his body. The residue of the Death Force began to rot away at his own anatomy.

Ash saw black and fell straight to his knees. His head clouded with unrecognizable sounds and translucent shapes. He felt tired, so damn tired. He wanted to go to sleep, to stop carrying out his mission.

His mission to live.

The shapes became more and more slurred. Ash fully closed his eyes.

Suddenly, a familiar shape screamed at him. A instinctive feeling of passion stemmed from the bottom of his heart and rose into his head, washing away the suffering and exhaustion.

The shape became clearer. Ash concentrated harder, and it materialized into a girl. A girl with endearing blonde curls that smelled like strawberry and vanilla. Her purple eyes filled with encouragement, screaming at him. Ash couldn't distinguish the words, but their connection instantly made him realize what she was saying.

"Live."

Ash reopened his eyes, and the world seemed somewhat clearer. Grabbing onto a nearby branch, the boy pulled himself up back a burst of newfound energy.

It was not a miracle. It was fate. He must not die here. His destiny was to be be her. Even if he died, he needed to die in her arms.

A sudden wind blew against him. At first, Ash did not recognize the difference. Then his pupils dilated. The wind began to wash away the Death Forces that was poisoning his body.

This was no wind… Ash jerked his head up in shock and stared at the dark crack that had emerged in front of him.

This was the energy of… The Unown… and it was leaking from the crack profusely.

A sudden realization came into Ash's mind. The entrance to the Unown could not be opened by Aura… it could only be opened by Death.

He began to trudge toward the crack, each step adding more weight to his legs. His knees gave way under him. His chest slammed against the ground, the pain from the broken ribs protruding rudely into his mind, but Ash would not let the agony flood his image of her away.

He stood back up and continued walking toward the crack.

Three steps.

Two steps.

He heard shouting in the distance. He saw people running him.

One step.

He saw the sun shining down on him. The sun of the living.

Ash put his foot carefully into the grey dimension, then another.

The crack closed behind him.

Ash saw stars before him. Stars with images. Ash saw each of his losses at Leagues. He saw the faces of the legendaries whom he had either met or saved, or both.

The sight of his friends, his dearest companions came floating back to his mind as well. The fun times together, the dangers they got into.

Ash saw the departure of his father, rising toward the sky all by himself and zooming off when he was four years old. He saw his mother's face, stained with tears, begging him not to leave them.

He saw the hidden black deer in the bushes when he was two, recognizing it now to be Xerneas.

He saw the floating, see-through figure of Arceus bending down and kissing him on the forehead the moment he was born in Kanto Regional Hospital.

The reflection of his past stopped. He saw himself rising, rising over the beautiful landscape of the six regions and the passionate ocean view of the Orange Islands.

Then, the planet appeared as a whole, a sturdy blue and green sphere, with mists surrounding its atmosphere. Ash looked past it to see the sun, blaring down him.

The strands of the universes became suddenly clear to him. Ash saw himself as flattened. Above him, there was another plate of reality, and another, and then another.

The infinite numbers of plates formed a box, otherwise known as the Universe of Pokémon. Outside of it, there were other boxes…

The images stopped. He fell on the grey ground of the mysterious realm.

"I love you." Ash whispered at the last image, and he shut his eyes.

* * *

 **Ash Ketchum, 10 years old.**

 **Pokémon Trainer, Son, Chosen, Best Friend, Hero.**

 **797 A.E. - 807 A.E.**

 **Cause of Death: Love**

* * *

 _ **The End**_

* * *

 **A/N: Hehehehehe…**


	48. Cha 47: Across From You

**Cha. 47**

 **A/N: Just kidding. I'm back. If you like the chapter, review, favorite and follow!**

 **This is another rare 8,000 words chapter, like last chapter.**

* * *

A bolt of lightning cracked through the sky of the Unown Dimension. More bolts flew through the air, heading straight for the Central Castle.

The exterior of the castle lit up in a dusky light. A mysterious power seeped out of it and rushed at the incoming Spatial Rends.

The Space attack was absorbed without question. Immediately following the first round of attack, chains of pure blue rushed at the Castle.

The Unown Energy pulsed out again, surrounding the Roars of Time. The outcome was the same as the last attempt to constrict the palace: Failure.

The hole through which the attacks were sent began to close slowly, the energy of Reality unable to maintain the separation anymore.

Inside the Castle, the Emperor of Unown laughed. " _This is Cyrus's twenty-ninth time this month! When can he get through that puny little human brain of his that the Unown is undefeatable!?_ "

In front of him, nine Unown Lords lowered themselves from their separate altars, into which they had been pumping energy to help the Emperor sustain the shield.

The Emperor waved. " _Thank you for today! You may go back to your palaces now!_ "

The Unown Lords nodded. The Cardinal of the Lords echoed. " _Thank you, your Greatness._ "

He backed out of the Castle, followed by the other Lords.

Once he reached the outside of the palace, a dark glint flashed in his eyes. He looked at the Lords following him. All of the others had the same glint.

" _I bid you all goodbye!_ " The Cardinal finished, and he watched the others disappear before he teleported off to his mansion.

Hordes of Unown servant came to greet him as he entered his property. The Cardinal seemed only mildly concerned about the plates of food that was served up, before turning to his Head Butler and asking, " _How is the guy from Reality doing?_ "

" _He is still asleep from your spell, sir, but his wounds are taken care of, and the Sacred Energy has also been washed away. Overall, he is doing quite well, your majesty._ "

" _Do not call me that._ " The Cardinal's eyes hardened. " _The Emperor is still not dead yet, so I'm still only a Lord._ "

The Butler chuckled. " _Yes sir, but that day will come soon._ "

" _Do not say that out loud._ " The Cardinal said with a hollow voice. " _But that day will come sooner than you think, a lot sooner if the reality guy cooperate._ "

" _Lead me to him._ " The Lord said. " _I shall discuss this order of business with him…_ "

" _Can we trust him though, sir?_ "

" _Yes, we can. He is a lifeless soul. He does not possess any sort of attachment to this world anymore… and I can give him anthing he wants, ALL of his wishes!_ " Cardinal smiled. " _Why else would he venture into the Unown Realm? How can he refuse?_ "

The Butler bowed and started to head toward a room. " _This way, sir._ "

He stopped at the doorway and held open the door. The Cardinal walked through, and the other Unown closed the door lightly behind his Lord.

He walked over the the only bed in the room and peered at the boy under the sheets. His face was still drained of color, but at least it was of a living color, unlike when he first found him layer in the middle of the field.

The Unown tapped the boy's wrist gently, and a pulse of Aura rushed up to greet him. The Cardinal nodded. He was ready.

This time, he tapped harder on the boy's wrist, inserting in a forceful surge of energy.

On the teen's body, a grey chain of dullness emerged, wrapped around and around his body. As the Cardinal's energy touched the chains, they broke into pieces.

A sudden blue flowed from his wrists to his chest, down to his stomach, and soon a blue glow covered his entire body. The blue glow was a lot weaker now, only reaching up to the level of a Medieval Legend.

Ash opened his eyes. The first thing which popped into his vision was a crook-shaped creature with a metallic covering floating over him.

Years of dealing with disaster instantly told him that the Pokémon in front of him was no less than a world-level disaster, or maybe even more than that.

His hypothesis could be proven by the torrent of mysterious energy that he identified as the Unown that seeped out of him, a degree of power Ash knew he had no chance of matching, even when he was at his max.

Why? Because he couldn't even detect how powerful the Unown facing him was with Aura Sight, let alone beating him.

Then, memories zoomed back to him, and Ash clutched his head painfully.

The Cardinal tapped his head, and a stream of energy entered his body, cooling him down immediately. " _Human, I know you are from the Reality. No one comes from the Reality unless they want something… or at least no one already with the power to form a separation._ "

" _I do not care what you want, but I will tell you a story._ " The Unown Lord said. " _Do not talk, do not think back on your past. Just sit quietly and listen._ "

* * *

" _You ready?_ " Hoopa asked.

Domino looked at Moltres and Jirachi and exchanged nods. A small psychic bubble flowed out from her fingers, levitating her up. "Release her!"

Hoopa closed her eyes. A second later, a torrent of Dark Type Energy swirled over her. Her hands left her body and duplicated into five different anatomy, rotating around her core.

Her body became a hexagon, with a depthless hole in the center. Her tail elongated, and two brown horns popped out of her head.

The three psychics casted Miracle Eye on themselves at the exact time and disappeared.

Seizing the opportunity of the Unbound's temporary confusion, a Psybeam, a Psystrike, and a Flamethrower were thrown at the Pokémon.

All three hit… but did nothing besides pulling the Evil Hoopa to full consciousness. Domino gasped. This was not right. Even the most powerful Pokémon… besides Cosmics, couldn't take three legendary level attack without even flinching.

Even Mew would be hurt from them, and there was no way the Unbound was a Cosmic.

Hoopa Unbound raised her head at the three and cackled. " _I don't know why Hoopa would release me against you three. Does she really think that YOU can limit my power?_ "

Domino's eyes glowed. Someone just called her weak! And the same someone was trying to stop her from getting her Ash!

With a piercing cry, she teleported in front of the Pokémon and knocked the wind of the the Psychic with a point-blank Genesis Supernova.

Hoopa was blown back straight into a mountain by the attack, looking a lot worse than when she tanked the first three attacks without fault.

Domino stared at her hands unbelievably. That couldn't have been her… could it?

She just released a Mew-level attack… by Professor Oak's scale, that would have been the top of the Ancient level.

A wave of pain streamed through her body a second later, reminding her of the after effects of going through the Continuum Storm, especially after she just strained her capabilities by pulsing out a force of energy that was even ten times more powerful than her climax.

Her opponent dug herself out of a Hoopa-shaped hole in the mountain, and her eyes glowed with a dangerous light.

Moltres and Jirachi yelled as they rushed forward and laid dozens of Light Screens before Domino as The Dark Type's numerous Night Daze crashed into the projections.

Before they all fully shattered, the three teleported off together.

Hoopa Unbound's eyes became blacker as she locked onto their new position instantly. A torrent of Dark Energy swirled from her. It rose up and turned into a black cloud of dark matter, floating threateningly over the three psychic.

Domino could sense Hoopa's energy filling in the spaces between her, disabling her teleportation. She paled for a second. Almost half of a psychic's powers were with their ability to travel instantly… that was how they gain their advantage in the field.

She had battled moves before that could counter one or two teleportation with an area of effect attack, but she had never seen a move that could cancel out teleportation altogether.

Moltres had the same look of concern on her face, though she was much calmer due to her main type being Fire. Jirachi was the same way, since he could still fall back on Steel.

Domino bit her lip, trying to think of a solution for the Dark Type Counter. Hoopa did not give her much time to think though.

She dashed in front of her, deeming her the easiest to take out, being a human. Domino put her acrobatics training to use from what seemed like ages ago in the Rocket base.

Flipping over Hoopa agilely, dodging a Feint Attack, she whipped around with a modified Psycho Cut.

Instead of releasing it, it stuck on her arm. The Dark Energy around her weakened any psychic attack that left her control. In her other arm, a Tulip Staff emerged from her purse, which she had tucked into her shirt.

Her staff was reinforced with Bone Rush energy, and a skeletal crust formed on her staff. Then, using a method she had originally designed for Zorua, she combined the two moves to form a Psychic Bone staff.

Swirling it, she slammed it down toward Hoopa Unbound, who blocked it with two of her hands hold a ring.

Another two hands swiveled around to strike her in the stomach and legs. Domino crossed her staff in front of her chest and jumped horizontally across the two rings.

Hoopa, clearly not expecting her to respond in this way, blinked. The small gap of hesitation was enough for Domino to narrowly fit through the interval between the rings, which passed barely an inch on both sides of her.

Her staff spun with great velocity at the Dark Type, powered by the Psycho Cut. Hoopa's other hand evidently did not have enough time to react, and the girl struck one of the horns on her opponent's head.

A nauseating crack was heard, followed by a ear-bursting, traumatic scream, and Hoopa's horn was smashed clean off her head. Black liquid started dripping out, and a Dark cloud above them turned maddeningly.

Domino's eyes were freezing cold. She learned that strike from one of the oldest martial artist in the Team, once serving under Madame Boss, Giovanni's mother.

This was not a Pokémon battle anymore… This was life and death… And in that case, who said she couldn't go a little more extreme?

Moltres and Jirachi both dove in beside her, and she communicated fast. "I need you guys to hold her for ten second."

" _No problem!_ " The two echoed.

"Be careful! She's extremely strong, and she is on the verge of a rampage right now."

The two psychics extended out with their powers. Moltres used Psychic, and Jirachi released a Prismatic Laser.

The Laser formed a cage in mid-sky and fell onto Hoopa with a _thud_. The Psychic attack materialized into a pink lock that formed onto the door of the cage, shutting the Dark Type inside.

The Mischief Pokémon got back on her senses after being struck with the attacks. Standing up from clutching her head in hopes to overcome to massive pain, her eyes burned with a fury that could match Moltres's Flamethrower.

" _YOU MUST DIE!_ " She roared and smashed away at the cage.

" _Hurry, Dom! I can't hold her anymore!_ " Moltres shouted.

The dark clouds above them flickered, and a massive bolt of Dark Pulse crashed down on the cage. The Psychic lock broke into pieces.

Domino finally found what she was searching for and pulled it straight out.

Turning around to Hoopa, she muttered. "This isn't a Pokémon battle anymore. This is about saving Ash."

Moltres did a double take at what was in her hands… and another double take.

Domino held up her arms. In her hands, as well as another eight being levitated in midair, was an RPG. A drop of tear fell down her cheek. In a strangled voice, she choked out. "I don't… I don't care if I violated the code of Pokémon battling… I just need to save Ash!"

" _What is she holding?_ " Jirachi tilted his head, asking Moltres.

The Fire Psychic held on to the Wish Maker who had slept for a thousand years. " _A human creation… it is bad… very bad._ "

" _Each shot is probably as powerful as… my Blast Burn._ " Moltres uttered.

Jirachi's eyes popped out. " _So Hoopa is about to have nine Blast Burns launched in her face?_ "

" _No._ " Moltres said. " _It's a lot more than nine. They're semi-automatic._ "

Hoopa looked slightly confused as to why the cage suddenly disappeared. She had gotten herself half through, but she still needed some more time before she could fully break it apart.

Shrugging, her eyes laid sight on the girl a few dozen feet away from her, with weird contraptions flowing around her. The Unbound was about to run her way when a sense of danger she hadn't felt in three thousand years made her hairs stand on their ends.

Nine massive booms combined into one giant shockwave. Hoopa watched as nine rockets came shooting out of the 'contraption' at her. She had one second to take precaution, and she spent the second wondering how a patch of metal could fire out an attack as strong as Blast Burn.

Then she was hammered into a mountain beside her. Unlike Blast Burn, she unfortunately discovered, the rockets' impact zone was much smaller, and as a result, much more concentrated.

The Dark Type was drilled into the mountain. From the outside, there appeared a giant hole in the mountainside. The Dark clouds that Hoopa initially released tumbled and dispersed.

Domino quickly shouted. "Lock her in place. Do not let her teleport."

Moltres tugged the shocked Jirachi back into vigilance and extended her psychic onto the nearby Unbound.

This time feeling significantly less struggle, she easily held on, joined by Jirachi a second later.

"May Arceus have mercy on you." Domino said quietly. "But you're in my way."

The nine powerful mini-missile tube fired again, and again, and again.

She just continued to pressed the trigger numbly, not wanting to think of anything anymore… until a psychic pulse broke into her mind.

" _STOP shooting me! It's me now, Hoopa! Not Unbound!_ "

Domino resisted the urge pressing the button again… Deep down, she felt like a weight was removed. No wonder Giovanni loved shooting. The click of the trigger sounded so good…

She was broken out of her trance by Moltres and Jirachi floating over with Hoopa, who looked no worse for wear… besides the few additional RPG she had to suffer due to her message being late.

" _I can't believe you did it!_ " The Mischief Pokémon grinned widely at Domino. " _With your help, I encased Unbound into the deepest ravine of my mind. I don't think she will escape again for another thousand years… Man! She looked so tired! How many of those rockets did you shoot at her?_ "

Domino looked into her purse for the ammo container, which was almost empty. The blonde coughed. "Seventy three…"

The three psychic Pokémon stared at her. The Elite coughed again. "I may have went a little overboard…"

She picked her head up hopefully at the Pokémon with the rings. "Can you help me _now_?"

" _Yes!_ " Hoopa nodded cheerfully. " _Just let me go scrape off these burn marks first._ "

* * *

 _Once upon a time… a few thousand human years ago, the last Emperor was stepping down from his throne and fusing with the Dimension Stone, just like Emperors before him had._

 _Normally, when an Emperor fused with the Dimension Stone, his closest blood relative obtained the throne, and in the Emperor's case, it would be his brother._

 _Blood relations were seen as the utmost importance in the Unown Dimension. In fact, societal ranking was based almost completely on blood relations. The purity of the blood that flowed within an Unown determined the power an Unown could inherit from the Dimension. There were two ways to obtain a certain level of blood._

 _Unown were either born with a fixed level and the level that stayed for life, or the Dimension Stone could purify one for very, very special occasions._

 _As a result, only the purest blood could become the Emperor of the Unown, since he symbolized the highest peak of the Unown Force. The heir's full powers would not be fully awakened until the last Emperor had stepped down. But still, he possesses one of the most concentrated purity in blood._

 _Less pure blooded Unown, even if they were powerful, could do significantly less damage to a more pure blooded, since the Rules of the Unown automatically discriminated against them. So even in a fair fight, the less pure would lose._

 _If an Emperor did not have a blood relation after he leaves, then a competition would break out for the throne. The winner would be purified by the Dimension Stone to the highest level, succeeding the crown and starting a whole new dynasty._

 _According to the Rules of Dimension, Brother was suppose to take over the throne. However, on the night before he could commence the ceremony to be enacted as Emperor and be restored to his full powers, the Rebels attacked._

 _Led by the most Leader of Lords at the time, one whose blood purity matched the Brother's, the insurgent forces overwhelmed the palace. Thousands of Unown died that night, most of whom were the highest tier of purity and the leaders of the Realm._

 _The rebel forces succeeded, defeating the Royal Forces who were caught off guard. The Brother was killed in battle. However, as a consequence, almost all of the Rebel Forces also perished. The only pure-blooded left for the Rebels were the Leader and his remaining Deputy._

 _The next day, the Leader declared himself Emperor. No one dared to speak out against him. He usurped the throne and was purified by the Stone, officially becoming Emperor._

 _Over the course of the years, the new Emperor became more and more indolent and corrupt. He wanted to horde all of the power to himself, and thus, he became jealous of his Deputy, who was sharing just as much power as he._

 _A major battle between the two occurred, with the Emperor winning with the help of the Dimension Stone. The Deputy was not killed, however. He escaped from the Unown into Reality, never to be heard from again._

 _The Emperor thought that he had finally clear his entire field of competition. He became more and more lazy. He stopped his training and tossed away his duties. Unbeknownest to him, Brother had not died._

 _No, he had not. At the night of the massacre of the the Royal Forces, the head Guard of the Royal Forces, knowing that there was no way they'll live to see the light of tomorrow, switched clothes with Brother and performed a face-change spell, a forbidden spell known only in the Royal Handbook, held solely by the Emperor._

 _The entire battle was targeted on Brother. Only by killing the official successor to the throne could Leader take the position. When he switched face and clothes with Brother, the Guard also switched identity. By taking off the pressure from Brother, the Guard allowed a chance for the true heir to escape, while being killed in battle himself._

 _The lazy Emperor, after receiving complaints from the masses of citizens in the Dimension, decided to appoint people to help him with the Empire._

 _From a thousand years, Brother had trained endlessly. When the news of the Emperor choosing officials was brought to his quarters, he hurried to the Capital. He wanted to see if he was strong enough to take back what was his._

 _A battle with the Emperor revealed that he was still not strong enough. He was so much more well trained than the Emperor, but his opponent was blessed by the Dimension Stone._

 _He decided to stay close to the Emperor. Only so could he find out his weaknesses and ways to exploit them and defeat him. He became an official in the court. Through thousands of years, he acted loyal toward the Emperor, performing duties to the most excelled level._

 _At the same time, Brother was isolating the Emperor, ridding him all of possible friends, while establishing his own people._

 _In the thousands of years that followed, Brother gained the full trust of the Emperor, and his people filled almost the entire court. All of the Lords were his allies. He himself became the Cardinal of Lords, replacing the hated rank "Leader" with Cardinal._

 _For millennium after millennium, he stayed close by the Emperor, trying to find a way to destroy him. One day, he came up with an idea. The pure-blood cannot be defeated by his own kind due to the Rule of the Unown ad the blessing of the Dimension Sone… But, the Rules did not apply to those who are not Unown._

 _If he could somehow get someone into the Unown Realm from the outer world and train the person up to the a proficient level… the person could defeat the Emperor after he and the other Lords have weakened him dramatically, and the rest would be history._

 _He spent centuries looking for someone who could detect the Unown Force. Brother finally found someone a few years ago in Greenfield, a girl by the name of Molly Hale. She was lured into the Unown Dimension… but she later escaped when he was off at a meeting at Capital, rescued by a guy by the name of Ash Ketchum… Chosen One of Reality… the second person he knew to have detected the Unown._

 _If he could lure the Chosen One in and train him, the process would be much easier than training up a girl. After all, Chosens have the potential to become Cosmics. Emperor as well, but the lazy Emperor was currently only at the bottom of the Formation Level._

 _As a result, Cardinal left a crack in Greenfield open, hoping to one day lure Molly up again, which would make the Chosen come and rescue her, and thus trapping himself."_

" _However, Mr. Chosen._ " The Cardinal concluded. " _This was not how I imagined we would meet._ "

* * *

" _My Queen, I suppose you would not need me anymore._ " Jirachi bowed at Domino. " _I had spent all of my energy in the last fight with Hoopa Unbound. Since the Millennium Comet is not here yet, I cannot stay awake anymore._ "

" _Please remember our promise to put me back in Tamdom Forest. Also, you'll need a separate bag for me, for that my psychic pulse is way too strong for your purse._ " A layer of stone began forming around Jirachi's body. " _With that said, I wish you good luck. Hopefully, we will not meet in another year and a half._ "

Jirachi closed his eyes. Stone reached up to his head, fully encasing him back into a fossil.

Domino lightly kissed the legendary on the forehead. "You are a great friend, Jirachi. I will miss you. I will miss you a lot."

The blonde took a deep, long breath and looked at the Mischief Pokémon exiting her tower. It had only been a week, but it felt like a lifetime… a timeline worth of events.

Her heart seemed to beat out of her chest. Not even when she was facing off against Unbound, or talking to Oak, had she been this nervous and excited.

Rocket Elite Rule Number One: Never show emotion to people.

To that, Domino had two words: F*ck off.

The girl walked over to Hoopa, mouth tangling into a wide smile. I did it, she thought, I actually did it.

I saved Ash. I will get us out of this place. I am STRONG!

* * *

Ash was silent as he comprehended the entire story. He felt for the Unown in front of him. He really did! He couldn't bare to imagine the feeling of being stripped of the throne and having to serve under his vilest enemy for millennium.

However, he had his own problems to worry about.

"Why should I help you?" He spoke up hoarsely, his throat dry.

" _Because I healed you and prevented you from dying?_ "

Ash sighed. "Normally, that's enough, but right now, it is not."

" _I understand. That's why I have a second offer prepared._ " The Cardinal nodded. " _If the Emperor is killed, then I would automatically be in charge of the place, being the most pure and also holding the highest chair, not to say that the court is filled with my people._ "

" _The entire Unown Dimension would be under my command. I could unite the entire world can grant you one wish… any wish you can possibly think of. As long as you don't wish for to make yourself a God, I would approve of it, and it would become real._ "

Ash's eyes opened wide. A million thoughts went through his head, all pointing in one direction: The direction of his beloved lady.

"What do I have to do!?" He asked sharply, flipping out of bed.

The Brother smiled, relieved that his last offer worked. " _You, my friend, just need to deal the final blow. I and eight others would form a chain that would restrain all of his powers. I am at the top of the Formation Level, and all of the others are Formation Level Pokémon._ "

" _We can restrain his power all the way down to merely a third-stage Pokémon. However, we cannot kill him, because, like I said, he is blessed by the Dimension Stone and the Rules, thus forbidding us from putting the nail on the coffin._ "

" _We can hold him for about a minute before his powers regenerate slowly. You need to kill him with Aura before he regains his energy…_ "

"Deal." Ash's eyes flashed. "When do we execute the plan?"  
" _We're only waiting on you, Chosen._ " Cardinal smiled. " _Therefore, NOW!_ "

A powerful psychic wave pulsed out around the Capital. A beam of dull light shot into the air from on top of his head. Within a second, eight similar beams resonated with him.

Cardinal grabbed onto Ash and teleported off. When Ash regained his sight, he was standing in the corner of a throne room.

The Emperor was still sitting on his throne, completely confused and surprised about their arrival. Before he could ask, eight similar lights flashed, and the eight other Lords teleported in.

The nine Lords surrounded the Emperor, and their energy formed a circle around him.

The Emperor, now alert more than ever, shouted. " _What are you doing!?_ "

Cardinal looked at him with a pair of rather calm eyes. He had suppressed his emotions of anger and desire for vengeance for thousands upon thousands of years. He could easily conceal it. " _Taking my revenge._ "

A look a of panic flashed across the Emperor's face. He looked at the eight other Lords, whose face was stern and emotionless.

He cried. " _As Emperor, I demand you to stop this foolishness!_ "

Cardinal smiled, not bothering to answer. His body deformed into that of a link of a chain. One by one, the other Lords became a link and joined the previous.

Within instants, a giant chain was constructed in the center of the room, and it started to squeeze into the middle. The Emperor screamed and pulsed out a dull light that could surpass the power of Mewtwo.

The light hit the chain and was absorbed, useless. The chain clanked onto the Emperor's body, locking him in place.

A mental projection sounded in Ash's mind. " _Chosen, you have sixty seconds._ "

The Emperor laughed. " _So what you chained me!? You can't kill me! The Dimension Stone will help me break out of this trap eventually, and then I will murder each of you one by one!_ "

" _No, not murder… execute you for your crimes of treachery!_ "

"No you will not!" A voice suddenly boomed. The Emperor whipped his head around to find the human that he noticed but did not care for walking toward him. "I will be your end."

This time, the Emperor's expression truly turned into a look of horror. He, better than anyone else, understood what this human, this human from Reality could do to him. He felt the wavering power of Aura on the human.

" _NO! Don't come near me!_ " Ash smirked and kept walking. The Emperor shouted. " _When I break out of these chains, I will destroy you. I order you to STOP!_ "

"Sorry, I'm a human. I don't take orders from you." Ash paused before the Emperor. A pulse of Aura shot out and formed a chain of his own, tying up the Emperor.

His Ancient Level Power, healed by the Cardinal, overpowered the Emperor's now-restricted Unown Energy easily.

" _NO! If you stop, I'll give you any wish you want! I'll even give you my throne!_ " The Emperor yelled out a stream of promises, as a last ditch effort to persuade Ash.

"I do not take offers from a being who had betrayed the highest Rules of his Dimension and coldly murdered thousands of innocent others for the gain of your own power!" Ash glared at him. "I cannot trust you. I WILL NOT trust you!"

The Emperor watched fearfully as an Aura-infused staff smashed its way down onto its body. His shell first gave way, and then his skeleton. A grey liquid squirted everywhere.

A power threatened to fluctuate out of his decaying body, but the energy was tightly restricted by the chain.

In the crevice of the Unown Dimension, a name was silently wiped off the Dimension Stone.

The chains formed by the Lords tightened. The remains of the old Emperor evaporated completely.

Ash stared at his staff, and he refolded it into his Aura-secured backpack.

The chains broke apart into the Nine Lords. Ash did a double take as he got a look at the Cardinal. The Head of Lords seemed so much younger. The power from the Emperor drained into him. Energy seemed to radiate from him.

He walked to the throne and caressed its frame.

" _Eight thousand years,_ " He muttered. " _I haven't sat in you in eight thousand years._ "

With that, he turned around and sat down. At that instant, his body seemed to have merged with the chair, and a mysterious light shone on him.

His eyes became calm, like the surface of the ocean, perfectly disguising the whirlpool and torrents of power underneath. The eight Lords kneeled. " _Praise the Emperor._ "

Following suit, Ash bowed. "Praise the Emperor."

The Cardinal laughed. His laugh boomed through the Castle, across the Capital, and into the entire Dimension. " _I've been called Cardinal for way too long… I think I will abolish the name Emperor. From now on, the one who shall lead the Dimension shall be referred to as CARDINAL!_ "

" _Chosen! Before you make your wish, I would like to make a peace agreement with Reality._ " He turned himself to Ash. " _As long as my Pokémon are not attacked without reason, I propose eternal alliance with Reality for as long as I sit on this throne!_ "

Ash hesitated. "I do not know if I have the power to make that treaty."

" _Of course you do!_ " The Cardinal said confidently. " _That is why you're the Chosen One! It is literally you JOB to represent the Reality Realm!_ "

Ash's eyes shone. "In that case, I accept the terms."

The eight Lords cheered, and the Cardinal silenced them with a wave of his hand. " _And now, onto your wish, Chosen._ "

Ash took a deep breath. He could feel his heart pounding out of his chest. The image of a girl formed before him. The girl he had crossed timelines and dimensions, fought Ancients and Formations to get to.

He pointed at the girl. "I want to go to her."

Cardinal looked at him, confused. "Why can't you just go?"

"Because we were separated during the Storm of Continuum, and we were each pulled into a parallel timeline…"

Ash's stomach flipped when he saw the stuttering expression on the Cardinal's face. "You CAN teleport me to another timeline… right?"

Cardinal took a breath. "How long have you been in the timeline that you were teleported to?"

"Five days." Ash replied. His stomach sank further when he saw the Cardinal's face turn into one of abhorrence. "Which shouldn't be enough time for me to merge into the universe."

" _Yes, but you fainted here in the Unown Dimension for weeks._ " The Unown sighed. " _Since you entered my Realm within the crack of the previous Universe, it still registered you as being within its universe, which means…_ "

The Cardinal closed his eyes. " _You had long been merged._ "

Ash froze. The bad feeling rose from his stomach and slammed into his brain, like someone had shot through his entire body with an air pump. His brain completely blew apart. All thoughts died out. He began to see stars again.

The Symbol Pokémon, however, continued. " _If you still want to teleport, however, we could still manage that as well._ "

Ash's eyes jolted opened, and he held onto the last strand of hope that could pull him out of this ravine of disaster.

" _But with a consequence._ "

"I'll take any consequence!" Ash blurted out immediately.

" _The consequence is that you have to leave your physical body here, because I could only teleport you over as a spirit… or a ghost, by human terms._ " The Cardinal looked at him and sighed. " _Trying to teleport you over entirely would be like wrestling with the Universe, and that would require maximum Cosmic power, which we do not have._ "

Ash's brain was fried again. He was stuck between choosing either to leave his body, otherwise known as dying, to get back with Domino, or to never see her again.

Why did he have to be the one making this insane decision!? This should not be a decision he had to make!

Ash's eyes fluttered. His chest pounded hard, and he sat on the ground with a loud _THUMP_. The Unown Lords stared at him pitifully. Even Cardinal sighed. Besides himself, he had found an equally piteous person to sympathize with.

"I… I… I choose." Ash closed his eyes. "I choose to be with Domino."

* * *

Hoopa threw her rings into space. " _Hyperspace HOLE!_ "

Domino watched as her ring tore a path through space-time. She saw the bare roughness of the Continuum, of the black holes and time sequences again. The ring kept traveling on, until it hit a certain hole.

Hoopa nodded. " _This is the universe containing your Ash, according to the mental markings you gave me._ "

Domino gave a teary smile. Tears hung over in her eyes… tears of joy. Finally. It was a week in memory, but eternal in real time. Literally speaking, she hadn't seen him in forever, and she MISSED him.

" _Now I just need to find your original universe._ " Hoopa remarked.

The Elite watched as another ring was tossed into the Continuum. This one traveled on further, much further than the one that stopped at Ash's Universe.

Finally it reached a box, covered by something white… like snow.

Hoopa furrowed her brow. Domino's heart rose back to her throat. "What!? Is something wrong?"

Hoopa concentrated. The ring smashed against the snow. It didn't move even the tiniest bit. The Mischief Pokémon paled.

Domino sucked in a huge breath, trying to use Calm Mind on herself. It wasn't much help.

The blonde asked shakily. "Is something WRONG!?"

Hoopa turned to her, emotion filled with a disbelief and sorrow. " _I'm sorry._ "

Domino's eyes widened in horror. "WHAT ARE YOU SAYING!?"

" _The entrance to your original universe was covered by a God-Level Power condensed into… well… snow._ " Hoopa sighed. " _Even though I am at the top of Cosmic, only a strand of power away from evolving into a God, I can't break through the Barrier by myself without help._ "

" _And there is no help._ " Hoopa concluded.

Domino almost fainted. Her body shook like a seizure, her jaws rose up and down, without words actually coming up. "You… you… you can't… get through!?"

" _No… I'm sorry._ " Hoopa sighed.

The girl lost her balance and fell to the ground. She broke down completely.

She didn't know how long she cried for. Her tears kept sputtering out, and her face was scrunched up into a ball of wasted tissue.

No thoughts ran through her mind. She only knew that it was an appropriate time to cry, and cry she did.

She cried until a familiar presence, a presence that she could sense from a galaxy away, a presence that could lit her insides into flame and turn her into the most glorious firework, stood in front of her. A voice said quietly. "Why are you crying, Princess?"

The familiar words, the familiar tone, the familiar loving connotation behind the sentence made her not want to believe it. She was afraid she would be disappointed when she picked up head, so she kept it down.

She heard Moltres let out a scream, and Domino felt her head forcefully being dragged up by her psychic powers.

The silhouette of a familiar shape came into her eyes. A shape that she could never forget. She took a look at his face, and a shiver of chills ran down her spine.

"You're…" Domino couldn't bare to finish the sentence.

Ash smiled. "Just a week and you've already forgotten me, Princess?"

"ASH!" The blonde girl screamed and jumped into his arms… only to fall through to the other side.

She stared up at him in horror. Ash sighed. "I got the Unown to help me get to your universe, but I've already stayed at my universe for way too long."

"So… so you… merged?" Domino spoke out in consternation.

"Yes, I have." Ash said quietly. "The Unown were only strong enough to get my spirit out, but my physical body is now trapped at the last Universe… forever."

Domino sucked in a deep breath. She looked at Ash's figure, slightly transparent, but still intact. She managed a small smile. "You still look hot even as a ghost."

Ash laughed, and he kept laughing, not knowing what to say. All he needed was to see his girl, to be with his girl.

There are other difficulties in life, other barriers, other imperfections… such as not having a physical body… but as long as he was with her, and she accepted him, the rest could be easily overcome.

Domino raised an eyebrow at the backpack she knocked onto the floor when she went through Ash. "How come you still can carry your stuff?"

"Oh, that was a long story." Ash smirked. He was feeling desperate to touch her, but he knew his hands would just go through. "Basically when I arrived at my universe, my aura peaked to the level of an Ancient, so I figured out a bunch of tricks with Aura easily."

"One of them was infusing my backpack with Aura, like you did with yours with psychic. I guess even in spirit form, I'm still an Aura Guardian, which means I can still control my stuff since I infused it with Aura."

Domino chirped. "Let me see! Open it without touching it!"

Ash grinned. It was so nice hearing her melodious voice again. He waved his hand, and the backpack opened on its own.

"That's cool!" Domino shouted with zeal. "I have never seen you control objects with Aura before!"

"I'll open and close backpacks for you all day if you want." Ash smiled, not knowing what else to do. If he had a choice, he would rather stand here all day with her, looking at her, smiling.

He was going to close the backpack when something in it suddenly lit up with a glorious light. Domino poked her head over the bag to see what it was.

A piece of rock. She took it out. "What is this?"

The rock became brighter and brighter, until an actual beam was shooting out of the stone into the sky.

"This is…" Ash scratched the back of his head. Apparently spirits can touch themselves. He made a look of realization. "The Comet Shard that I won from the Laramie Ranch Race."

"Comet Shard?" Domino repeated. The name sounded so familiar… so… right?

A sound was heard from her right. She turned around and saw the fossil that Jirachi had turned into suddenly moved. Cracks formed on the stone, just like when she first found him and initiated his awakening.

Jirachi burst out of the stone, shining with the same light as the rock. On his chest, an Eye was starting to open.

The Wish Maker stared at the stone in Domino's hand. " _My Queen! Where did you get that!?_ "

Jirachi didn't wait for her to answer, before teleporting over and snatching it out of her hands, not even bothering to float over. " _This is a Comet fragment from the Millennium Comet!_ "

The streams of information suddenly flooded into Domino's mind. A blurry idea abruptly formed in her head.

Jirachi continued. " _If you let me eat this rock, I'll have enough energy to make one wish._ "

Upon hearing that, the ideas immediately tied together. She looked to Ash, who had got it as well and grinning at her like a madman.

Domino walked over to him. She desperately wanted to put her head on his shoulders. "The Comet Shard is yours. You tell Jirachi what to use it for."

Ash smiled. "I wish Domino and I can return to our original universe."

Domino was in shock. "You're not going to use it to obtain your physical body back?"

"Who needs a body when you have all of your friends and family around?" Ash laughed. "I rather go back then stay here, even if it means I'll have a physical form. Being in these different universes that are not mine make me feel alone… even with you by my side."

The blonde girl gestured to Jirachi. "You heard his wish. I will not stop it."

Jirachi nodded. His Eye in the middle of his chest opened fully, swallowing in the Comet Shard. "Wish granted."

A beam of pure white exploded from the Wish Maker's body and turned into a… shovel. The shovel zoomed into the Hyperspace tunnel Hoopa made and soared across the Continuum, arriving at Ash and Domino's original Universe.

Right next to the pulsing ring and the stubborn snow.

The shovel stabbed deep into the snow, and with a flick, flipped it into the Continuum, away from the Universe.

Hoopa's ring materialized onto the walls of the Universe after the barrier was removed, creating a ringlike hole, connecting the current universe with Ash and Domino's.

Domino held out a Pokéball and withdrew her shiny, psychic Moltres. Jirachi fell into Hoopa's arms.

"Thank you." She whispered.

Ash stepped into the hole and waited at the entrance for Domino to follow. Casting one last look at the universe she had lived in for almost a week, she followed in Ash's footsteps.

* * *

A portal suddenly materialized in the universe that Ash had first traveled to. Six figures stepped through.

Sir Aaron looked around the place and sighed. "Sorry guys… another one that is boring."

Mew 1 pouted. " _I knew the randominze function on the portal was boring._ "

" _Then why did you press it?_ " Dialga deadpanned.

" _It was pink!_ " The two Mews answered at the same time. " _We love pink!_ "

Sir Aaron and the Time and Space Dragon facepalmed.

"Let's go back." The ancient Knight muttered.

" _WAIT!_ " Arceus stopped the group. With his God level powers, he could sense something that the others, as Cosmics, couldn't.

White lights beamed from him. Distance and time were turned to dust under his sight. A physical body without a soul appeared in his eyes.

The other Legends followed Arceus vision, and they all did a double take when they saw what the Original One was looking at.

Arceus frowned.

" _I don't know what happened here, but I'm taking this._ " The Alpha Pokémon said to no one in general.

White light shone around Ash's body. When he tried to remove it, a hand shot out of the matrix of the universe and came straight for the body.

Arceus roared, and a Judgement larger than the ones he had ever used in the Bubble Realm shot out.

It collided with the hand, which exploded under the attack.

" _Soul of Universe! However strong as a Cosmic you are, you are still a Cosmic!_ " Arceus yelled. " _I am a God. I shall take this body whether you like it or NOT!_ "

Arceus got no response. White lights filled Ash's body again, this time without any resistance.

The Alpha opened up a time-space hole with a kick of his foot and pushed the physical body through. Then, he turned to Sir Aaron. " _Let's activate the portal. We can go back now._ "

* * *

As they walked through the continuum, a object came tumbling at Ash. It hit instantly… and Ash didn't feel any different… maybe he was more… solid?

Domino saw it as well and rushed over to him. She placed a hand on his shoulder. "Are you okay!? What was that?"

Ash didn't reply. He was speechless, looking at the hand of his beloved girl on his shoulder. Domino noticed it as well, and she gasped.

The blonde placed her left hand on him as well, this time on his chest. Her hands rapidly exchanged positions, feeling flesh on every touch.

They stared at each other with wide eyes.

Ash smirked. "I guess nice things do happen to nice people."

A sudden mental projection sounded in his head, a voice that he hadn't heard since he left the Bubble Realm, a voice that sounded eerily like the God of All.

" _You're welcome!_ "

Ash kept smiling. "I guess I will keep being his Chosen One."

He then turned to Domino. Their eyes met.

Her purple amethysts are like the most mysterious configuration, entrapping him in a paradox that continued on repeating, a cycle that he had no chance of getting out.

His chocolate brown eyes, filled with a loving atmosphere, dissolving her into the sweetest pudding, stared at her, serving as the most resilient trampoline for her to fall into.

There were no sparks when their eyes met. No fireworks. No, that's for love between normal people.

No, those two were not normal. Their bond was trans-universal, trans-temporal.

When their lips met, there was no one to disturb them. There was only the fabric of time and space, black holes swirling and time sequences zooming by, serving as a background for their eternal love.

Even the mysteries of the makeups of this universe dimmed compared to the duo in its center, kissing, their love shining as the most dazzling light in this Continuum, illuminating even the most fathomless Black Holes, trumping even the brightest Time Sequences.

* * *

 **End of Adventure 2**

* * *

 **A/N: And, that's it, ladies and gentleman! I know there are a lot of holes in the Movie, and maybe parts that weren't explained well enough, for example, the Death Force.**

 **Ask your questions! Tomorrow's update would be divided into two parts, a Q &A section where I explain everything and where I reflect on my thoughts about this adventure, and the other half being a shorter chapter that just outline the duo's recovery after their insane trans-timeline travels.**

 **Besides that, please follow and favorite. Leave a review. I welcome both compliments and critiques. I finished typing this last chapter at 9:00 p.m. today, and spent another two hours editing. In total, I think I've written for around 40 hrs in the last three days… so I'm more burnt out than Pikachu after a night of 'playing' with Zorua….**

 **Tomorrow shall be chill. I think we all need a break after that roller coaster of an adventure.**

 **This Author's Note is already dragging on for too long, so I will close it by bidding everyone a very nice Fourth of July and… good night!**


	49. Cha 48: Very Important AN and Afterparty

Cha. 48

A/N: Another day, another adventure. I hope you guys all enjoy the 4-Parts special from yesterday. Now, I'm going to go through the story and explain what was going on and what I had originally planned to happen.

For the sake of reading this note, since it will be long, I will not bold it. Personally, I hate reading large blocks of bolded words.

 **Have this page bookmarked to reference back to!**

I shall start by clarifying the scale of power that I had introduced in previous chapters. From now on, the scale of power would be the following, in descending power levels: God, Cosmic, Formation, Ancient, Medieval, Pseudo.

God is obviously Arceus, or, if I reference to other parallel universes, such as Lord of the Rings, the God would be the God in there. For LotR, God is Eru. For Marvel Comics, the God would be The One Above All. For Star Wars, it would be The Force.

I know… insane.

Cosmics are the Soul of the Universe, Creation Trio, and anyone who could manipulate the concept of reality, including but not limited to time, space, gravity, parallel universe, Life, Death, etc. Cosmic cannot appear in a world that was not built for its designated power without messing with/destroying it. The difference between world and Universe is that many worlds make up the Universe.

The Soul of Universe is the programming of the concepts of reality within a Parallel universe, just like the programming of a computer. It has enough intelligence to be known as alive, though it usually does not interferes with intra-universal affairs.

The next level is Formation. These are powers that cannot destroy a world entirely, but it can greatly damage it. They still have to follow all of the Rules of the Dimension, since they do not wield a concept. Dimension is the same as world. Examples are Groudon, Kyogre, Rayquaza without any transformations.

Ancient is the next level down. They are the Trio Masters, like Ho-Oh and Lugia. They have consumed some of the evolution light at the beginning of Creation, and have survived since then. Evolution lights would be a topic covered in later chapters, so I will not go into details. Ancients, along with the levels above it, is capable of creating other legendaries and pokemon.

The next is Medieval, which is most of the current Pokemon. Most are created by Ancients. For example, Ho-Oh created Raikou, Suicune, and Entei, who are Medieval. Not much to be said about these though.

The last rank is Pseudo, referring to pseudo-legendaries such as Dragonite or Salamance.

There are other pokemons after Pseudo, but I don't feel the need to sort them. After Johto, there won't be too much of that… no spoilers.

Besides the above, there can be power-ups that allow a pokemon to temporarily rise in power levels. For example, a Mega Salamance would become a Medieval level. There could also be opportunities that allow pokemon and level up, including training, though not a lot of leveling up would be seen permanently.

Of course, Pikachu could just eat some more Thunderstones and power up… not exactly Thunderstones, but something. Why? Because Pikachu is awesome.

Make sure you understand this, because the chapters from now on will reference to this A LOT. This Movie will mark the start of the differentiation of my fanfic with the rest of

* * *

Now, onto analyzing the fabrics of the universe.

The Universe of Pokemon is a giant box. There are infinite flat layers within the box, each being a parallel universe, which can also be called parallel dimensions. The Universe of Pokemon is right next to more boxes, being the other Universes, such as Universe of Marvel, Universe of Star Wars, Universe of Wizards, etc. all of which have the same setup. Now, each parallel universe within a box contains the same material from the same show/movie/comic/game. So Darth Vader wouldn't end up randomly in a Pokemon world… I mean he could, actually…

Change of analogy: Large herds of Pokemon wouldn't end up becoming a parallel universe in a Marvel Box, unless they actually take it over… which would be very late game.

Let's not worry about that though. Even I haven't planned anything at that point. I just have a slurred idea of what will happen.

Back to Universe: In each parallel universe, there are different worlds, like the Time Realm, Space Realm, Hell, etc for each parallel. Beware: The Unown Dimension is not a world. It is a Dimension, or a parallel.

Dimension and Parallel are used interchangeably.

In the Movie, Ash and Domino was traveling to the North Pole, but they ended up in the Continuum, another word for the Box. The Continuum IS NOT space. It displays all of the different worlds and Dimensions.

The duo travels from their Parallel to separate Parallels. Then, Ash traveled to the Unown Parallel through a crack in the walls of the universe opened by the Unown themselves.

When Hoopa opened the Continuum, she used her Cosmic Power to transport her rings across Parallel Universes, a feat that could be accomplished by Cosmic, since they wield a concept. This opened a safe, secure pathway between two universes, which allowed the lovebirds to cross back over.

There may be confusion why the Parallel universes exist as black holes, but I am calling them flat sheets. Use your imagination. They are shapeless concepts, so they can exist in whatever geometry.

This is what I love so much about writing. You could never shoot an actual movie with something as freaking complicated as this under you spend billions on special effects.

* * *

Now with Ash and Domino's current level of power: Both are equally as strong as a Medieval by the end of the Movie. Their powers can be fluctuated as their emotions peaked, accordingly. Ash gained a boost in Aura when he teleported while Domino didn't. The reason for this will be explored in other chapters.

* * *

The Mewtwo battle was a fight between two Ancient Level beings, quite self-explanatory. The Death Force will not be explained, because that is a topic for later interest.

The Hoopa Battle contained some caviats. How can a bunch of RPGs and bazooka defeat a Cosmic Level Pokemon who can manipulate parallel universe?

Well, all Hoopa needed was for Hoopa Unbound to lose as much energy as she would spend opening the portal for Domino. For a Cosmic, this energy is now as much as she had led Domino (or you) to believe.

Therefore, in the fight with the three psychics, Hoopa restricted the use of concepts, since both she and Unbound have equal control on the body. She also restricted 90% of Unbound's strength, lowering her down to the level of an Ancient.

In order words, Hoopa is the right hand, and Unbound is the left hand. The right hand held onto the left hand while the left hand tried to squash a few bugs. Therefore, only the pinky could be used. One of the bugs turned into a bee and stung the left pinky, which cause her to withdraw.

That was basically how the fight went. After enough RPGs, Hoopa deemed that Unbound's energy has lost enough, and she called a halt to the game. Her comment about Unbound fainting for a thousand years was her own exaggeration.

* * *

If there are anything else unclear, please write to me.

* * *

Now, I'm going to share a little bit of what I was thinking as I wrote. The idea for the movie was, at first, not even close to what happened in the fanfic. I took up writing again at the end of June, so I only had a week or so to plan out a promotional surprise as part of my return.

My original idea was to write about Domino's life if she suddenly lost Ash because she wished for him to disappear after Ash said something stupid on Christmas Eve. She would be teleported unknowingly to a different dimension without him, and there would be struggles there, laments about losing Ash, how her heart was broken etc.

Then she would realize how important Ash was to her life, and she would do something like finding Jirachi to wish him back. They kiss under the mistletoe, and everyone lives happily ever after.

I wrote out the outline for the plot on Docs, and I thought to myself: this is just like every other Christmas love story there was. I promised my readers, you guys, that Sign of Times would be different, a masterpiece never seen before in fanfiction. I would not let my return be ruined by such an umimaginative plot.

Maybe the first person who thought of the idea in "It's a Wonderful Life," the 1940s black-and-white movie was a genius, but all of the copies of the same plot was getting more and more pitiful, especially in fanfiction.

Sure, you get an Awww-Moment, and you appreciate how warm young love is, maybe reminisce back on the time you had your first crush, your first relationship. Then you go outside and joined the family in the fireworks show.

I don't want to write a Movie about a bunch of fluffy happiness scenes. There are other times for that. Now, I want to craft an ultimate piece that illustrate the determination of two lovers that transcend most people in reality, by putting them in actual life and death situations. The most touching scene for me was when Ash chose to give up his physical body to be with Domino… that was just beautiful…

I want to write a piece that will be inscribed into the keystone of Fanfiction, to stand unforgotten years after this is posted. There are not a lot of those. The only one I can think of on the top of my mind was Saphroneth's Delta Episode in Ashes of the Past.

That is why, if you look back at the Movie closely, you can see that I didn't put a lot of fluff, or a lot of reflection of both characters on the effect of the disappearance of the other character. All this this can be inferred by you guys independently. A writer seeks to stimulate, not feed. That being said, I hope you read some of the places more than once and get the symbolisms I placed in.

You know about the love between the two. I'm not going to repeat 95 pages of the same fluff and grief. They're heartbroken, they're attached, period. Then, they start to find the solution to their problems.

(For the record, the total page count for the movie in Docs was 95 pages, and that was all in 3 days.)

And then, there was the solution. If I was going to carry out my original boring plan of having Domino find Jirachi and wait a year and a half for the Comet to come so she could wish everything back to before… well, then I would be like one of the other wannabe writers on this site, which I REFUSE!

Plus, I think you guys will kill me for cutting Ash out of four chapters of a movie.

The Parallel Universes idea I actually took from thinking about the previous idea, though, so something useful did come out of that.

And the effect of Ash missing was still incorporated with Professor Oak, but that was it with the reference to _A Wonderful Life_. The rest of the plot I came up on my own.

In the development of the plot, my plan was to add two more scenes. One was that Domino had to fight Magma and Aqua to obtain Jirachi, and the situation would be made more complicated with a fossilized Jirachi being able to prohibit psychic to whomever carrying him. Also, Jirachi would not wake up until the very end, when he was exposed to the Comet Shard.

Another plot that I was thinking about was elaborating Ash's adventure in the Unown. Not a lot of action went on there, and it was a bit of a letdown.

Speaking of action, I have to comment on the Ash's fight with Mewtwo. I've explained before about how the fight regarding the power levels work. However, the fight was different from normal because Ash incorporated Death Force (which was also called Sacred Energy by the Unown), which adds a layer of mystery. I won't go too much into it, because it would be a topic that would be gradually unveiled in later chapters.

With that fight, I put a lot of work in, mimicking possible fighting moves that Ash could have done, actually getting up and moving around. I wanted to write distinct scenes, especially for the Movie.

The scene with Ash's companions, I did not care too much about, which may be why some of you could have felt that it was unrefined. But again, the main focus was Ash and Domino. The job of the companions, ultimately, was to set up the fight between Ash and Domino.

The Movie could have went on much, much longer (to at least double the count) if I had the time. Even though, looking back and re-reading it myself, I am quite pleased with the current result.

If I did have more time, I would've added a lot more fluff and stuff that could be inferred by the audience, which I believe would have taken away from the central focus of the Movie.

The ending was very hard to write (Hence why the last two chapters are almost twice as long as the first two. I could have extended the first two a lot longer with fluff, but like I said, that would be pointless.)

I had to do quite a bit of research just reading over Bulbapedia about methods of wish granting or parallel universe travel… I think I might have used every method there is… along with more stuff that I decided to add.

For the reference, Unown Emperor is not a thing in the real anime… or at least as of 7/4/2018.

There are many twists in the ending. I bet you were expecting Domino to fix everything when she defeated Hoopa Unbound, or when Ash killed the Unown Emperor.

Nope!

Then the Comet Shard came in, which is what, in my opinion, truly made the Movie stand out. It was a seed that was planted a very long time ago. I bet none of you saw that coming. The feeling of perfection when I realized that a hidden object I wrote about a year ago circled back to complete a Movie a year later is just glorious.

Speaking of hidden objects, I just dug a bunch of holes and buried a crap ton of them in the plot lines. If you weren't paying attention, I highly suggest going back and read the last few chapters.

That way, when I incorporate it in another 50 chapters or so, you would be thinking to yourself how amazing the sharp turn of events is.

When I finished the paper and inscribed "The End," I said to myself, this is why I write. This is truly why. I felt that I just completed a world, and I just completed someone's dream.

This was a feeling that I couldn't have gotten out of any other game, hobby, or activity. It wasn't just a sense of achievement. It was the emotion of creation.

I think one of the things that I want to improve on is writing a clearer description of the plot setting. My settings are going to be very grand and confusing, involving time-space, intergalaxy conflicts, levels of power, different Gods…

A bunch of you were commenting about that, so I need to work on it.

Another thing is that I feel like I made Domino cry too much. On one hand, the power of love is immense. On the other hand, she's supposed to be a strong elite and the Queen, which has an equivalent standing to the Chosen. I really don't know, since I had never had a love experience as significant as the one portrayed between Ash and Domino.

This is when persona fails: when your life experience doesn't match up to the relationships in the story. Comedic jokes and fantasy exploration, and even scientific effects I could create, but I can't create life experience.

This will bring my reflection of the second Movie: Across From You, to an end. I really hope you guys enjoyed the 4-chapter special. I dedicated a lot of work into that.

With that being said, enjoy the rest of the chapter, containing actual fanfic, and in this case, fluff for all of you fluff-lovers out there!

Be sure to follow, favorite and REVIEW!

Crator out! (By the way, this was the 10th page on Google Docs)

* * *

Ash separated from Domino. He already used his Aura to prolong the time he could kiss her with, but he still missed her lips as they separated from their first kiss.

Domino looked at him, eyes sparkling, face flush red, adding to her attractiveness.

Ash peered at her blonde curls, twirling like cotton candy, blowing freely in the wind. He wrapped her in his arms, and Domino fell into them instinctively.

The two couples cuddled comfortably, eyes trailing out into the Sea, standing where they were just before teleporting.

Ash's hand glowed blue, and a puddle of Aura pulsed out into the sky. The blue hue glowed vibrant against the setting sun and formed into three words. Ash repeated after them. "I love you."

Domino shot an affectionate glance and lean into him, loving the way how her head fits perfectly into the crank of his neck. She raised her hand.

A pink glow materialized next to Ash's Aura letter. She said softly. "Love you too."

The two's eyes met.

"Ash?"

"Yeah?"

"Call me princess."

"You're not a princess anymore." Ash smirked. "You're a Queen."

"Awww…" Domino gleamed. "But call me princess. It sounds smoother. Queen makes me feel ancient, like your mom."

Ash rolled his eyes and tightened his hold, afraid that he'll lose her to some insane Storm again. "Mom's only thirty."

"Exactly. Ancient."

The two exchanged a look and laughed.

The joke wasn't that funny, but looking at each other's face just brought joy to them, like there was a mystical quality.

Plus, the two were due for some pleasure after the last week's schedule… even though the time in this realm never changed.

"Guess what we should do?" Domino asked with a devious smile.

"Make out again?" Ash asked, scooting closer, if that was humanly possible.

Domino blushed and hit him. "NO!"

Ash sighed in disappointment.

The Elite continued. "We should release Pikachu and Zorua and make out in front of them."

Ash looked to his pokeballs, all of which were full. His pokemon returned themselves automatically when he teleported and was trapped in the Continuum. After that point, he didn't see them again until now.

He gave a exuberant laugh. "Should we though? Then we have to waste time explaining crap."

"It'll be fun." Domino grabbed onto her luxury ball, while Ash followed and pulled out a lightning marked ball.

"Three, two," The two smirked. "One, GO!"

Zorua and Pikachu materialized on the ground. Before they could start asking questions, Ash grabbed onto Domino's waist and pulled her close to him. Domino fell without a struggle.

Ash closed his eyes and the two's lips meet. Fire still burned in her stomach as she kissed him. The sweetness wasn't as shocking as the first kiss, but the passion and desire was still just as strong.

Domino was too occupied to even peek at her pokemon, immersed in the kiss.

Zorua's eyes popped out and her limbs went numb, and promptly passed out on the ground.

Pikachu rubbed his eyes. He then charged up a 10,000,000 Volt Thunderbolt and slammed it toward the couple. " _WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH MY TRAINER!?_ "

The north of the Home Islands lit up in a mixture of yellow, blue, and pink that certain residents mistaken as the Aurora Borealis.

* * *

" _Get you ass out here, Claus!_ " Arceus roared at the North Pole. The icey surrounding stayed stagnant.

The Alpha's eyes narrowed. " _If you don't come out, I WILL go in!_ "

"Calm down, old llama!" A man with white hair and an impressive white beard that trickled past his feet came out. "You're still as sore as five Big-Bangs ago when Rowling pranked you with her Dragon Heart."

"You thought someone actually killed Palkia!"

" _When excuse me for being concerned about my children!_ " Arceus sneered. " _And YOU're calling ME old? You're the one who looked like an overgrown cornstalk… and it's been how long and you still don't know how to use a razor?_ "

"It's not my fault that no razors can cut through this beard!" The man laughed while stroking the pale mess.

" _Nothing can cut through your ego either…_ "

Santa pretended like he didn't hear Arceus. "You know, when I went into Eru's world to prank him, I disguised as this guy, and I was voted best beard at their Wizard Conference."

" _What's the name?_ " The Original One snorted.

"I don't remember." The man tilted his head. "I think my disguise was named Gandalf."

" _You're not pulling me on a tangent this time!_ " Arceus shouted. " _You almost trapped and killed my Chosen One and Queen with your stupid pranks! Who gave you the right to enter my realm!?_ "

"Actually, you did." Santa deadpanned. "You said I could come in and select deserved people for my special gifts."

" _Oh yeah… damn it!_ "

"Also, my Jynx warned your Chosen and Queen about teleporting into my world." The white-bearded man smiled. "And plus, they made it out safely. It's not that hard."

"It's a test that we all had to go through once to become a Cosmic. Even your Mew passed, and she doesn't even have a brain."

" _They didn't make it out safely! Ash lost his body! I have to go in and take it back from a Soul of the Dimension._ " Arceus shouted. " _Also, don't insult Mew! She's the fluffiest cat ever._ "

"Actually, speaking of Mew, when is her sister taking the test?"

" _When she's done combining with the Tree…_ " The Alpha said. " _And you're not invited to watch._ "

"Just because I pranked your Chosen?"

" _NO, BECAUSE YOU ALMOST KILLED THEM!_ " Arceus roared. " _YOU GAVE A COSMIC LEVEL EXAM TO A PAIR OF INEXPERIENCED MEDIEVALS!_ "

"And thus they would be rewarded." Santa rolled his eyes. "Calm down! They have to take the exam either way. Aaron passed with ease with he was still an Ancient."

" _That was because he had an entire empire behind him!_ "

"Well, you helped them, didn't you?"

" _They were going to get back anyways! Ash could've just made a body out of Aura!_ "

"I'm still waiting for a thank-you for getting their exams done and over with." Santa shrugged. "You would've never had the heart to give them their exam, too afraid they might die."

"That's why you froze their age and advancement, isn't it?"

* * *

Ash looked at the mistletoe hanging above them. He grinned at Domino. "Well, guess we have to kiss again…"

The blonde pulled his head near to her ferociously and started making out in the front of Ash's house.

Zorua casted a weak look at Pikachu. " _Do we look this bad as well when we were in our honeymoon stage?_ "

Lucario gave the two pokemon a look. " _Indeed._ "

" _Gross!_ "

Finally breaking apart, the two grinned. Ash reached up and pulled the mistletoe down. He snapped his fingers, and the plant transformed into a black tulip. He reached up and pushed it gently into Domino's hair.

The Elite grinned. "How long had you been saving that one?"  
"A while…" Ash smirked. "You look beautiful."

"I know." The girl snuggled up to him and gave him another kiss. "I can't believe you know how to be romantic."

Ash snapped again, and an amethyst necklace appeared in his hand. He placed it delicately over her head and onto her neck. "And I can't believe you can look more magnificent."

Domino cooed. She didn't say thank you. There was no need for that between them. "I can't believe I'm about to meet my boyfriend's parent."

They walked into the living room together. Ash snickered. "It's not like you haven't met her already AND you two hit it off better than a horde of Pikachu."

" _What does that even mean!?_ " His yellow starter protested.

Upon hearing noise from the room, Delia rushed out from the kitchen. She saw Ash and rushed over to give him a big hug.

"Ash! You're back! Let me see how much taller my son has grown!" Delia fluffed his hair. "Aww, Ash is finally up to my height!"

Ash sighed. "Mom, I was up to your height by Hoenn last time."

"Doesn't matter! It's not common for a mother to relive her son's childhood twice!" Delia smirked and squeeze Ash's cheeks. "I haven't done this is five years."

Domino laughed and blew into his ear. "Awww… _Ashy_ is so cute."

Delia then turned to the blonde girl and hugged her as well. "Domino! Welcome! I knew Ash would bring you here this Christmas."

"You did?" Domino smiled and stepped back until she was next to Ash. "Your house looks lovely by the way, Mrs. Ketchum."

"Thank you! I'm going to take out the food." Delia rushed back into the kitchen. "You kids just sit here."

Domino winked at Ash. "Your mom _so_ loves me."

Ash pulled Domino into a seat next to his. "I know. Who doesn't?"

Pikachu and Zorua sighed. This was going to be a long night.

Lucario muttered under his breath. " _Dexter is so lucky. Sometimes I wish I had a power-off button._ "

"Are Misty and Brock coming?" Delia yelled from the kitchen.

"No! I think they're going to their own families."

Domino smiled and got up, walking to the kitchen, eyes falling on a mountain of dishes. "Mrs. Ketchum, I think I can help you with those."

"No, no, it's fine." Delia waved. "No need."

"No, really. It's really easy."

The Elite snapped her fingers, and the plates disappeared, reappearing on the table. Domino dragged the Ketchum matriarch to the table. "See!"

"Oh yeah, I forgot you're a psychic." Delia kissed her on the cheek. "Get prepared for my special whip cream pie."

Suddenly, the front door swung open again, revealing a pink and white pokemon with blue horns and feet. Delia walked over and ushered him to a seat next to her. "You're just on time!"

Ash looked looked curiously at Mr. Mime. "Mom, you already found Mr. Mime?"

"Actually, no." Delia smiled. "You see, I think your coincidences are rubbing off on me. You was given to me by a really nice gentleman actually. This time, Mr. Mime was working in Abra Assets."

Domino smirked. "Didn't know coincidences are viral."

"They definitely are." Ash took out Dexter and hit power on. Then, he reached across the table with a hand, glowing blue and shook the Barrier Pokemon's hand. "Hello, Mimey. We meet again."

Mr. Mime's eyes shot open. Before he could say anything, Ash tossed his pokedex over after putting Dexter on telepathic mode. "There's all of the information you need."

"Now, I have an announcement." Ash said loudly.

"Ooo, my baby boy has an announcement!" Delia chirped. "C'mon everyone, floor for Ash."

Ash linked hands with the lustrous blonde and held their hands up. "Domino and I are now officially in a relationship."

Delia tilted her head. "Yeah, and? What's the big announcement?"

Ash's jaws fell open slightly. "That was the announcement!"

"Oh. Then congratulations!" Delia said without much zeal. "I thought your big news was going to be more unexpectable…"

"Like if you just won an official League."

* * *

Now, I'm not sure about you, but if my mother just roasted me, I'm going to be reconsidering my life choices.

Mom-burns are the worst.

* * *

D̶o̶m̶i̶n̶o̶ ̶s̶n̶u̶g̶g̶l̶e̶d̶ ̶i̶n̶t̶o̶ ̶A̶s̶h̶'̶s̶ ̶b̶e̶d̶… That sounded wrong.

Try 2: Domino snuggled into Ash's top bunk. "So this is where you slept for the past 10 years."

"Yep!" Ash pointed a an old TV set. "And that was the TV I was watching the night before I went on my journey. In my mind, that was eight years ago."

"That made me late the next morning, and then I got Pikachu." Ash looked at his furry starter, curled on a pillow on the desk, along with Zorua. "That was the start to an eventful eight-years."

"Eventful?" Domino fluffed her pillow and used psychic to levitate one of Ash's up while he was distracted. "Today was also an eventful day."

Ash chuckled. "Yeah… almost too eventful, even by my standards."

His eyes softened as he poked his head up to the top bunk. "However, the reward out of that was great."

Domino traded him a grin. "You don't say."

She leaned over and kissed him briefly. "Night, Ashy."

"Night, Princess."

Ash pulled his night lamp closed, no longer needing it. Within minutes the two were fast asleep, burnt out from the day's insanity.

A dark figure hopped through the window. He looked around and didn't see anything he liked.

"Kids these days. I remember when they used to put a plate of cookies beneath the tree in their room." He sighed. "These two don't even have trees!"

He pointed to the ground, and an evergreen grew out of the ground. He snapped his fingers, and the tree was instantly decorated and ornated.

The man placed two boxes below the tree. He then took out a plate of cookies from his beard and took a bite.

"Hmmm… Dialga's time lock is still pretty good. I should hire him as a refrigerator." The man silently flipped out of the window. Against the street lights, a silhouette of a long beard was painted against the wall.

"Merry Christmas."

* * *

 **A/N: REMINDER TO HIT THAT FAVORITE AND FOLLOW BUTTON. ALSO, REVIEW!**


	50. Cha 49: Kanto 40

**Cha. 49**

 **A/N: Enjoy! Please favorite and follow. Leave a comment down below!**

* * *

Homesickness was not a trait Ash had. However, he did miss his old bed. Even though Pokémon Centers one are comfortable, it wasn't until he woke up the next morning when he was reminded how much cozier his bed was.

Lying there, looking at his Pidgey-style alarm clock displaying an ungodly time right after five, he yawned and tried to go back to sleep.

His eyes trailed over a silhouette, and his mind instantly registered something as being wrong. He was familiar with every aspect of his room, and he confirmed that his mother did not change any significant design while he was gone.

He didn't remember the shadow being there.

Focusing harder and dispelling a major thought of his brain yelling for him to just go back to sleep, the shadow became clearer.

A… tree… growing out of the… floor… Ash sighed. What kind of trick is the legendaries pulling on him now?

Overpowering his desire for sleep, Ash grudging walked over to investigate. This better be good, he thought, and caught sight of two present boxes at the bottom of the tree.

Ash raised an eyebrow. A noise sounded from behind him. The Ketchum boy turned around to see Domino stretching in the top bunk. He smiled. "Already up?"  
"Yeah, you woke me." Domino huffed. "You make too much commotion everywhere you go, literally."

Ash rolled his eyes. Her image, hair a bit untamed and eyes slurred from the hibernation, appeared adorable as hell.

"No, I don't! You just detect even the slightest movement." He countered.

"Sorry for being psychic." Domino stuck out her tongue. "It's not you. It's me."

Her sight then flown onto the giant tree standing in the middle of Ash's room. She cast a questioning glance at Ash. "I'm not sure how I didn't notice this yesterday, but your architectural design is quite… eccentric."

"I'll show you what eccentric is!" Ash grabbed onto the blonde, already climbed down from the top bed, and gave her a long kiss…

Which was what Pikachu had to wake up to.

On the other hand, Zorua, right next to him, had to wake up to a thousand volts flowing through her body from Pikachu's surprise.

Sorry Pikachu. Looks like you're about to have a bad day.

* * *

Ignoring Pikachu's cries as Zorua tied his ears into a double half hitch, the humans broke apart and walked to the tree.

Domino knew from past experience that Zorua HATED being interrupted in her sleep… which didn't make sense since she was a Dark Pokémon… so shouldn't she enjoy the DARK?

Shaking the random thoughts out of her hand, she bent down when something at the bottom of the tree caught her eye.

She rose back up with two boxes in her hands.

"To Ash." She read aloud and deposited one box into her boyfriend's hands. Then she confirmed that the other package was indeed hers and ripped the wrapping paper apart.

"'From Santa', huh?" Ash hummed. "Guess he figured he would give us something for helping his Jynx."

"This better be good." Domino whistled. "At least good enough to make up for getting up at five."

Ash tore his box apart first. A hat appeared in front of his eyes. Shaped like a cone, it was dyed red throughout, with a white ball trailing at the end.

Ash opened his mouth, then closed it, like a suffocating fish. Domino fell back, laughing. "Wow! You got a Santa hat! That SUCKS!"

The boy's eyes narrowed. "Well let's see yours, and then we'll trade!"

Ash snatched for Domino's present, who evaded him and threw herself onto Ash's bed. "Let's see. Mine's probably so much better…"  
Her jaws dropped at what poked out. Ash gave a look, and another look, and another look.

A piece of coal.

Ash clutched his stomach and collapsed on the floor, laughing so hard snot came out of his nose, soon joined by Pikachu and Zorua. Domino's eyes flashed a dangerous red and resisted the urge to break… things.

Growling she picked up the coal, and shook it, trying to see if there were some sort of trick involving this… nope.

She looked helplessly at Ash, still on the ground, and tackled him.

"Stop laughing!" She demanded.

"I… I can't." Ash fell into fits of roars again.

The Elite pouted. "Do you still want to trade?"

"Hell no!" Ash shouted with a wide smile. "Ms. No-present-can-be-better-than-mine disappointed?"

"NO!" She puffed out her cheeks. "I'm just disappointed at your lame ability to make comebacks."  
"OH really?" Ash smirked at her and forced her off of him. "Naughty girl who got coal?"

"Yes, I have been naughty." Domino blushed and whispered into his ears seductively. "What are you going to do about it?"

A chill trickled down his spine. He pushed her back down onto his bed, and his lips headed straight for hers.

Pikachu sighed. " _Zo, wanna go get breakfast?_ "

" _Sure._ " She shrugged. " _It's gonna be another half an hour before these two can communicate again!_ "

* * *

"Going back on the road already?" Delia asked, concerned. She wanted Ash to stay back so desperately… and that was with Ash not yet telling her about the dimensional warp.

However, she knew better than asking him to stay. A boy needed to grow up… even though Ash had already had eight years of head start, which rendered him even less likely to stay. She was grateful enough that he already came back to spend the week of Christmas and New Years with her, unlike last timeline.

In fact, he made a pact with both Domino and Moltres that no one shall tell his mother about this, and he made them swear on their most prized possession.

Moltres swore on her psychic powers, and Domino swore on Ash, which earned her another hour of cuddling and making out…

Oh details, details.

"Yeah, mom." Ash nodded and gave the Ketchum matriarch a hug. "I still have a few events to go through, and then I'll come back to train at Pallet. I promise."

Delia smiled. Ash did finish the entire routine A LOT faster than last timeline. Afterall, not everyone has a psychic who could teleport across hundreds of miles in the blink of an eye.

"You'll take a care of my son, right?" She smiled to Domino. She liked the girl more and more. If it wasn't for her, Ash was probably out in the forest somewhere, getting lost, even with Dexter on him.

"Of course, Delia." Domino beamed at her. "I'll keep him in line."

"Look who's talking." Ash grumbled and took her hand.

Domino smiled and leaned slightly on him. The duo began to walk toward the door.

"Your little princess?" Domino stared at him with kitty cat eyes, making Ash's heart melt.

"How about we make that title official?" Ash grinned. "The Princess Festival starts in two days."

"It's too easy." Domino waved. "Even Misty didn't want to do it… it'll be boring, plus the first place prize is so cheap! I can probably get ten sets with a swipe."

Ash shrugged. He didn't have an opinion about the Festival. If they did go, he would get to see Domino in a dress. If they didn't, he didn't have to carry the bags… though he did have an enchanted backpack of unlimited space, he would need to maintain a constant aura expenditure to put up with the weight.

They walked out of the Ketchum household. Ash had his right arm wrapped around Domino, who was wearing Zorua as a hat. On his left shoulder was Pikachu, and to his left was Lucario.

Misty and Brock were already waiting for them at their lawn. Ash smiled to himself. He wouldn't trade these friends for the world.

Misty and Brock did a quadruple take at seeing the distance between Ash and Domino… or the lack of distance.

The two's face shone with the radiance of a young couple in love, seemingly able to wash away any clouds in life, whether it was stained dark by the streets of the Viridian slums or an abandonment by his father.

Ash smirked. "Surprised?"

Brock hopped on over and highfived Ash excitedly. "You finally worked up the courage to ask Dom out!"

He turned to the Elite. "How did he do it? Tell my all the dets (details)!"

"Brock, you sound like a girl." Misty groaned, but she peaked up with the same enthusiastic interest. "But yeah, what did we miss?"

Ash shot a look at his mother at the front door waving at them. He coughed. "Princess, an you teleport us all to the Viridian Center?"

The two Gym Leaders cooed at the pet name.

Ash rolled his eyes. "I called her that before we started dating."

"Even cuter!" Brock remarked.

"And before, that was half sarcasm, half true love." Misty grinned.

Domino, on the other hand, was enjoying this attention to the fullest. If it was by her choice, she would let the entire world know about her relationship with Ash.

"Sure. Let's go!"

In a flash, the group arrived at the center and filed into a corner table.

"Okay, tell us!" The older trainers asked.

"Well. Let's start by saying," Domino held Ash's hand under the table. "After you guys left that day by the Arctic Sea, Ash died and I got called 'blondie' by Professor Oak."

"WHAT!? That's insane!" Misty and Brock's jaws hung wide open. "That's not possible!"  
Misty shouted. "Professor Oak would never call you that!"

Ash threw up his hands. "Did you not hear the FIRST part!?"

Brock sighed. "Ash, you die all the time."

"True that."

* * *

" _Coal and hat?_ " Arceus deadpanned. " _You can't be any cheaper?_ "

" _Yes, he can!_ " Dialga came over holding a sock, with his nose blocked off with a torrent of time energy. He flipped it so the hole at the bottom is showing. " _At least those two got something new._ "

Palkia came over and took a sniff of the dirty, and promptly passed out in front of them. Santa sighed and dangled a mistletoe in front of the Spatial Dragon's face. "Here we go again…"

" _How long had that sock gone since you last put it in the washer?_ "

Santa looked confused. "What's a washer?"

A Jynx came over and bowed. " _Sir, the carriage is all ready._ "

Santa nodded. Arceus snorted. " _See you never._ "

"You too!" Santa looked around the Universe. "This place is too under-appreciative of me."

With that, the man flashed onto a cart pulled on eight Stantlers, each having a Jynx on top.

In front of it, a hole opened, and the contraption rode straight into the Continuum.

Arceus released his breath of relief. No Gods like another God intruding their territory. They could cause way too much damage.

Looking at the direction Santa had gone in, Arceus uttered a good luck to the nearby Universe built by The One Above All and turned back to the Bubble Realm.

* * *

"Say what!?" Ash shouted. The Mossdeep Space Center scientist nodded his head.

"Clefairy disappeared?" Domino shrugged. "They probably found to way to communicate to Cresselia, who took them back."

"CRESSELIA!?" The scientist yelled. "There was no way she could've gotten into the lab. It's TOP SECRET!"

"Well… then you've obviously never seen what legendaries can do…" Domino sighed. "Plus, your so-called top secret isn't so valuable. I don't think deep space travel is too much of a challenge for them."

* * *

Molly Hale tiptoed out of her bedroom, past her parents' bedroom, and down the stairs. She lightly opened her front door. A beam of moonlight shone down onto the carpet. She sneaked out of the house quietly and brought the door to close behind her.

The honey-haired girl searched for the hole in the garden that her parents had discovered a while back.

Ever since that day, she had been having dreams… dreams that prompted her to go to the hole, as if there were something prized, rewarding in the hole.

She felt someone, something whispher to her, to go back.

Tonight, she finally worked up the courage to disobey her father's warnings and investigate. Spencer had built a cage around it, so she couldn't get in.

But the hole was releasing some sort of auroma. Just by being next to it made her feel tranquil and mesmerized.

She stood there for a minute. The minute turned into an hour, and then the entire night.

The scent stopped right before dawn. An pulse of energy surged out and warmed her, making her feel not at all tired at standing for hours.

Molly looked longingly at the hole, and then she sneaked back into the house.

* * *

"It's time, people!" Professor Oak articulated. The room drowned him out with the scientists' relentless talking.

Oak's face darkened. "I shall declare this regional meeting to start."

The room continued with the chatter. Oak's face twitched more and more. Reaching into the desk drawer, he pulled out his secret weapon.

He reminisced to himself for a second how well behaved he was when he attended the meetings compared to them, and he snapped.

"I hereby call this meeting to session!" Professor Oak banged his gavel and shouted into a megaphone.

The room roared back at him, overpowering even the gavel.

"SHUT UP, NERDS!" The Kanto Professor roared, this time finally calming most of the room down. "I motion to call this meeting into session."

Dr. Fuji looked at him curiously. "Why are you making this seem like a legislative meeting?"

"Because people don't LISTEN!"

Oak glared across the room. Though most of his temper was soothed by his growing old age,, Oak still had an aggressiveness in him that was naturally entitled to an ex-Champion.

"First order of business." He said. "Is Dr. Akihabara's postulate on a Digital World."

"This is a man without the need for an introduction." Oak remarked. "I shall welcome Dr. Akihabara."

The computer genius stood up from the front row in which he was sitting. The audience groaned.

"NO, this time will not be like before." The man held up his hands. "I actually prepared some good slides."

He went to the monitor and typed in a few lines of code, and the projector screen turned into a flashing blue.

A few seconds later of continuous blinking, it stablized to form a pure blue.

Then, a flash came out of the the projector, and a three dimensional hologram appeared in front of the audience.

The scientists' attention was completely hooked. The Doctor smiled.

He could see the future of DigiWorld boom.

* * *

 **Commercial Break**

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 **A total of four hundred people lost their fingers yesterday launching fireworks.**

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 **BBC News: Look on the bright side.**

 **ABC News: There's a bright side?**

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 **BBC News: It HAS!**

* * *

Bulbasaur stared at the newcomer at the Ranch. " _Why are you not surprised… or freaked out… or schizophrenic?_ "

The shiny Moltres shrugged. " _I've seen something way crazier in the past week. This is nothing compared to that._ "

She peered at the sight of Dragonite playing volleyball with giant Jigglypuff…

By that, it means that Dragonite was using a sleeping Jigglypuff as a volleyball…

The Seed Pokémon sighed. " _You have a very strong heart._ "

She looked at Wartortle fly by, surrounded by a ball of water that was launched with Raikou's Thunderbolt. " _Although I still haven't figured out why they can do that yet, I think I might soon._ "  
" _Really? Tell me once you figure it out. I haven't seen the day I arrived._ " Bulbasaur sighed and sat on the Grassy Terrain he made for himself. " _I think I'm the only normal one at this Ranch._ "

As he stopped speaking, the grass under him lit up on fire due to his own Flame Breath. " _This winter is getting kind of cold._ "

Moltres raised an eyebrow. Normal… yeah right.

She smiled. The psychic shiny felt that this was exactly right. This was where she was destined to belong.

Only in a crowd of these weirdos could she find a spot for herself.

* * *

"You did well, Matori!" Archie smiled and pat her shoulder. "No Magma could take any accursed Fire Stone from my turf!"

The said girl smiled and bowed. "Thank you sir."

"You are promoted to senior officer!" The Aqua Leader nodded. "Keep up the good work!"

* * *

" _Where is this place?_ " Arceus asked.

"I don't know." Sir Aaron shrugged as he scanned the entire planet with his senses. "I think it is a place without any powers. Just another completely normal world."

" _You really should stop randomizing._ " Palkia gestured at Mew 1. " _Besides that one time, we never got anywhere interesting._ "

" _Fine! Let's go back._ " Mew sighed and went back in, followed suited by the others.

Only a few hundred feet away, Muhammad of Jerusalem stared bug-eyed at the hovering legendaries disappeared.

"I think I just saw God…"

He didn't know how right he was. He just didn't exactly see the God of HIS universe.

* * *

"And this is DigiWorld, or at least the current progression of it." Dr. Akihabara pointed at the lively view. "Any sort of activity can be done here, from studying weapons of mass destruction to just laying on the beach when it is winter outside."

"Therefore, this is most definitely a project we should invest fully on."

The computer Doctor stepped down from the podium after his speech, animated by the hologram, and roaring discussion immediately broke out.

After a period of debates, the room split into two clear side, with neither being a clear majority.

A scientists from the more conservative group asked as soon as the session was back on officially. "This idea is nice, but it requires nearly all of our technological support, which will draw in a significant portion of our programming. However, its effect can't be shown immediately."

"Plus, if the program crashes, we loses our entire drive. The entire Kanto region would be wiped with a dramatic downsize in Internet. This is a risk we can't take."

"This is not a risk we can't take." Dr. Fuji stood up right after the opposition speaker. "In fact, this is a risk we have to take!"

"Our human technology has been stagnant for way too long." He gave a look at the people around them. "There had been no new development that shocked the world after the nuclear weapons and cloning machines were discovered thirty years ago. We are living in a static world right now."

"We know it could fail, but only one hundred failure could lead to a success. If we continue to hide in this shell we have built for ourselves, we cannot move. If one day a disaster hits, we will be screwed."

"We are the most brilliant minds that think for the future. We cannot be the ones doing the screwing. That's the government's job."

"Dr. Akihabara's project is hard. It is almost too ambitious." Fuji took in a breath. "But we're not gathered here to discuss what is easy. We are here to fomulate a plan to advance in the path of science."

"We're not doing this because it is easy. We're doing this because it is hard." The cloning expert concluded. "Thank you."

When the vote settled, Akihabara's proposal for developing a DigiWorld with the aid of League science materials passed with a two-thirds majority.

* * *

Cresselia's psychic projected across New Island, and instantly she formulated a plan on how to sneak in.

Before she could move though, a flash of pink rose in front of her. An incomplete psychic illusion stopped her, popping her connection with her destination.

She stared into the purple eyes of Mewtwo, growling. " _What are you doing here!?_ "

Mewtwo raised his eyebrow. " _I should be the one asking YOU that!_ "

The Lunar Pokémon huffed. " _I came down to find the three who saved my Clefairy and personally thank them._ "

" _With what!?_ " Mewtwo took a look at her hands. " _You don't have anything on you._ "

" _SO!?_ " She chirped defensively. " _You're so materialistic!_ "

" _Okay…_ " The clone gave her a look of doubt. " _What are your retribution then?_ "

Cresselia thought fast. She fluffed her rings and adjusted herself. " _I was going to protect them for fifty days, since they save fifty of my Clefairy._ "

Mewtwo casted her a wary look, eyes staying a little longer on her beautiful ring-like anatomy. " _In that case, follow me._ "

* * *

Professor stood up and took the podium. "And now, I will continue the discussion of the potential of the digital world."

"However, unlike Dr. Akihabara, I would be focusing on a recent development of artificial intelligence from these Pokédex that I invented."

Oak pulled out a blank Pokédex and placed it on the table. "These devices are a guide for beginner trainers that help them identify Pokémon and their strength and weaknesses."

He poked a button and pointed at a Magikarp painting next to him.

The Pokédex beeped. "Magikarp, the Fish Pokémon. They are Water types. Not prone to attacks. When provoked, they seek to evade and hide."

Oak nodded. "A few months ago, two of my Pokédex suddenly gained intelligence from an excess of information and a power that we are currently investigating and has not yet identified."

"These new intelligence are called Porygon, and they can battle and behave just like normal Pokémon." The Regional Professor continued. "In fact, the owners of the Porygon have a great relationship with them and treat them just like normal Pokémon, with reciprocal feelings."

"Therefore, I propose a motion to grant Porygon temporary Pokémon status, allowing them to officially battle and compete with these AI." Oak paused. "After our study is complete and has demonstrated the networkings of the mysterious power, I will apply for permanent Pokémon status.

"Do you have any proof of said Pokémon?" A scientist raised her hand. Professor Oak nodded. "Yes, a slide show of them."

* * *

"Umm… well… this is awkward." Domino looked at the Ghost Dragon that had just popped out of Mew's Pokéball. "Hi, Giratina."

The Renegade Pokémon stared at her. Seeing her confused face, he groaned. " _Mew never explained anything, did she?_ "

"Uhhh, explain what?" Domino casted him a perplexed glance. "Why is she gone and why are you in her ball?"

" _Basically, long story short, Mew went up to the Bubble Realm to visit Arceus. She said she was going to return today…_ "The legendary sighed. " _The day's almost ending, and I have no clue where she is._ "

"Wait, so why are YOU here?" The girl questioned.

Giratina looked at her, puzzled. " _What do you mean?_ "

"I mean why did you come and take Mew's place?"

" _How bad of a teacher is Mew!?_ " Giratina let out a huge moan. " _Did she not tell you that since you are the Queen, you need at least a Formation or Cosmic by your side at all times, at least before you obtain that power?_ "

"No." The Elite deadpanned.

" _Well, I think I just got tricked into this teaching job…_ "

* * *

Giovanni twirled the little map in his hand. "I think it's time to take out the treasure."

Hunter J shook her head. "You don't have the KEY!"

"No, I do not." The Rocket Boss shook his head. "But I think I can borrow it from someone who does have it."

The master thief looked at him skeptically. "Did you just say 'borrow' with an actual serious tone?"

Giovanni sighed. "I know. Surprising, isn't it?"

"Why not just steal it?" Hunter J questioned. "I can get that done in a second."  
"That is a very, very bad idea." The Boss stood up abruptly. "Because we had been friends for over forty years, I'm going to let you in on a secret."

"Three months from now, a trainer by the name of Ash Ketchum is going to shock the world with his Pokémon, and he would become a beacon of power in the upcoming years."  
"Whatever you do, DO NOT mess with him." Giovanni finished. "And HE is the one with the key."

"Why don't we eliminate the threat right now?" Hunter J raised an eyebrow.

"Because he's my future son-in-law, and the most suitable I could find." Giovanni closed his eyes. "The best part is, he's on the 'good' side."

* * *

The Masked Marauder came up behind the group of Magma and released his Tyranitar.

The Armor Pokémon slammed down in the fields. The group turned in fear as they saw the pseudo legendary.

"RUN!" The officer cried. "This isn't anything we can battle!"

The Rocket Elite gave an exasperated sigh. "My name is the Masked _Marauder_. Why do you think you can run away from me?"

"Tyranitar, Sandstorm!"

* * *

Shaymin poked her head out from the Sky Base and sniffed.

She frowned. " _Why is Giratina in this realm? Shouldn't he be in his Reverse World?_ "

The Gratitude Pokémon turned into Sky Form and lifted off towards Kanto. " _Great, now I have to go purify everywhere he walks. Way to make me miss the concert."_

* * *

Dear Diary,

OMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMG!

SO MANY THINGS JUST HAPPENED AT ONCE!

Ash finally asked me out! *SQUEAL*

I've been waiting for, like weeks. He finally did it! Granted we had to get lost in some interdimensional Storm for him to work up the courage, but still!

This is the best thing anyone has ever done for me!

Okay, now I'm just rambling, but I don't care! This is my diary!

Also, Giratina is giving Ash the big boy talk right now. I'm laughing my ass off as I am writing this.

He looks like he literally wants to die in a hole. This is the best prank ever…

What? I can still prank my boyfriend. No one dictates that love has to be nice!

Signed,

Princess

P.S. Ash just ran off into the distance after Pikachu fired a Thunder at Giratina. Now Giratina is trading Shadow Balls for his Thunderbolts.

* * *

 **A/N:** **Dribble Drabble. Next update shall be the great Viridian Gym Battle. It's only Ground Types though… I'm not sure how to make the battling epic, but no, Mewtwo would not suddenly materialize in the middle of their battle.**

 **Hmmm, challenges, challenges.**

 **Hit that favorite or follow button. Be sure to review! Review! Weiver!**


	51. Cha 50: Kanto 41

**Cha. 50**

 **A/N: Eccentric Viridian Gym Battle. Enjoy!**

* * *

"Last event until Leagues!" Ash smirked at his girlfriend. "Time to fight your Dad."

Domino rolled her eyes. "It's hardly a fight when he couldn't use Rocket Legendaries or non-Ground Types."

"What if he just decides to give you two the badges without a fight?" Misty suggested.

"Really? Giovanni?" Brock deadpanned. "Are you hearing yourself? When was the last time he gave up without a fight?"

"Actually, a lot of times. He doesn't fight what could not be won or changed." The Elite chirped. "For example, last timeline, he gave up on the fight of converting the three idiots into something functional."

"Yeah… the Rocket trio were pretty unsuccessful last timeline." Ash snickered. "It's like they had a curse on them."

"And we're blastin' off again!" Misty did a little dance, mimicking the three, and laughed.

"Well, let's go!" Domino pointed in the direction of the Viridian City. "The ninth badge!"

* * *

"Sir!" An official knocked on Giovanni's door. "They're here, as you predicted."

The Viridian Gym Leader looked up from signing a League document and smiled. "Finally! Can't wait to show those two what I have in store."

"As the adult in those two's relationship, since Mrs. Ketchum doesn't even know Pokémon," He muttered under his breath. "It _is_ my job to teach them not to be complacent."

"Please get me the referee." He nodded. "I'll be right there after I change."

* * *

"This is actually the nicest Gym I've seen." Ash looked around the place, which appeared slightly different than the last timeline. "I especially like the Greek architecture details."

"Good! That's my idea." Domino grinned. "And also the modern, sedate build."

"Then of course it's good." Ash squeezed her hand. "And it suits the Ground Typing very nicely."

The four walked past a curving corridor of exotic paintings into a tunnel, which opened up to a giant stadium made of rocks, mud, ponds, hills, and small bundles of trees.

The Viridian Gym was the largest Ash had seen, even larger than the Fuchsia Gym after Koga had dropped all of the exterior disguises by nearly four times.

Across the gym, a voice boomed. "Ash Ketchum of Pallet, I finally get to meet you again after a timeline of years!"

Said Pallet trainer raised his head up to find a man in orange suit, standing firmly at the opposite side.

The Leader's hands relaxed by his side, and his face wasn't twisted into some ominous glare. He was just a built man with a Pokéball in one hand and another fixing his hair.

But even with some degree of self-preparation and expectancy, Ash still tensed up, even more than he was facing off Mewtwo.

He knew the well-dressed gentleman in front of him wasn't a psychic or an aura wielder, or carrying a nuclear bomb.

But the alarm in his head that had developed throughout the years after encountering so many disaster was telling him that this man was a walking disaster, just like himself.

Ash's fist automatically bunched up. A robust, invisible field of confidence and potency was radiating off of the Rocket Boss, a experienced projection that had endured numerous tests and catastrophes.

The Chosen had a field as well, but his, though powerful, lacked the scars left over from years of struggles. He had to admit that, for once in his life, he was not the dominant side in a fair battle.

Domino teleported to the other side and wrapped her arms around the man. "Hi, Dad."

Giovanni had a small smile on his face, a sight almost never demonstrated. Four months ago, his daughter would have never display such a 'childish' emotion.

He was very pleased to see her open up. As a Rocket Boss, he wanted all of his agents to be of emotionless robots that knew only to carry out orders.

As a father, Giovanni was beyond delighted to discover that she was finally letting go of the darkness in her heart. No parents wanted their children to conduct their lives in an unseenable secret, even if that was how he was living.

And it also was why he approved of Ash. He was the only chance of bringing her to the light side, or whichever opposite that was agreed by the people to be 'moral.'

Speaking of Ash… The Boss looked up to see Ash bunched up like a cobra, ready to strike at any moment. He smirked. "Not ready to see your girlfriend's parent yet?"

Domino blushed at the mention of girlfriend when it came out of her own father's mouth. Afterall, he was one of the two people in this world that could make her feel embarrassed.

"Hello, Giovanni." Ash's eyes twitched. "I didn't expect you to be so…"

"Calm?" Giovanni laughed. "I told you this both this time and last time. I don't aim to hurt the world. My ways are just not approved by the people in some cases."

Ash was about to retort with his views, when Brock stood up and pulled on his sleeves.

As the more experienced teen, he knew that if the discussion continued, it would be an endless debate ending most likely in Ash getting pissed off.

Domino, also noticing this, changed the topic quickly. "So, Boss, ready for the battle?"

Giovanni released her and smiled. "I have a surprise for you… Try not to be too confident."

"Can't wait," She replied and teleported back to Ash and pushed him lightly. "You go first."

Ash casted her a look. "I thought you would like to?"

"Aww…" Domino purred. "Is little Ashy getting a little bit nervous at facing my dad?"

"..." The Ketchum boy twitched. "Of course… not…"

"Then prove it." The blonde snickered and teleported off to the stands with Misty and Brock.

Ash looked across the giant field. Giovanni smirked. "Ready, Ashton?"

"Haven't been more ready in my life!" Ash tried to sound assertive.

The Viridian Gym Leader laughed. "Then showed me the ways of the Chosen!"

He turned to the referee. "Read him the rules."

* * *

"The rules for this gym battle:" The referee cleared his throat. "It would be just one double battle."

Ash's jaw dropped.

"It will consists of two pairs that would fight each other."

"This emphasizes the cooperation of Pokémon, and that it is important for Pokémon not to be strong by themselves, but as a team." Giovanni explained.

An anxious feeling emerged from Ash's heart. The Rocket Boss had his reasons why he was the Boss. Not even Professor Oak had realized that this was his weakness… heck, even he didn't realize it before Giovanni had mentioned it.

Cooperation between Pokémon… tying the strength between his Pokémon so that attacks match each other…

That was not a thing Ash had thought to train for, especially because the Kanto League had no tag team battling opportunities.

Right now, if two of Ash's Pokémon decided to battle together, like Pikachu and Lucario, half of their moves would just cancel out the others. Half of Galvanic Burst would collide and neutralize half of the Aura Storm.

His Pokémon are each so specialized in their own paths, and Ash had been training each other them in the mindset that they should be able to singlehandedly take care of any situation.

Giovanni's words struck like a hammer into him. Only by cooperating could he battle the forthcoming disasters… just like at Christmas Eve.

Only when both he and Domino merged could they tear through the dimensions. No one could be prepared for everything… but a team could.

However, the surprise didn't stop there.

The referee cleared his throat to get Ash's attention back, after catching sight of him just staring off into space.

"Each team must work together with the materials present on the field to build a construct that could attack. The two constructs, after twenty minutes, would fight each other without the Pokémon's intervention… besides controlling it from a distance."

"The pair of team who had their structure standing after the fight wins!"

Ash did a double take at the rules. He turned to Giovanni and gasped. "So, basically, our Pokémon had to build robots and make them fight without even releasing a single attack?"

"Normally, I would just give challengers a gym battle and send them off that way." Giovanni smirked and pulled out an Earth Badge. "But I thought Mr. Ketchum here would be looking for a challenge."

"Afterall, from what I've heard, you swept through every Kanto gym besides Koga's, and he didn't offer too much of an opposition either."

He dangled the badge in midair. "I'm going to give you this badge either way. I just want to be entertained."

Ash growled at the thought of his being entertainment for the Rocket Boss. "You know what, I'll accept!"

"I know you will." Giovanni smirked at the referee, as if telling him 'told you so.'

The Viridian judge sighed. "Then I shall declare the timer for building to start, now!"

* * *

Ash thought fast. Giovanni already started with Nidorina and Nidorino. The male started with breaking down chunks of rocks and solid ground, while the female wandered off to the trees and carried a log over.

However, Ash noticed that the two's movement wasn't completely practiced. They definitely had a plan in mind already, but it wasn't executed with the swiftness of a Pokémon that had performed it thousands of times…

More like dozens, Ash thought. This meant Giovanni invented this weird challenge just for him, so he still had a chance.

"Wartortle! Kingler!" Ash threw out two balls. They were both Water specialists, so they would get a structure done. They could both control the element fascinatingly well, so that could allow them to win…

Ash's Pokémon got to work as soon as they landed, having heard all of the rules within their Pokéballs.

Kingler pointed at the pond. " _I think the sculpture should be in this form._ "

The water rose up to create a miniature blueprint. Eight legs, two claws, a sturdy exoskeleton.

Wartortle narrowed his eyes. " _That's just you._ "

" _Exactly!_ " The Pincer Pokémon said excitedly. " _Which is why it is the perfect build!_ "

" _Perfect? You can't even walk straight._ " The other Water Type deadpanned. " _When you want to go somewhere, you have to turn ninety degrees and crawl that way._ "

" _No, I Aqua Jet off._ " Kingler protested.

Wartortle ignored him. " _I think it should be in the form of a Blastoise! That's real genius right there, created by nature!_ "

" _No it's NOT! They're so damn fat they couldn't even turn around properly._ "

" _Look at who's to talk!_ "

"..."

"FIVE MINUTES!" The referee shouted from the stage.

Ash looked at his Pokémon and a floating blueprint that was constantly changing above his Pokémon's heads. He looked over to Giovanni's side, which already contained the base of the structure his Pokémon was building.

"What are you two doing!?" Ash shouted. "Settle on a design and start building!"

Wartortle and Kingler both shushed him. " _This is important! We need to figure out a good build!_ "

" _I need to demonstrate to this airhead right here that Blastoise contains the power of the universe and is the ultimate machine that shall fuse the bond of love and the mystery of infinity!_ "

" _My head is filled with WATER!_ "

" _Which is exactly why you're not thinking straight!_ "

"ENOUGH!" Ash twitched as he looked at the ticking clock. "Just COMBINE the two. I don't care what you build, since you can probably manipulate it to beat them. Just build me SOMETHING!"

" _You heard him…_ " Kingler sighed. " _I call the legs._ "

" _NO! I want the legs._ "

Kingler looked at him exasperately. " _How the hell am I going to be the top? I have a freaking shell for a body._ "

Wartortle shrugged. " _It just makes sense I'm the bottom._ "

" _It's really NOT!_ "

"..."

"TEN MINUTES REMAINING!"

Ash stared across the field, where Giovanni already had the overall build and was just refining the details.

The Chosen One, World Saver turned his eyes to his own battlefield… nothing.

"THIS IS RIDICULOUS!" Ash yelled. "JUST LET WARTORTLE BE THE LEGS!"

* * *

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* * *

Kingler, Domino, Misty, and Brock stared at Ash, dumbfounded… did he seriously just let Wartortle be the legs?

Misty sighed. "I do remember Ash telling me he failed his design class back in elementary school…

Domino looked at her boyfriend, sighing. "I can see why…"

* * *

Kingler stared at his trainer. Is he serious right now? Replacing my eight agile legs with Blastoise's two stubby ones…

Wartortle, after receiving the command, was already at work. Within a minute, the two seeming sturdy and powerful legs of Blastoise formed in the arena out of water.

The Pincer Pokémon clawpalmed. " _This is utterly stupid._ "

Wartortle fired an Ice Beam, freezing up the entire construct.

" _Your turn._ " The evolved turtle stepped back to enjoy his work.

Kingler shook his head. What did Ash wanted him to do, just placed a UFO-like body on it and called it a day?

He materialized the top half of himself onto the two legs that Wartortle built… and froze it as well.

Wartortle admired the outcome. It wasn't bad, in his opinion, especially the legs.

Kingler took a look after he had finished, and he almost tripped over. It looked like an apple pie sitting on top of two pillars.

In the stands, Ash's friends all facepalmed.

Domino muttered. "Let's just say I'm regretting letting him and Pikachu design Zorua's doghouse for her gift…"

* * *

"Five minutes remaining!"

Giovanni's creation, whatever it was, was completed already. The two Poison Pin Pokémon stood atop it and peered over at Ash's side.

A single look made them both fell off their construction, laughing.

Even the Rocket Boss leaked out a wholehearted smile, which to Ash looked more like teasing and mocking.

Ash pointed at his… umm… thing…

For a brief second, he wondered about his choice to place the legs at the bottom. He took a look at the timer. Four minutes.

Not enough to build another one anyways.

Thinking back to what Giovanni did, he shouted. "Put some reinforcements, or final touches on it!"

" _Ummm… so like spikes?_ " Wartortle asked.

" _I feel like something is missing…_ " Kingler said.

" _Really? It seemed perfect._ "

"TWO MINUTES!"

" _No really, there's just something bugging me in the back of the mind. Something is definitely missing._ "

Wartortle shrugged and fired out some water beams to create spikes. " _There we go._ "

"ARMS!" On the stands, Domino gritted her teeth. "You're missing Arceus damned arms."

Brock massaged the brim of his nose. "How does Ash understand Dexter's quantum mechanics and not simple architecture?"

Domino pulled out Noah. "Figure out the best designs and best combinations. I'll give you ten minutes."

She took a look at her boyfriend's field and her father's field. "This isn't going to be much of a fight."

Ash picked up his head in realization. That was what was missing all along!

"Wartortle! Kingler!" He shouted. "I know what's missing!"

"You have to add horns to the thing!"

The viewing audience facepalmed again.

* * *

Seconds after the horns were added, the referee yelled. "TIME!"

"May all of the structures enter the battlefield!"

Wartortle nodded at Kingler. " _I'll control the legs. You'll take the body._ "

" _What do I do with the body?_ " Kingler deadpanned. " _It ain't got ANY moving parts._ "

" _Shoot water out of it._ " Wartortle shrugged. " _Shoot some Ice Beams. Also, you're in charge of the replace work._ "

" _Why do I have to do the replace work!?_ "

" _Do you know how hard it is to control these legs?_ " The Turtle shot him a look.

Kingler threw up his claws. " _THAT'S WHY YOU SHOULD HAVE DONE MY LEGS!_ "

" _Nah… they're too ugly._ "

Kingler stared at him. " _You realize that I'm right here right?_ "

" _Shit. I said that out loud._ "  
"..."

Across the field, Giovanni's Pokémon led their structure over. Standing at twenty feet tall, it topped the King-toise by three feet.

Its lower body was made of six legs, which connected at the waist, which had a slob of concrete-like mud acting as cartilage. The body didn't have arms either, replaced instead by large sword-like extension that reached out to ten feet in front.

There was no head. In its place was a giant cannon, with a diameter of five feet.

Ash stared at the structure, and then back at his own. "I think mine is better."

Giovanni smirked. "I agree. Please have mercy on my Pokémon."  
Referee sighed. "Let it begin!"

The Poison Pin Pokémon's structure went into motion with its six feet scurrying at their opponent.

Kingler fired an Ice Beam from his creation's mouth. It splattered against the rock sculpture harmlessly.

Giovanni smirked. "That wasn't an Ice Beam if it didn't come from your Pokémon. It was just a ice cylinder hitting my creature."

The Rocket Boss pointed at the King-toise. "Hammer Legs."

The sculpture leapt from the ground and jumped toward Ash's… thing.

"Horn Drill!" Ash said, as if it was actually a move… wait it was.

Kingler controlled the horn to drill toward the falling Pokémon.

"I was saving the cannon if you, as Ash Ketchum, produced another miracle." Giovanni sighed. "There obviously is no need now."

The Head-cannon expanded, and a giant rock flew out, directly for the horn.

There was an impact, and the next thing they knew was that the Ice construct was laying on the ground with a boulder stuck to it, completely immobilized.

The boulder smashed through half of the ice, pinning it to the ground.

" _Well, there's no fixing anything now._ " Kingler glared at Wartortle. " _I thought you're doing the dodging?_ "

" _You try to dodge with these fat legs!_ " Wartortle roared.

" _I TOLD YOU NOT to build them!_ " Kingler yelled.

" _That's proposterous!_ " Wartortle shouted. " _These legs are awesome._ "

" _I… I… just… what…_ " Kingler stared at him, and decided to return to his Pokéball, completely done with his life.

* * *

"Okay, so obviously impromptu didn't go well."

"Wow, Ketchum, you really outdid yourself right there" Giovanni smirked at Ash. "I thought with your curse, you would've performed a miracle and invent some ultra-destructive attack to annihilate me, and then give a speech on why the good side is all-powerful."

Ash gritted his teeth. The man standing in front of him was probably the last person in this world he wanted to lose to.

He wanted to prove himself to Domino's father… that was why.

Domino teleported over to him and tossed herself into him. "After that disaster, I think you need a hug."

"I think he's right." Ash grabbed onto the girl, sighing. "My Pokémon do need more cooperation training."

She looked at him. "YA THINK!?"

"Also, I need to train you to realize the beauty of architecture." Domino puffed out her chest. "I'm the master builder behind all of Abra Assets' theme parks. And that was when I was eight."

Ash bury his head into her curls. "Remember what I said to you when you lost to Koga?"

"That you win some, you lose some?" Domino snickered. "Harder to do now, isn't it?"

"Yeah…" Ash grumbled. "I wanted to go for an undefeated streak all the way to Kalos to make up for my ridiculous losses before."

"You technically didn't lose a League Gym Battle." Domino shrugged. "That was more like an Orange Island shit than an actual battle."

Ash releases her. By this point, Giovanni had made his way over, riding on a Rhyhorn. He extended a hand, and Ash politely shook it.

When he pulled his hand back, an Earth Badge was sitting in his palm. Ash sighed. "Thanks."

The Rocket Overload smiled. "I have finally beaten the great Ash Ketchum who had destroyed every one of my plans from last timeline."

Domino tugged on Giovanni's shirt. "Stop it. We all know Ash can't take a joke."

Ash didn't know how to respond. Here was the head of Team Rocket talking with him like nothing between them had occurred… Nothing actually did yet, but still!

Giovanni detected his awkwardness as well, and he tactfully stepped onto a tangent by pushing Domino over, while tossing a badge into her hand. "Take care of her."

"Yes, sir!" Ash chanted. He mentally slapped himself. He needed to get out of the mindset that Giovanni was not only the parent of his girlfriend, but also the greatest criminal lord of his time.

He didn't want to become submissive.

"I'm more like the one doing the protecting." Domino, on the other hand, protested. "Also, I want a fight too!"

"And I'm not giving you one." The man laughed. "You were the one who taught me architecture when you were six. You'll probably build an entire army in twenty minutes and blow up my gym."

Domino pouted and stuck her tongue out at him. Giovanni softened. This was a side of her he never got to see before Ash came along.

He should have let her out of that freezer of a headquarter sooner.

The Leader's eyes trailed over to the audience stand. "How was the show, Pewter, Cerulean Leaders?"

Ash's two companions stood up nervously as well. Like Ash, they didn't know whether they should act like they didn't know him, or…

"Great…" Brock sounded unconfidently.

Giovanni laughed. "Hypothetically speaking, if I was the Head of the greatest criminal organization on this planet, Team Rocket…"

Domino coughed. "Galactic."

The Rocket Boss retaliated by making her hair into a bird nest. "Anyways, then let's say I would be smart enough to not make the same mistake as last time by getting into the Chosen's way."

"In another hypothetical, if I was to make him my enemy, I wouldn't have approved of her journey with him the first time I heard of it." He gestured to Domino.

"Finally, if I was to rule over the world, hypothetically," Giovanni winked. "I need a planet to rule. Therefore, I will need to crush Cyrus's plans first… and I won't be doing anything else before Galactic crumbles."

"That makes us allies, since we all want to destroy him."

The two Gym Leaders exchanged a glance. They knew that this was the Rocket Lord's way of a peace treaty. They nodded.

"Understood, Viridian Leader." They echoed.

"Great." He smiled.

* * *

"Well… That was fun…" Domino sang as she trotted down the Viridian city path out to the forest. "How about we walk back this time? I want to re-experience when I first arrived at this timeline and met Ash in this forest."

Ash smirked. "We HAVE been doing a lot of teleporting. Let's enjoy nature for a while then."

Misty rolled her eyes. "You two just don't want to get back to Delia, who will cut a large portion of your alone time."

"In that case, we should give you guys some alone time as well." Brock chuckled. "A small getaway before the training for League starts."

Ash and Domino grinned, relieved that their friends got the hint. "In that case, I'll meet you guys in two weeks' time at Pallet."

"Deal!"

"Oh wait." Ash took his Pokébelt off, and Domino took her her Pokéballs as well. "Take these to Professor Oak. I promised her a totally poké-free week, with just her and me."

Misty and Brock exchanged a surprised look. Ash Ketchum giving up Pokémon for something!? Even only for a little while, this was major news, on the level on a man landing on the moon, or Donald Trump making a rational decision.

Domino looked at him sweetly. "Thank you."

"Of course, princess." The Knight in shining armor said.

* * *

 **A/N: The Gym Battle was not supposed to be serious. C'mon, we did eight serious ones already, and the two basically tore through most of them, and that's without me having them use Dragonite or Pikachu that much.**

 **And here's the comic relief before the great LEAGUE starts in a few chapters!**

 **I'm not having Domino fight Giovanni. There's no point. I don't want to make this serious.**

 **And, yes, the two Rockets are not acting coldly, like I had described them in the first ten chapters. This shows a progression of character in Domino, which also had a projected effect on Giovanni.**

 **Unlike the anime, my chapters will focus a lot on character development. Brock and Misty's development won't start until Johto, because Kanto would be Ash and Domino's paradise, like I have promised both you all and myself.**

 **Also beware that I am not calling Rockets evil. Remember that.**

 **Please enjoy, and be sure to follow and favorite. Please review! I always enjoy reading your comments, unless they say that I'm fat. Then I will retort with: "This is Amurica, what did ya expect!?"**


	52. Cha 51: Kanto 42

**Cha. 51**

 **A/N: Another chapter. Nothing too much happened, except tying up loose ends of the anime (not my own loose ends). Remember to read the Commercial section this time, if you normally don't.**

* * *

"Let's go somewhere really fun!" Domino chirped. "Somewhere out of this world!"

Ash groaned. "Haven't we already been somewhere out of this world? In fact, WAY too out of this world!"

"No, not that far…" The blonde coughed. "I was referring to the planet."

The Ketchum boy raised his head to the night sky. "You mean the moon?"

"Nope!" She said, popping the p. Somewhere no man has stepped foot on… or at least publicly.

"I want to take you to Mars!" She yelled and grabbed onto his hand.

Ash looked at her dubiously. "Can you even teleport that far?"

"I'm a Medieval!" She exclaimed. "So yes, if I zap out ALL of my powers!"

His eyes twitched. "You know that Mars is 130 times further than the moon, right?"

"Yep!" She pointed at the moon. "I can teleport to the moon and back at least fifty times. Teleportation isn't so hard."

"C'mon, let's go!" Domino tugged on his hand. "Then we can truly have a getaway where no one can find us! I'll have you all to myself."

"That was your plan all along, isn't it?" Ash laughed. "So how are we going to deal with the oxygen and radiation problems?"

Domino pulled out a bag from her purse. "When I took Clefairy to Mossdeep, their chairman gave me this bag of compressed survival kit that ensures survival on moon for two weeks."

"Which is why you had me say two weeks." Ash hummed.

"Yep! Mars probably isn't too different from the moon." She tossed another bag at Ash.

"Ready?"

"Ready!"

With a massive pink flash, the two disappeared from Viridian Forest.

* * *

"Sir!" A scientist knocked on Dr. Fuji's door. "Code Purple."

Fuji immediately looked up from his microscope. "Code WHAT?"

The scientist opened the door. "Code Purple, sir."

"Mewtwo is ready."

Dr. Fuji pushed the specimen he was working on out of the way and stood up. "What are you waiting for? GO!"

The two rushed out of the room, heading straight for the main laboratory. When they got there, the Rocket Trio were already standing there solemnly.

At the room's center was a giant cloning machine with tubes attached to it from all direction. A bipedal purple cat sat in it calmly. A glow shone from him.

And then, his eyes slowly opened.

To Mewtwo's right was Anna, Dr. Fuji's daughter. Her body trembled slightly, and she opened her eyes as well.

Dr. Fuji shook with exhilaration. Was this… could this be an actual success!?

His sweat and tears of years, countless nights of calculation, sacrificing his marriage, even his pride as head of Elite Four to work for Team Rocket…

"Anna…" He held out a hand toward the floating girl, quivering.

Recognizing her father, Anna gave a small wave in the container. A pink psychic wave flashed out of Mewtwo, and he crossed his arms.

In flash, he teleported both himself and Anna out of their chambers. Dr. Fuji rushed over and engulfed her in a large hug.

His daughter whom he hadn't seen in fifteen years… fifteen whole years… He had tears in his eyes.

His wife never thought he could succeed, but he did! He truly did. It took a timeline, a lifetime, but everything was worth it if he could get her back.

"Daddy?" A small voice echoed within his arms. Anna looked up at him with a dreamy expression. "I miss you."

"I miss you too! I miss you so much…"

The Rocket Trio and Mewtwo watched the exchange between the two, each feeling a warmth in their hearts.

" _This must be the meaning of life._ " Mewtwo looked to the skies. " _To enjoy the joyful times, and to protect those that supply these times…_ "  
" _I think I get it. The goal to living life is to cherish life._ "

Dr. Fuji stood up, with his daughter's hand in his. He bowed deeply to the legendary. "Thank you, Mewtwo. Thank you for helping her through the toughest times inside that machine…"

"I don't know how to repay you." Dr. Fuji held up a hand containing a piece of paper. "I know you're the world's strongest Pokémon, but…"

"If you need anything, anything at all, I would be at your service." The scientist bowed again.

" _It is my pleasure, Doctor._ " Mewtwo echoed. " _Anna is a great girl, and she was the one who introduced me to this world, who educated me._ "

" _She gave me the gift of knowledge, so I reiprocated with the gift of life._ " Mewtwo remarked. " _Equal trade._ "

Anna ran over and hugged the Genetics Pokémon. Mewtwo smiled an returned the hug.

"What are your plans after this?" Dr. Fuji asked.

" _Well…_ " Mewtwo answered immediately. " _I have been doing some thinking about this already._ "

" _I want to go around the world and see the place for myself. I have heard so many stories of adventures and powerful legendaries. I need to walk the lands with my own feet._ "

"Well, then it had been my pleasure to create you, Mewtwo." Dr. Fuji nodded. "If you need anything, I will be here at New Island, with Anna."

" _Actually, there is something I need right now._ " The Legend smiled as he levitated a Luxury Ball from Fuji's desk and turned to the Rocket Trio.

" _Hello, James, Jessie._ " Mewtwo paused. Meowth puffed out his chest at him. " _... Meowth._ "

The three grinned. Mewtwo continued. " _Thank you for training me and teaching me about how I should interact with the world. Your stories really intrigued me._ "

" _Celebi and Mew already took me touring the world after my brain was finished with cloning, so I got to see the world from a Pokémon's point of view._ "

" _I want to see the world from the human's perspective too._ " He said. " _I hope you can capture me so I could follow you on your travels._ "

The three Rockets stared at each other in shock, jaws dropping. James managed to recover first. "Did you just say you want us to capture YOU?"

" _Yes, because from what you have said, your lives are a giant roller coaster…_ "

The three looked at him in disbelief.

" _Also, I would love to meet this Ash fellow too. Seem like the kind of person who is…_ "

" _What's the word again?_ " The legendary tilted his head. " _Ah yes! Cataclysmic._ "

Jessie pulled the other two to the side. "So, is this actually happening!?"

James sounded hollow. "Don't know. Someone slap me."

Meowth jumped up and gave him a Double slap.

"OWW!" The man yelled. "What was that for!?"

"Ya said ta slap ya." The Scratch Cat tried to look innocent.

"You're just doing it because I didn't feed you that salmon last night!"

"Shut up, you two!" Jessie demanded. "Are we actually going to capture him? This isn't our style!"

"We're not supposed to sit back and have legendaries asking to be captured." She exclaimed. "That's supposed to be Ash's thing."

James shrugged. "I knew it was a bad idea hanging around him last time."

"Yeah!" Meowth agreed. "He was basically suckin' up our luck!"

The three turned around. James nodded. "We will capture you, Mewtwo."

" _Magnificent!_ " He moved the Luxury Ball into his hand.

James stared at it unsurely, then the glint in his eyes turned into one of confidence.

He muttered under his breath. "We had been annoying the Chosen One for eight years last timeline, and we still lived on healthily… that means we should be blessed with something as well."

"Therefore, go Pokéball!" He threw the Luxury Ball at Mewtwo. The ball opened and a pink beam shot at the Genetics Pokémon, who was vacuumed into the ball.

It shook once, twice, three times.

And then, there was a click. The ball fell to the ground, signaling a capture.

* * *

Oak stared at his Skype. "And that's it?"

"Yeah." Fuji nodded. "I can't believe it at the time either."

"Wait…" Professor Oak up stood up. "The giant problem that almost ended the world last time and nearly killed Ash just decided to get captured peacefully?"

"Mmhmm, and it's not a trick." Dr. Fuji breathed. "I think, at least. The Rockets have teleported off with him into Kanto."

"Well, if there is anything, it falls to us." The Kanto Professor sighed. "Ash and Domino are going on this getaway for the next two weeks."

"They said they're the Viridian Forest, but no one actually knows where they are."

"You should probably find your Pokémon that you left on New Island now that the project is done…" Oak trailed off. "Hold on! The project is done."

He peered at Dr. Fuji's face. An expression of joy radiated from it like unending ocean waves.

"Anna's alive!?"

"Yes!" Dr. Fuji found his voice rising up an octave. "Anna! Come over here!"

A bouncy, cyan-haired girl poked her face into the camera. Seeing her face, memories suddenly poured in Oak's mind.

Ten years. It had been ten years already.

Fuji married late, when he was near forty. Anna was also born late in his marriage. He was almost sixty when Anna had died to leukemia.

The passage of time, it seemed so evident now he thought about the past. He hadn't seen this adorable face in over ten years…

"Hello, Anna."

"Champion OAK!" She cried. "I'm so glad to see you again!"

Oak smirked. No one had called him that in such a long time, and seeing someone almost Ash's age call him that…

"Anna, I'm not Champion anymore." He said softly. "I retired a long time ago."

"WHAT!?" She echoed in shock. "You got defeated!?"

"No, I just got bored on that position." Oak chuckled. "I went into science instead, and it's been treating me quite well. I'm now the Kanto Professor."

"I missed a lot, didn't I?" Anna sighed and hugged her father tighter. "What else happened when I was gone?"

"Well…" Fuji opened his mouth, and then paused. "Ummm… so the world ended…"

* * *

Guzma looked solemnly at the paper, listing the consequence of the battle. Skulls died, but more Flare died as well.

He was finally overpowering them due to the elite power of Alola Pokémon and Giovanni's supplies.

After years of hard work, he had finally pushed all of the Team Flare intruders to the border.

He anticipated a large battle, a battle to end the war. If the gang won, then Team Flare would be completely pushed back to Kalos. A sense of confidence and spirit would finally descend upon the Skulls.

There would be a sense of pride, and that was the last thing he needed in order to turn the gang into a Team.

He phoned a number. "Hello, Giovanni."

* * *

 **Commercial Break**

 **For those who do read my commercial breaks know that this is a column for jokes… well, not today!**

 **I was browsing through Google with Fanfiction, and I saw that a lot of the fanfics have a TV tropes page.**

 **I thought to myself… it's freaking time Sign of Times get a page too.**

 **Here is my deal to you guys, my viewers: The first reader to make a TV Tropes page for this Fanfic and is willing to moderate it, and make it well enough for my approval, I am willing to dedicate an entire Movie around whichever idea YOU want to give me, with whatever demands YOU wish to add to the Movie.**

 **I have said before that I write like no one else does. This is an example of my insanity. I look forward to your proposals!**

* * *

Misty rode along the river past the Cerulean Peak. This was where everything happened.

This was where she was stopping to fish, and she ended up fishing out someone into her life that changed the course of her entire history.

Without him, she would just be another Water Gym Trainer…

But Misty did fished him out.

This was the turning point in her history. Destiny gave her a start. She followed that start until duties called her back to the Cerulean Gym after Johto.

She couldn't catch up to his pace. Ash just kept wanting to dash into life. She couldn't, or at least last time.

This time, she would try her hardest. Misty's eyes stared into the distance with determination. On her bike, she quickly approached her destination: the Arctic Sea.

"I'm coming for you, Lapras!" She said, looking into the ocean.

And she was going to reach her goal by first capturing all of the Kanto Water Pokémon. Afterall, only could a Water Master chase after the footstep of the greatest Pokémon Master.

And only could the Princess of the Ocean chase after the Chosen One.

* * *

Brock stood in the middle of the clearing, watching a shaking Pokéball. A few seconds later, the Pokéball rang as a signal of capture.

He picked up the Pokéball now containing Marowak. He had decided that despite being a Rock Gym Leader, he was going to specialize in both Rock and Ground.

The two had a lot of similarities. They were both symbols of firmness and sturdiness. They're both the most basic of elements, not as interesting as psychic, or creative as Water.

However, they are the foundation to this world, the element that the entire world stood.

Foundation.

He was the Knight of Foundation. He would serve under the Chosen with that title, he decided. He separated with Ash after Sinnoh last time.

But this time? He would traveled this road of destiny for as long as Ash should keep walking.

He looked to the sky. The light of dusk protested the moon's rising. He returned to his firepit and smirked.

How else would Ash survive without his cooking?

* * *

Arceus popped out of the bathroom of the Hall of Origins and held up a golden nail. He smirked.

Dialga, Palkia, the two Mews, and Sir Aaron stood, sucking in a deep breath as the Alpha raised his hammer.

"The last nail." Sir Aaron muttered. "Finally!"

Dialga sighed happily. " _Seriously, I haven't been this happy since I was born._ "

" _The torture is over!_ " Palkia cheered.

The two Mews tilted their heads. " _How is building a Hall that bad?_ "

" _Don't even speak in that tone._ " Dialga shot a look at her. " _You can't even build one even if you want to. You're not a Cosmic._ "

The two Mews huffed and combined energy. A burst of Life Energy zoomed out of her. " _I do have a Cosmic power!_ "

" _Yeah, when you two merge!_ " Palkia sneered. " _Plus, Mew 1, you haven't even passed the Cosmic Test yet!_ "

" _I said I'll get to it!_ " Mew 1 shouted.

"5,000 years ago." Sir Aaron deadpanned.

Arceus, seeing that the conversation had been drawn out more and more, placed down the nail. " _I guess I'll just wait until Giratina comes back to put on the final nail._ "

" _In the meantime, let's see if we could add a little something on…_ "

"NO!/ _NO!_ " The Cosmics yelled. " _Nail the damn thing on!_ "

Arceus smirked, pleased that the attention was back on him. The nail flickered onto the ceiling of the Hall, and the God smashed down with a Judgement onto the final nail, compressing it into the Hall.

All of a sudden, a burst of energy was released from the Hall and into the Bubble Realm. The Hall, while appearing to be not big, seemed to have fused with an entire universe.

There seemed to be an universe inside that little space, pulsating out its power.

The illusional Bubble Realm condensed with a sense of stability. At the same time, lights flashed from around the bubble and into Arceus.

The Original moaned and sat down comfortably. " _I finally don't have to maintain this separation anymore!_ "

The Mews' mouth dropped. " _Did you just create another universe!?_ "

" _Yep!_ " Arceus chirped. " _Cyrus destroyed every single parallel universe in the entire Universe of Pokémon. I had to maintain this last strand as a seed on which a new universe could be rebuilt, while at the same time maintaining an illusion in the real world that made Time think it still exists so progress won't stop._ "

" _Do you know how freaking HARD that is!?_ "

" _Now this place had stabilized reality for me._ " Arceus looked lovingly at his Hall. " _It is the first real universe after the separation. This is the best creation I had ever had._ "

* * *

Professor Oak's head swooshed to the time-space energy monitor. Some sort of powerful force was radiating through the entire universe.

His brow furrowed. What more could be going on!?

* * *

Cyrus stopped in his tracks and looked up into the sky. His eyes seemed to zoom through all remnants of illusion.

In his pupils, the reflection of a giant Hall was seen.

He shook uncontrollably, and a light flashed under his irises. When the light was gone, he continued to walk to the meeting room.

But there was no more bounce in his steps.

* * *

Giratina took a deep breath and stopped concentrating on the badminton game before him. A pulse of shadow energy rose from his body, and mirror of pure black materialized before him.

Inside the mirror, a large building stood firmly, as if towering the entire universe.

In the field, Dragonite got hit square in the head with the shuttlecock. He didn'tnotice though.

Streams of purple, Dragon Type energy zoomed from him. His power hadn't felt this uncontrolled since when he first ate that ball of lights when he was a Dratini.

* * *

Giovanni closed his eyes. To himself, he muttered.

"Good, now I don't have to worry about popping the balloon by accident."

* * *

It was a delicate balance. The balance kept all of them on their toes.

This way, no one dared to move too much. The world, though weak, stood at a stable point.

When the see-saw was refined to be more stable, there were a lot of consequences.

It wasn't so easy to break anymore… if no one still dared to move.

But the desire to move freely had always overcome the fear of falling. With a more stable bridge, beings started to try things they never had the courage to try before on a slippery ice bridge…

Like building a nuclear reactor.

* * *

Ash and Domino cuddled on Mars. They sat inside a sphere of crystals of some sort. Since there was no atmosphere, they could see into space without any light pollution or barrier.

The clouds of flashing silver turned, and stars winked at them.

"This is the best getaway ever." Ash whispered.

Domino held his hand. She was searching for her own constellation. Since she was on Mars, it wasn't in its original place on Earth.

After a while, she finally located the pattern. She smiled and held up her hand. "Do you still remember that time when you told me to make a wish when a comet landed?"  
Ash looked at her curiously. "No, when's that?"

"Beginning of our journey." None of them are using their powers, and the fire began to died down a little. Domino pulled him tighter to her.

"What did you wish for?" Ash asked, grinning, even though he could already predict her answer.

Her answer wasn't what he expected though.

"I wished to be a Seviper, and you a Zangoose." The girl recounted quietly.

Ash raised an eyebrow. "Aren't they enemies?"

Domino pointed at the constellation she was eyeing and said softly. "Not in their story."

* * *

 **A/N: Short. Purely time waster until League arrives. Oh yeah, the Creation Trio could finally stop complaining about being slaves.**

 **Hall of Origins… the life of legendaries, and not just the Cosmics… This will be fun to write.**

 **Please review, favorite, and follow.**

 **Crator out!**


	53. Cha 52: Future

**Cha. 52**

 **A/N: This chapter will be in the future. Don't be confused. This is an experiment to see if you like this style. Also, I just needed to kill time before Leagues.**

 **PLEASE review and comment. It acknowledges that someone is still out there reading my fic. Please also follow and favorite!**

 **And now, enjoy!**

* * *

 **Three Thousand Years Into the Future**

Claire was woken from her dream of swirling lights by a sharp, ringing sound. She instinctively threw her hand back and smashed down on a space beside her night lamp that contained her Raichu-shaped alarm clock.

She groaned and buried her face into the pillow, her messy blonde locks sputtering all over the soft cushion.

While she was trying to continue to escape reality, a relentless warning inside her own mind sounded.

Claire moved slightly, desperately trying to restrain the panic monster before it could scare off the procrastination monkey and pull her out of bed.

As the demanding timer shortens, she forced her eyes open just a peek. The chocolate brown orbs were instantly attacked by the glaring sunlight, forcing her eyelids to drop.

The bright rays of assault chased away some of the fog within her head though, trading oblivion for pain in the form of a massive headache.

She took the last few moments before the imaginary timer ran out to sift through her consciousness. Then, Claire waited for her mother's yell for her to get up.

The shout never came.

The young girl tilted her head in confusion and embraced the assail of the sunlight again. Then she realized that it was today.

Their anniversary… which meant that they would be gone for the entire day… starting exactly at midnight of last night.

That meant…

More memories flowed in. She remembered Dad telling her that she had to make her own breakfast, and Mom saying to take her black jacket to school… and not the pink one Dad gave.

Dad retorted by commanding her to wear the Pokéball hat he gave her for Christmas. Claire giggled. Her parents always had these fun, pointless arguments.

Wait!

Breakfast!

The panic monster mutated into a nuclear bomb and exploded in her head, blowing the procrastination monkey into pieces. Claire flung herself out of bed and ran to the bathroom in her cute Mew pajamas.

Flipping CRAP!

She KNEW the warning was supposed to hint at something. Claire rushed out of the bathroom, trying to brush her teeth and wear socks at the same time, and shot a glare at the clock, which seemed to be going faster than normal.

Seven-fifteen! School starts at seven-thirty!

Her plan of action raced through her mind as she succeeded in finishing brushing her teeth, while one sock still remained on the floor.

It would take her fifteen minutes to get dressed and put on makeup, especially well enough for Victor to notice her. Breakfast would take five minutes to prepare, and then she could eat it on the way to school.

It would take five minutes for her to bike to school, but since Dad's Pikachu broke that AGAIN, even with its Neutronium shell, that wasn't an option.

Consequently, it'll take her fifteen minutes to walk to her high school. If she ran at her top speed, then it would be around seven minutes, which was a mile… while passing pedestrians stared at her weirdly, even though they were probably once in the same situation.

Now, Claire couldn't Aura-enhance her speed, or else she couldn't manage eating her breakfast at the same time. Therefore, she had to settle for the seven minutes, while gobbling up her food mid-run with Aura so she wouldn't choke to death.

That added up to… More math! Twenty seven minutes? Claire groaned and counted mentally. She was never good at math. That's Olivia's forte.

OLIVIA! She could get her best friend to cover her, for just, well, thirteen minutes…

But then, she had to endure another lecture from her about being on-time and all of that crap that she loved her for.

Afterall, she was her guardian angel. In their bond, Claire was the more wild one, a trait she inherited from her mother, while Olivia was supposed to be more calm.

Supposed to be! And then Claire's mind wandered back to the time when she made Riley cry when he smashed her birthday cake nine years ago. Good times.

Her mind snapped back to her current situation and hurried to finish getting dress. She shot another look at the clock, internally moaning about the hand going too fast.

Then, she slammed opened the door to her bedroom and flew downstairs. Claire lived in a big house… a mansion, even. For the first time, she grumbled about the sheer size she had to run to get to the kitchen, before digging out some white bread, peanut butter, and jelly.

She dialed a number and threw her Transceiver XI on the table, enabling speaker mode. If she had to call Olivia, she needed to call fast. The bell was about to ring, and Olivia powered down her phone as soon as class started, no exception.

Claire frantically smeared some of the mixture from the jars onto each side, not caring about the unequal distribution caused by her distressed movements.

If her parents were here, she mused, they would probably scold her together. They HATED if each side wasn't perfected ornated with the most precise measurements.

But again, if they were here, she wouldn't be in this conundrum of waking up late AND having to make her own breakfast.

Even she still was, Mom would just teleport her to school. Claire groaned again. She regretted having to choose Aura on her fifth birthday over Psychic. If she vowed to train with Mom, then life would be a lot easier. School would be here in a snap of her fingers.

The phone picked up as she shoved the poorly-made-sandwich into a plastic bag, which she threw into her lunchbox.

Normally, she had to make another one for lunch, but this time, she decided to risk of potential food poisoning from cafeteria lunch.

"Claire!? Where ARE you!?" A familiar voice sounded on the other end.

Claire opened her mouth, but the other line was suddenly interrupted by a piercing sound of the late bell.

"Gotta go! Catch you later." Olivia's voice drifted into her ears, and she could feel her hand reaching for the 'end call' button.

"WAIT! Please!" Claire winced mentally. Breaking Olivia's tradition was going to cost her. The blonde knew not to mess with her best friend's phone rules, and Olivia knew to never disrupt her when she draws.

"Make it quick! Professor Yuto is about to walk in!" The stern voice then softened. "You're late, aren't you?"

"Yes! Cover for me!" Claire begged while shoving the contents she didn't pack from last night into her bag.

"What should I say!?"

"I don't know!" The girl shouted, moving as fast as she could. She was five minutes ahead of her predicted routine, but she was still going to be seven minutes off. "Say I have diarrhea or something!"

"Diarrhea? Are you kidding me?" The other line deadpanned.

"Please!? For me?" Claire begged. "C'mon! I got you the Transceiver XI for Christmas from Dr. Akihabara and it is STILL not released two months after."

"FINE!" Olivia muffled. "Get your butt here NOW, because I'm putting mine on the line. No one messes with Dr. Giselle Yuto."

"COMING!"

* * *

Claire gave a sigh of relief. Olivia was a great liar, even better than she herself. The only person whom she knew could lie better was her mother, but that was because the skill was practiced and perfected over a long time.

That'll buy her some time. The girl rushed out of the door, with a PB&J in hand. In front of their lawn, the wasted Neutronium bike lied motionless. She sighed and dashed down the street.

Why couldn't she get a Pokémon!? She thought to herself. She was freaking sixteen! Her parents got theirs when they were ten!

Stupid League, thinking that we're immature! Claire passed the Aurora Hall, a colossal Frontier arena seated right next to her house.

She pouted as she thought about how her Dad got to go to work literally across the street, while she had to run a mile to school.

She devoured her sandwich in under two minutes. Still a little slower than Dad, even under immense pressure, Claire judged. His record time was a minute and twenty seconds.

Well, now that she finished her sandwich and fortunately did not choke to death, her steps quickened even more, a powerful stream of Aura shooting into her shoes.

The trip was even shorter than she expected. Five minutes. Claire thought to herself, it was only five minutes, Dr. Yuto won't be so mad.

Now, there was only one thing blocking her from the entrance of the school. Well, two things:

School guards.

She could easily manipulate past the guards by just walking on walls past them into the front door, and then she could just dodge out of the way of patroling teachers even easier and make it to Professor Yuto's class.

Now, that was what could have happen if the boy didn't just jump in front of a damn car.

* * *

Claire caught sight of the bus instantly. Even at top speed, she was trained at a young age to look out everywhere.

However, the teenagers in front of her obviously didn't. Before he knew it, a public bus was rushing at him.

Now, stories and movies of people jumping out to save another person from an incoming bus flashed in Claire's mind, but she wasn't that stupid.

An Aura Sphere formed in her hand, and she threw it at the boy, blowing him across the street narrowly before the bus zoomed by.

"That was way too much of a coincidence…" She muttered and looked at the sky. "Buses drive at freaking two miles per hour."

She shook her head and ran toward the fallen boy, helping him up delicately.

"Thank you!" He panted. "Thank you so much! I'll be doomed without you."

"Doomed? That's too dramatic." Claire rolled her eyes. "You'll be paralyzed for life at most."

The boy laughed and stuck his hands into his pocket. "I'm William, by the way."

"William." She repeated. "Nice to meet you. Where are you rushing to, so urgently?"

"School." The teen breathed. "I'm late by four minutes already."

A bell rung in Claire's head. Crap. "That's where I'm heading too. See you later!"

The blonde dashed off frantically, followed by the boy.

"Why are you following me!?" She yelled back.

"I'm not!" The response came. "This way is my school!"

"Where do you go?"

"Pokémon League Academy."

Claire turned back disbelievingly. Only people whose parents or grandparents were in the League could go to that private high school… including herself. Each grade was only fifty something people. She had never seen him before.

His blue eyes seemed clear as he stared back. He wasn't lying, she determined. "Okay. That's where I'm heading now. Who's in the League in your family?"

"My Mom. She recently became a referee in Southern Kanto." He responded. "What about you? Your Mom as well?"

Claire laughed out loud as she pictured her mother being in League. "Hell no! Dad is."

Their conversation ended as they ran the last two minutes to the school. The guards were still there, making the boy frown.

The girl smirked and grabbed his hand. "Don't freak out."

Her Aura formed a chain around William, pulling him up as she jumped onto a wall and stuck there.

The boy's eyes bugged out as he observed her manipulating their way past the guards. They dropped down into the still-opened door, which won't be closed until eight.

Claire gave a smirk at the standing boy. "Don't get caught, and flew up the stairs before any teachers showed up.

William looked after her as she ran off, a smile floating onto his face.

"Claire." The taste of that name sounded so elegant, so refined. It fit her perfectly.

Footsteps sounded, and he quickly evaded off. He could have gotten past the guards as well, but just not as easily…

* * *

Claire sneakily peeked into the room. Dr. Yuto's back was turned. Awesome.

She quietly opened the door and left it open, afraid that closing it may result in noises. Her seat was in the last row, so she only needed to traverse this last few feet without getting caught.

Three, two, last feet. She slipped in and took a long sigh. Olivia motioned next to her, and Claire flashed her a peace sign.

Her best friend, dark blue hair sitting adorably on her shoulders, gave her a not-so-adorable glance. Claire stuck out her tongue.

She turned her head to the other side, and Victor grinned at her. She winked back.

At the beginning of the school year, she had hacked into the system and placed the three of them in the same first period class. Olivia wanted to sit up front, which Claire refused with a death grip on her arm.

Eventually, the blonde got her wish to get in the back, even though she had to trade that for sitting up front in second period.

Victor sneaked a piece of paper on her desk. She looked down and smirked.

She scribbled furiously. _Not bad yourself either._

This was their routine… and it wasn't going to change for anything.

Thanks to her parents.

* * *

 **A/N: What was this? I don't know, tbh. I'm on a freaking writer's block right now, and I happened to want to write something about the future when the Sign of Times plot was over and a story about school.**

 **Welp… there you go!**

 **Follow and Favorite!**


	54. Cha 53: Kanto 43

**Cha. 53**

 **A/N: Screw training. Going straight to Leagues, 'cause I don't know what to write about during the training time. I ain't writing about** _ **Pokémon in Love,**_ **because it's so weird and illogical on so many different levels. Plus, Ash definitely will NOT spend the time training on making a movie. Maybe it's because of THAT he lost the League. But again, the anime series is known for its confusion and lack of sense.**

 **If I just write about training, you guys will probably accuse me of being trash, and I'll run out of jokes in half a chapter.**

 **Anyways, enjoy! Comment, favorite, and follow! Please do one of these, so I know that I have readers! Please, please, please!**

* * *

Ash whistled as he walked down Victory Road to Indigo Plateau. Yes, walked, not flashed. He wanted to experience the journey down to the capital of Kanto again.

At a crossroad intersecting with Route 1, he snickered.

Misty looked over at him. "What?"

"Victory Road." Ash pointed at the sign. "I'm going to make it true this time."

Brock laughed. "I know you've gone really hard in the last four months, but so have we, and probably all of the other trainers as well."

Brock and Misty disappeared for three of the four months, venturing in Kanto, capturing their own Pokémon. Even Ash didn't know what they were hiding, but from the uprising confidence that the two Gym Leaders were showing, quite decent progress must have been made.

Although the Gym Leaders, as League officials, couldn't compete in the Conference, Ash was still dying to have a battle with them, searching for the perfect opportunity.

"Don't forget me." To his left, Domino smiled and poked him. "I will snatch that trophy out of your hands, Ketchum!"

"Try me!" Ash stuck his tongue out.

The honeymoon stage between the two had faded during the first three months, and they were back to their bickering selves.

Which was fine by the both of them. Unlike before, the weight of the sexual tension built up could be released in a wild demonstration of passion more furious than the burst of Mt. Cinnabar right after their conflicts. This was them, and nothing would ever be better.

The two smiled at each other, and connected hands. Brock and Misty also grinned at the scene, admiring the duo who was the most deserving of love in the entire universe.

Who else had traversed timelines and dimensions to obtain true love?

* * *

The competition was in seven days, and the Capital was already crowding up with people. Most viewers wanted to come early to get good hotel rooms, which were in mass availability in the Plateau for just this reason.

Ash and Domino cherished the fact that registered competitors get a pre-designated room beforehand, and Brock and Misty got to skip the entire line process by showing their badges.

The line for the two challengers went pretty quickly as well, as there were relatively few people there. From Ash's experience, most people didn't show up until the last week, trusting that they could be the first ones there, since they ALL believed that people checked in the week of.

He showed up right before the rush started. He didn't want to go through last timeline's wait again, especially with The Impatient Princess beside him.

However, for our protagonists, convenience meant trouble. Passing through security, the Officer Jenny looked at his face, and then looked back at the monitor, then back up. She stopped him dead in his tracks, along with Domino passing behind him.

She led the two to the side. Ash frowned. "Is there anything wrong with my bag, ma'am?"

Domino had teleported all of their stuff that could potentially release enough energy to trigger a reaction to the Gym Leaders on the other side. They would just go pick it up once they passed through… once again showing that the anti-psychic barriers were completely useless.

His current bag was just for show. It had nothing except for dinner and a tent, so there was no way there could be anything wrong with it.

Officer Jenny led the way to a building diverted off from the main entrance. Ash frowned. This clearly wasn't about bags…

Domino was a lot more sensative than Ash, and she stopped and grabbed her boyfriend.

Officer Jenny turned around, alert, and took on a defensive stance. Domino's eyes narrowed. "Taking us somewhere?"

The woman blew a whistle, and multiple officers started popping out of the bushes with Arcanine and Growlithe, putting them into a circle.

" _Bystanders! Be turn away from this area!_ " A megahorn sounded. " _The League is currently dealing with an extremely dangerous criminal! Find protection immediately!_ "

The two's heads swished around to find Lance showing up with his team of Elite Four… technically Elite Three.

Lance held a megaphone to his side. The Champion's eyes narrowed. "Domino! How nice of you to show up!"

The Elite smiled back, showing off her nicer teeth. "And how nice of you, Lance, to organize more useless efforts to capture me!"

The two glared at each other, and Lorelei broke the temporary silence. "Do you really think, 009, you can waltz into Indigo Plateau and expect to show all of us off like chickens?"

The Black Tulip gave her a calm smile. She had never been scared of the League, especially not now with powers. "Yeah, and what are you going to do?"

"I will charge you with third degree murder, kidnapping, poaching, assault, and destruction of property, for a start!" Lance yelled. He then pointed at Ash standing next to Ms. Criminal. "And you! Treason!"

Ash, who was about to intervene, hoping this didn't become too big, looked at Lance with the same glance one would use on a moron. "You, are charging me, ME, of TREASON?"

Domino burst out laughing as she bent down, clutching her stomach. The surrounding officers tensed, raising their weapons, which didn't seem to bother her at all. Ash felt a stream of teenage blood surge to his head, washing away any maturity he developed through the years.

Even with the eight years of previous experience, he was still a teenager. He laughed with Domino. "Why the hell are you charging ME?"

"For cooperating with high levels of Team Rocket, potentially with the mysterious Rocket Boss himself." Lance growled.

"Out of which eye had you seen me 'cooperating'?" Ash retorted. "Give me once piece of evidence."

Lance opened his mouth, and then closed it.

"Exactly, nothing!" Ash grinned coldly. "And that's because I'm not."

"Stop with your bull!" The Champion roared. "You know what you did! We are detaining you for a suspect for staying in constant contact with Team Rocket!"

"I've had enough with this freakshow." Domino rolled her eyes and grabbed Ash's hand. "Now you should understand why we exist: Because you all suck. If we have to rely on you retards to take down everything within Kanto and Johto, all you will see is more criminals running around than before.

Lance narrowed his eyes. "Tase them!"

Ash smirked and pulsed out a 360-Aura Shield, blocking out all of the attacks easily. Domino grabbed him and teleported out in a mere instant, disappearing in sight.

The Elites and Officers looked to Lance in confusion, and the Champion stared off into the distance.

From afar, two figures rushed toward the scene. When they stopped at looked at the formation, they instantly guessed what had happened.

Misty glared at Lance. "What did you do that for!?"

Lance's eyes burned as he drilled a hole in her. "You two would be punished as well for concealing crucial information to a potential anarchy!"

Brock held Misty back, trying to stop her from pouring gasoline on the fire. He said firmly. "We are in no way violation of the League Code, even those designated to Gym Leaders."

"We have by no means seen any damage to the people or property of the League as we traveled with them, but we have seen both of them saving numerous others on countless occasions."

The Kanto Champion sneered at him, completely unconvinced. "Would you like to swear that under oath, as well as giving us every detail of that journey?"  
"I would." Brock stated.

"Prepare a lie-inspector too." Misty added snarkily. "Because some of the things we will tell you would not be believable by the average idiot."  
"I will not have you talk to me in that tone, young lady!" Lance roared.

Misty yelled back. "And I will not have you accuse my friends just because of your one-sided intuition!"

Brock struggled to hold her back and dialed a number.

The Elites glanced at him warningly. Brock held their gazes sharply.

Within a few seconds, the phone rang in. "Professor Oak?"

"The League is about to be in major trouble. They've pissed off BOTH Ash and Domino."

* * *

As Kanto Professor, he told people that he led a crowded schedule… which was how he obtained his funds.

His routine was indeed decently occupied, but not as exaggerated as the science journal entries made it out to be.

Heck, even Gary and Giselle were busier than he, having to both train up Pokémon and conduct research at the same time, while reading up on more background research papers that Oak had already memorized for forty years.

He was sitting comfortably in the shade of a tree in his ranch, observing the rare tranquility in his backyard. It wasn't often that he got to sit by the beach without having random Solarbeams tossed over his head… or worse.

Wartortle's smoothie inventions.

Looking into the Pallet Sea, which the giants have decorated to become a massive underwater theme park, he sighed at the detailed ornations that added a sense of class to the plain ocean.

He was content. His grandson was following his footsteps in becoming both a Pokémon Master and elite researcher. He had a mansion of a house, and the grandest title that could be placed on a scientist's head.

His trainers were saving the world, and his research was going very well. Most of all, he had Celebi by his side… figuratively, not literally.

The Time Traveler was sometime in the past fooling around with the other Legends whom she decided to randomly hijack on an adventure.

And then the phone rang.

Seeing the ID was the young Pewter Gym Leader, a mixture of both relief and distress floated up. It was Brock who called, and not Ash, which was a good sign.

Ranking of disastrous news deliverer: Ash, Domino, Misty, Brock. The more in front, the worse.

After all, Professor Oak loved making lists and ranks. That was how he came up with the ranking for the powers of Legendaries, with Celebi's help, of course.

The sense of distress came from, well, one of the four still freaking called, didn't he.

Waving goodbye to his peace, Oak flipped open his Transceiver.

"Professor Oak?"

"Hello, Brock!"

"The League is about to be in major trouble. They've pissed off BOTH Ash and Domino."

Oak froze. In the long years that he had lived and even re-lived because of Celebi's pranks, he rarely had a moment of panic.

He made a list for that too.

First time he time traveled. Fighting to get Celebi back. His F in art history. When the world ended.

Yeah, pretty much it.

This wasn't one of those panicking moments, but the alarm was sounding that it might very well evolve into one of those situations.

"Put me on speaker." The Professor said somberly. Even through the phone, his serious and unwavering voice carried a sense of dignity and power, a side he scarcely showed after retiring.

"LANCE?"

On the other end, the Kanto Champion twitched. This was the one man he hadn't stood up to in his past, but he was determined to hold his position this time.

"Listen carefully." Oak breathed into the phone, careful not to grasp the delicate machine too harshly. "Do NOT do ANYTHING until I arrive."

"This is a command from the Kanto Professor." His stern voice echoed. "This is an executive order using my identity as the Chief Professor of the Region. I DEMAND you to halt all actions until I arrive."

"Any disobeyment will result in the investigation and detainment of the Kanto League and postponing of the Conference."

Even through the phone, Professor Oak's glare shone. "Do not make me go there."

With that, he hung up, not giving a single chance for the other end to respond and rushed hurriedly into his lab.

A few minutes later, he returned with an old Pokéball. With a flash, a Dragonite was released in a white beam.

"Indigo Plateau." Oak sighed and patted his old pal. Dragonite picked him up and placed him on his back. "And I need you to go at sonic this time, buddy. You think you can manage it?"

The Professor's top Pokémon roared. The sound waves burst through the clouds, dispersing it on instant. He smiled. "Good. I know you still got your skills."

The old Dragonite lifted off and blasted through the air, with a power that could match any Ancients and put any Medieval to shame. A few seconds later, a shockwave sounded just high enough not to shatter the Oak Laboratory windows.

On Dragonite's back, the aged Professor had to be careful of the speed, a velocity he hadn't rode with for decades. He didn't have time to enjoy the exhilaration though.

He dialed in another number, which picked up after a few rings.

Oak shouted into the Transceiver, which sounded loud and clear with Dragonite's speed, tossing the sound waves past them.

"FUJI! Get your butt to League Capital RIGHT NOW if you don't want a Mewtwo x11 to blow up.

The ex-Elite Head winced on the other end. Since they both knew about the Mewtwo incident, they had made a scale for the level of world disaster that could happen, using Mewtwo's impact from the last timeline as units.

Dr. Fuji recalled the scale only going up to ten though…

"Sh*t."

* * *

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* * *

Lance breathed heavily as a bulky Dragonite soared in from above the clouds. He could see a cone-shaped shockwave trailing behind him.

The Pseudo Legendary slowed down as it approached the Indigo Plateau, trying hard not to shatter any windows right before League.

Almost at the same time, to the Elite Four's west, an equally strong Mega Salamence dove in at an even quicker speed.

She caught up to the Dragonite, and the two Dragons circled the Plateau once until their speeds bled off, descending in spirals.

Oak shot a look at the rider next to him and waited until the winds died down enough to shout. "FUJI! Where did you get that Mega Stone!?"

"At New Island, right underneath my eyes." Fuji grinned. "Boss brought in an examination team to run through the entire island, making sure nothing is wrong. They dug this up at the coast, along with ones for Metagross, Aggron, Beedrill, and a few others that they identified as suspiciously energetic."

"Jesus, you've hit a patch of gold!" Oak remarked.

Fuji laughed. "These things are so much more valuable than gold."

"Well, let's celebrate later then." Professor Oak fixed his glare on a red-haired man in a flamboyant cape standing in the center of the Plateau Square, along with familiar others. "We've got a enormous problem at hand."

The Dragons landed at the same time, and their riders hopped off, not as agily as twenty years ago, but still with a mighty fluency.

Surveying the surroundings and not seeing the two centers of attention, Oak turned to Brock and Misty. "Where are them?"

"They teleported off a while ago when Lance tried to arrest them." Misty kept glaring at said Champion, so Brock responded. "So Ash is probably somewhere restraining Domino from making any irrational decisions that would completely tore up the peace between League and Rocket."

The Kanto Professor turned his gaze to Lance. "Give me an explanation for your attitude and actions to my trainers."

Lance's eyes twitched. He seethed. "These people are criminals! They aim to destroy the world!"

Misty facepalmed. Even Brock had to roll his eyes in respect to the irony of the situation. The absolute f*cking irony.

"If you get to actually KNOW them, you would not make such a poor judgement!" Oak remarked in a deep voice, signaling the borders of eruption. "I have approved them myself by giving them both a Pokédex. Do you not respect my decisions as well?"

Lance cowered, and puffed out his chest in rage as he cursed himself for being under the ex-Champion's might for so long.

"Oak! You cannot command me! I am a Champion, and I stand as an equal to you!" Lance stated, his eyes squinting, as if to boost up his courage.

"Everyone is equal to me, Lance. To both me and you. We are all humans." Professor Oak gave him a hard stare. "Which is why you should respect every one of them and make a clear background check before accusing anyone of anything."

"I DID!" The response was rapid and rushed. Lance, in rage, pointed at the old Professor. "They are part of the Arceus damned Team Rocket! And Team Rocket are the most villainous Team in the area!"

* * *

Arceus shook his head as he sipped lemonade from the comfort of the living room couch in the Hall. " _Don't drag me into this, moron. I can't believe I created someone as stupid as you._ "

" _He wasn't so idiotic when he challenged me to obtain the rank of Champion._ " Dialga shrugged and clarified. " _The Trainers rank, not the League Title._ "

( **A/N: The ranking for Pokémon trainers are as follows: Champion, Elite, Master, Veteran, Sr. Trainer, Jr. Trainer, Rookie. Refer to Kanto 24 for more details.)**

" _Actually, he was. He said that he knew he'll beat you because his Dragonite never suffered a loss._ " Palkia commented. " _Little did he know that all he beat was a fragment of you as an Ancient because you couldn't fully descend into his world without breaking time._ "

"Humans, man!" Sir Aaron shook his head while dipping his feet into the pool… in the living room. "They get their heads so full when they reach a certain degree of power."  
" _You're a human too._ " Arceus reminded him.

"No, I'm a Cosmic." The Knight responded, and then paused. "See, condescension proven."

* * *

The Kanto Professor's eyes narrowed. "So are you just going to arrest any Rocket members you can identify and charge them for life in prison?"

"Not for life." Lance contemplated. "But at least for a short thirty or fifty years."

"Ummm, Champ." Bruce pulled on Lance's sleeve. "That's a little excessive."

"A LITTLE!?" Oak exploded. "Do you KNOW what these people have went through!? Do you really think that they don't have morals!?"

"Do you UNDERSTAND that life pressured them into tough situations, and they are forced!" Oak yelled. "FORCED to join Team Rocket, in order to survive from poverty! From threats! From discrimination! From so many other reasons that we are blessed enough not to go through!?"

"If they really have morals," Lance took a step back and growled. "They would have the discipline to restrict themselves from committing crimes."

"Are you kidding me!?" The scientist's eyes turned to a fireball. "You are blaming the people now for your fault?"

The Champion stared at him, confused. "How the crap is that my fault?"

"Because the people are suffering, and the League that they have established and placed faith into are doing jacksh*t!" Oak's voice turned chilly, even more threatening than his previously fiery breath. "They are suffering from taxes, umemployment, social segregation, RAPE!"

"And the League is not solving any of these problems!" Oak took a step forward. Lance took one back. "You, as the Head of League is to be blamed directly!"  
"We _have_ been solving the problems!" Said leader argued. "We are raising taxes only to eradicate Team Rocket, which would make everyone's lives better again!"

"NO IT WON'T!" Oak roared. "I don't understand how Goodshow could approve of all of the decision you make!"

"You have been in the League yourself! Both of you!" Lance shouted and pointed at Oak and Fuji. "You know what it is like to be unable to please everyone! We have to lean toward the majority of Kanto."

"Which is exactly how you are forcing these people into Team Rocket." Fuji said ahead of his furious best friend. "These people are not criminals. They just want to make a living."

"It's Ying and Yang. Once the League favors the majority, the socially independent, and thus powerful, of the population, the lower class couldn't do anything."

"They are not going to just submit to fate and starve. Therefore, they joined Team Rocket." Fuji elaborated. "Desperate times lead to desperate actions. Instead of sympathizing with them, the League is blinded by the luxuries they currently have in the government and contrasted your seemingly higher appearance with their despairing exterior."

"You feel morally superior, which is why you never aimed to help them." The cloning scientist's arms tensed. "And for twenty years, you never did."

"So you are justifying that Team Rocket is right!?" Lance narrowed his eyes.

"No! I am saying that it's necessary." Fuji concluded.

The Elites looked at him in deep shock. "Are you hearing what you are saying, Fuji?"

"I am hearing every word!" Fuji took a deep breath.

"Fine! I'll give it to you that not all Rockets are evil!" Lance shouted. "But she is DOMINO! The Black Tulip! 009! One of Giovanni's TOP ELITES."

"You said 'not all Rockets are evil.'" Dr. Fuji stated. "That's wrong. It's not that 'not all Rockets are evil,' but that MOST of them aren't."

"And do you have any idea what is going on in the Rocket base!?" Fuji shouted. "The Boss is starting an all-out-war with Hoenn just so that Team Magma and Aqua won't diffuse into Johto and start chaos! As Champion, do you have any clue Maxie and Archie were going to do that!?"

"No, I do not." Lance paused. "And how do you know?"

Dr. Fuji took a deep breath. Professor Oak, knowing his friend for over forty years, held onto his shoulder.

"You don't have to do this, Fuji."

"No, I do." The Doctor smiled. "It's time the world knows, and it's time we wipe out the stereotypes. The 'good vs evil' mindset had been going on for too long."

Fuji looked straight into the Elites' eyes and deadpanned. "I'm 008, Team Rocket Elite."

The jaws of his audience dropped, and tasers and guns were raised. Fuji stared at them without any signs of fear. "That's what I've been for the past fifteen years."

Professor Oak roared at the Officers Jenny. "Put down your guns!"

His potent tone made the guns drop, and the ex-Champion turned to the League Elites, still in deep shock.

"Now, do you want to go in an office building, or keep standing out here, making a scene?"

* * *

The guards asked whether Lance wanted them to stay with him, and the Champion motioned for them to leave.

He looked tiredly at the two old men. His head hurt more than the time he was kicked by Dragonite after giving him a wicked haircut. "What is going on? Someone, please just explain."

Fuji closed his eyes. "Story is simple. Anna died twenty years ago from leukemia, at the same time Samuel decided to retire from Champion."

"I got a cloning Ph. D. at Pokémon Tech Institute and went to work for Team Rocket, who was investing in a cloning project." Fuji sniffed. "Maybe it was the pain of losing her, and then my marriage in quick succession, but I decided to look past the illusional barrier for good and evil."

"For once, I didn't follow the rules that were drilled into our minds that separated good and evil. I've been what many people deemed as a hero my entire life, and then I get repaid with this."

"I ventured into the lands of Team Rocket, who gave me a chance of resurrecting Anna." He sighed. "The Rocket Boss told me that he will offer me a position as the Lead Scientist, and he will not force me to do anything against my morals, as long as I swore to not reveal any secrets."

"He had the courage to let the Head of Elites, at the time, into his headquarters without questioning, as long as I swore. He bet on that I, as the so-called good guy, will never betray my oath… and he was right.

"The Rocket Overload is a very smart man, but that wasn't just it. He was also decisive, open, and daring. He was willing to take a risk based solely on a completely opposite perspective, just because he trusted in his prediction of the power of promises of a previous enemy."

"This is why he is able to maintain a massive underground network and match the League in power, even though his actions are constantly shamed and disintegrated under the light."

"He knows how to look at the big picture and pinpoint a keystone in the future. He truly has the intelligence of an emperor, which is quite scary." Fuji shot a look straight at Lance. "You, my friend, only knows the standard operating procedure of a League."

"There's really no competition here."

"WHAT ARE YOU SAYING!?" Lance snarled.

"We're saying that you are limited." Oak deadpanned. "And the biggest evidence of all: You chased away ASH KETCHUM!"

"And, holy Arceus's crap, he's a damn 'good guy.' And somehow Rocket Boss made Ash feel amiable to the Rockets, and you still didn't as the LEAGUE, you freaking retard!"

"So…" Lance trailed off and looked at Fuji. "You're still an Elite for Team Rocket?"

"We're still on this huh?" Fuji sighed and nodded yes.

Lance turned around and pulled Agatha, Bruno, and Lorelei to the side.

Oak and Fuji crossed their arms, while Misty and Brock stared at the two, speechless.

Misty whispered to her fellow Gym Leader. "I've never seen Professor Oak like this before…"

"Maybe we have." Brock paused. "In Johto with that Celebi incident. Professor is just more threatening as seventy than ten."

The League Elites turned around and sat back down. Lance refused to speak, so Lorelei took his floor.

"Dr. Fuji, I don't know what to do about you…" She sighed, not knowing what to say, now understanding why Lance tossed the job of communicating to her. She chose her words carefully. "We're not going to do anything radical until the situation has been fully understood."

"There will be an investigation, which would be held until the League has sufficient funding." The Ice Type Trainer hoped the two elders got the hint, which they did.

"In addition, we will let Ash proceed with his tournament." Clearing her throat, she went on. "As for the Rocket Elite, we will too if you will take up all responsibility for any possible mishaps that are stimulated by Rocket activities within the League session."

There was no way they would've made that decision if it wasn't for the two respected men's immense pressure. After all, the Elites all knew they weren't going to leave unless the League backed down.

Rarely were old people more stubborn than Agatha, but these two were doubtlessly two of the few.

And they couldn't do crap about it. They both had more experience and fame than the four of them combined… sh*t.

"We'll take that _verdict_." Oak laughed. "I'm sure Rocket Man would take care NOT to ruin the League his daughter is participating in."

The four Elites' eyes shrunk at Oak's news. Lance took in a deep breath. They really knew nothing about this organization, now that he thought about it, not even the Boss's name.

"And under one more condition." Lorelei continued after seeing Lance's motion. "She would either have to give up her Rocket identity and secrets, or she beats him in a one-on-one Pokémon battle."

* * *

 **A/N: Pre-League cursor. You guys know I can't just settle with a Torch Ceremony to open our first League!**

 **Welp, I've basically written Lance to be an angry, idiotic muppet. Lol. At first I was going for a court case, but that would just bore the crap out of both you and me.**

 **Anyways, be sure to review and comment. Hit that Favorite and Follow button.**

 **I hope you have enjoyed!**


	55. Cha 54: Kanto 44

**Cha. 54**

 **A/N: The amount of comments/PMs that thought Lance would be crushed is concerning. Keep in mind that the two are just starting off. As powerful as I make them sound, Lance is a freaking Champion!**

 **Anyways, be sure to vote on my poll on my profile page about the Orange League.**

 **Enjoy! Follow, Favorite, and Review!**

* * *

Misty sighed as she flipped open her Transceiver and hit one of the calls. "Hey Dom."

"Are you still with them?" The other line stated.

The Water trainer casted a glance at the Elites in the room. "Yep. And Professor Oak and Dr. Fuji are also here."

"They are?" A different voice sounded. "Thank Arceus. Everything's under control now?"

"Well… for you, Ash." Misty paused, staring at the Champion. "Lance offered something different for Domino."

"What does that assface have for me?" A sharp reply came, and Misty smirked. One of the things that had gotten her warm to the Rocket Elite was their similarly fiery tempers… and sarcasm.

"For you to make it into the League without problems, Lance said that you have to fight and beat him in a single Pokémon battle with whichever Pokémon you choose…"

"Really!?" The reply didn't sound nervous at all, but instead… comedic.

"Yep." Misty sighed and whispered into the phone. "I'm just waiting for you to pull out, like, freaking Arceus."

"Nah, but I've got something close." The Elite giggled. "Be there in a sec!"

And then, literally, a second later, a light flashed in the conference room, and two figures materialized.

Lance hopped up immediately and tensed. Ash walked over to Professor Oak. "Thank you, Professor, for saving us again."

Oak smirked and shook his head. "Nah. I was just making sure the League didn't get blown apart by a billion Genesis Supernova."

On the other hand, after waving to Brock and Misty, Domino turned to Lance. "So you want to fight me?"

"Or you can give me the Rocket secrets!" Lance's eyes glinted.

"Sure. Here's some news for you." The girl sneered. "You're retarded."

Lance slammed the table, and the rest of the Elites got up as well.

Domino pulled her tulip staff out and twirled it in her fingers. Professor Oak and Ash both jumped in between the two.

Oak shouted. "I said a Pokémon battle! Not a human battle!"

"Fine! We'll save that for the day Rockets get crushed." Lance growled.

"Sure, if you haven't died by Alzheimer's." Domino retorted, "Or Asshole Personality Disorder."

"Hold on!" Ash cried. "You can't fight her. What if her Pokémon got injured such that it couldn't participate in Leagues."

"Don't worry Ash. Leagues isn't for another week." Domino held Ash's shoulder. "Also, I have a surprise for Lance right here."

* * *

The battlegrounds were huge, a lot bigger than normal gyms, except for the one of Viridian City. Lance stood at the end of the field, nearly half a mile from Domino's position.

The distance was suggested by Oak, which got both of their approval. Lance's Dragonite couldn't stretch if the field was too small, and Domino… well…

Lance threw out a Master Ball, which opened in an ostentatious purple light, forming Dragonite's body.

The Champion laughed, sounding off with his megaphone that he still held. "I have not lost a single battle with Dragonite! Even when I fought Dialga!"

The Rocket Elite took a look at the Dragon and shook her head. The Pokémon was pretty bulky and strong, but no where NEAR Dialga's power. Hell, even her own Dragonite would lose to Dialga… the Temporal God just had to stand there, and the world would collapse.

Or…

"Did you fight him on the Mountains of Time in Sinnoh?" Domino chuckled and projected her voice with a psychic.

"Yes! How do you know that!?" Lance demanded.

"Because that is the only gap that allowed Dialga to pass through slightly without crashing the fabrics of time of this world." The girl snickered. "And also, sorry to break it to you, that was only a downgraded version of him, a mere Substitute."

"Dialga couldn't possibly break into our world without deforming time. Thus, you played with a withdrawn version of him, which shouldn't be harder than fighting Ho-Oh or Lugia."

* * *

" _Yeah, tell that idiot!_ " Dialga grinned happily as he kept his mouth under the ice-cream maker. " _I'm liking this Queen more and more._ "

"Stop binging ice cream!" Sir Aaron slammed the off-button. "Do you want to get fat and turn into Peter Griffin?"

" _What's wrong with Peter?_ " Dialga asked innocently. " _He seemed nice when we visited._ "

" _He had a son who wanted to kill his mom, a talking dog who wanted to fuck anything with legs, a daughter who aspires to kill herself, and a blob for the son._ " Palkia deadpanned. " _That's even more messed up than our world._ "

" _Will you please stop freezing time!_ " Arceus shouted. " _I'm trying to watch the reality show!_ "

* * *

"How would you know!?" Lance huffed. "Stop trying to distract me and get on with the battle!"

"As you wish!" Domino held up a regular Pokéball. "Now, you said you had 'beaten' Dialga…"

"Now, how would you fare against his brother!?" She chucked the ball out into the air, and a shadow rose from it, covering the light that normally shone when a Pokéball was opened.

Giratina materialized in the battlefield, staring coldly down at his opponent.

* * *

" _Wow! Tina is also in this show?_ " Arceus made some popcorn out of the Heatran-shaped oven, powered by a Fire-Type Judgement. " _This just gets better and better._ "

"Why is he still with Domino?" Sir Aaron sighed. "He knows that we finished the Hall already, right? He's not in slavery anymore."

Dialga flashed, and sat down next to the popcorn machine, which Palkia levitated out of the way so the Temporal Pokémon wouldn't start chugging that as well. " _I just looked into the future. Giratina will tell us that he didn't want to leave the Queen until she gave him at least one memorable battle. He made Mew wander around for a month before he left… leaves in half an hour._ "

"And this is memorable… how?"

" _Well, he's still going to be restricted to the top of Ancient level. He can't even go into Formation._ " Palkia shrugged. " _That's what, only a tenth of his strength? Not to mention that he can't even use anti-matter?_ "

* * *

Lance stared, jaw hanging, at the Renegade Legendary in front of him. "This… this… is…"

He roared and pointed at Domino. "I don't know how you did it, but I will not allow Team Rocket to enslave Giratina!"

The Cosmic gave the Champion a look of pity and turned to Dragonite. " _Hey, little reptile. Can you tell your trainer to cut his tomfoolery… or should I say, Lance-foolery?_ "

Domino bent over, laughing, at the joke. Lance narrowed his eyes and was about to retort (Remember that Lance could speak Dragon) when Dragonite made a desperate sign at him, which The Dragon Trainer clearly understood that it meant… shut up.

Ash's jaw dropped too. He did not expect his girlfriend to pull out one of the Creation Trios… he didn't have anything for that in Leagues. Even if Giratina's powers were restricted to Ancient level, he could still beat the crap out of all Ancients.

Maybe Pikachu could handle him… Pikachu could handle anything.

Oak smirked. He knew a surprise was coming his way. He was right. "Let the battle begin!"

Giratina looked at Dragonite, uninterested, and sighed. " _Let's go, kid. I have a bed to go sleep in… surprisingly._ "

Dragonite dove into the air to start with a Fly. The Legend waved his wings. " _Gravity._ "

Dragonite came pummeling to the ground, but he manipulated the fall to still power an Aerial Ace with his well-trained skills.

" _Typical Rayquaza move._ " Giratina snickered. " _Although he uses Dragon Ascent, which is actually strong._ "

The Renegade Pokémon formed a pool of shadow in front of him, anticipating to trap the Dragonite in it to end the battle.

A sudden wave of energy darted through the world and rested on the sphere, completely neutralizing it.

" _Soul of Universe!_ " Giratina growled and phased through Dragonite's attack with Phanton Force. " _Crap. I can't use my Shadow… Damn limitations!_ "

Dragonite landed and turned around, firing out two Stone Edge. Giratina retaliated with two easy Dark Pulses.

The pulses merged together and deformed at light speed, which disintegrated the Ground Type attack and punched Dragonite back.

Lance's jaw dropped. "What!? Dark Pulse can't do that!"

Professor Oak mimicked the expression, and Dexter materialized.

"Dark Pulse could be seen as in energy released as waves. When waves intersect, they form superposition of constructive and destructive interference."

"When constructive interference occurred, the wave changed into a solid knife. When destructive interference occurred, the wave turned to nothing and could pass through any substance, until it turned back solid again with constructive interference."

"This process occurs at light speed, according to Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle, which makes the Dark Pulses into a super fast razor that shreds through everything."

Ash took a look at them, who were completely lost, besides Professor Oak and Dr. Fuji. "Basically what happened was, the Dark Pulses had this effect that turned them into blades that were acting like fans, which slice through everything."

Domino stared at her boyfriend. "When did you become so smart!?"

"It's not that hard." Ash shrugged nonchalantly. "Just a few lessons with Dexter on quantum physics."

"Yeah, but instead of all of that…" Professor Oak stated as-a-matter-of-factly, "He could have just switched over to Origin Forme and levitated."

The group facepalmed.

Turning back to the field…

Giratina waited for Dragonite to get up. He didn't want to press the advantage too much… that would be like bullying.

" _I guess Dialga's Substitute wasn't even an Ancient when you found him._ " He remarked. " _Probably just a Medieval, with the attack power of barely an Ancient._ "

Dragonite rushed at him, deeply frustrated that his dignity was challenged, even if it was by a Cosmic.

A Hurricane trailed behind him, adding to his power, while releasing a Dragon Rage, followed by a Hyper Beam, then a Giga Impact.

Giratina looked at him seriously for the first time. " _Okay, getting more interesting._ "

He blew out a stream of Dragon energy, in a dark purple different from the normal magenta, which materialized into a Dragon Hammer.

The tool smashed down on the Dragon Rage, shattering it. It continued to reach the Hyper Beam, which cancelled it out.

The incoming Giga Impact was caught by a Dragon Claw, and Giratina flipped the Dragonite across his shoulder with wrestling skills he developed up in the Bubble Realm with Sumo Wrestling.

The Pseudo crashed onto the field. Giratina dusted himself and levitated on top of him… and Rested, returning to Altered Form.

Then, one of the heaviest Pokémon in the Universe crashed down onto a Pokémon less than a third of his weight.

With a hidden Heavy Slam.

" _I didn't want a Hemlich!_ " Dragonite choked out his last words… and passed out.

Lance stared at the disaster in the field, not knowing what to say. Giratina opened his eyes after a while. " _Don't ever think you can beat a Cosmic._ "

" _Even the Chosen's starter hasn't done that yet…_ " He shot a glance at Ash's Pikachu, who glared back with fire. " _Dialga went so soft on you… even my powers restricted, not everyday Pokémon can beat me._ "

 _Why am I saying this? You don't understand me._ " Giratina chuckled and faced Domino.

" _Thank you, my Queen, for giving me the opportunity to battle for you. It was a neat experience._ " Switching to Origin Forme, he bowed. " _Now, I must return to the Hall._ "

Ash came next to Domino and held her hand.

" _Fare thee well, Chosen, Queen. I will meet you at another day… which I need to consult Dialga about._ "

" _But until then…_ "

The Renegade legendary flashed into a dark shadow. A opening ripped in space, and the duo could see the Continuum within. The shadow flowed into the Continuum, leaving only an unconscious Dragonite and a devastated Lance on the field.

And then, out of the blue, Shaymin landed in Sky Forme.

" _WHERE IS HE!?_ "

* * *

 **Commercial Break**

 **The Indigo Conference is under our nose, guys! I have the line-up for the Top 8 basically set up. However, I still have to through the first four preliminary battles, as well as 1 6v6.**

 **Put in comments down before for 3v3 suggestions and give the name of the Trainer who would be fighting Ash or Domino. Tag on a 6v6 if you want. Try to only put 1 or 2 non-Kanto Pokémon in the team for 6v6, and only 1 or 0 in for 3v3.**

 **Try to fix up the Typing… or not! But at least make it seem reasonable. A Metapod, Wurmple, and Magikarp would not be rational. How did the trainer even make it to League? No one can defeat 8 Gym Leaders with those… except Ash maybe.**

 **Anyways, please review down below! I'll really appreciate it. Ughhh, I hate coming up with names!**

* * *

As Professor Oak and Dr. Fuji went over to repair Lance, Ash motioned Domino forward to do the explaining to the Grass Legendary.

The girl rolled her eyes and signalled the frantic Shaymin to stop spraying out Aromatherapy in an effort to purify the land.

"Giratina left already. His scent will dissipate sooner or later." She flashed in front of the Gratitude Pokémon and held her in place with a Psychic. "Also, you're really cute!"

" _How are you so strong!?_ " Shaymin struggled once, then again, and found herself unable to move. " _And thank you!_ "

"I'm only as strong as you when you're at max." Domino pointed at the black circles around her eyes. "You just haven't sleep, I'm assuming rushing here from Sinnoh?"

" _Yeah!_ " She nodded. " _Giratina's scent appeared in and out for the last four months all around the world, and it is my job to find him to purify any Shadow Force he leaks as residue._ "

" _However, I can never find him… it's like he's playing a trick with me._ " Shaymin pouted. " _Until when I sensed a giant burst of Shadow Force here in Kanto, and then I flew here at Mach 10._ "

" _Well, long story short._ " Domino said guiltily. " _He's back to Shadow Realm now, I promise._ "

Shaymin huffed, then she took a deep smell of the blonde. " _You smell really nice, and that's coming from ME!_ "

"Awww… thank you!" Domino purred and picked Shaymin up, who had transformed back to Land Forme.

" _It's not just that. I mean, you smell like…_ " Her eyes widened. " _You're the Queen!_ "

"I've been getting that a lot." The Elite laughed.

Ash walked over and stuck his arm under Shaymin's nose. "What about me?"

Shaymin gagged and slanted her head to the side. " _Hi, Chosen._ "

"Why don't I smell good!?" Ash demanded. "I'm the Chosen One!"

" _Because, you're not a girl?_ " Shaymin asked unsurely. " _Do you want me to say you smell like a dandelion?_ "

"Well," Ash rubbed his neck and chuckled. "Nice to see you too, Shaymin."

* * *

Lance stared into the distance. It wasn't the loss that was devastating. No, he had to go through countless defeats to fight his way to Champion.

It was losing to a ROCKET that diminished his pride down to mere atoms.

He glared at Domino. Why did Giratina come help her? Is Giratina evil too? He IS the lord of the Shadow Realm…

His mind trailed off, before the two ex-League elders walked to him and woke him up. Oak patted his shoulder. "Sorry, Lance. That was an impossible battle."

"You would've had a fair battle if she threw out something else…" Professor Oak grinned. "But none of us, including me, anticipated that Giratina was temporarily following her."

The Champion looked at the ground and gave a long breath. "Why is Team Rocket becoming this strong?"

"Because she's not just Team Rocket." Dr. Fuji responded. "She's the Chosen Queen, and Ash is the Chosen One."

"Do you know what that means?" Oak cleared his throat. "That MEANS they're chosen by Arceus to save this world."

"There's NO way Arceus would choose HER!" Lance declared.

"Well, he did." Oak deadpanned. "And from what I'm seeing, the two are doing a decent job so far. Have you heard of any major disasters yet?"

"No?" The Champion looked at him incredulously. "And?"

"See! They're doing great."

Lance sighed. He needed to go back to Blackthorn Clan and hit the books… What is all of this 'Chosen' business…

* * *

Domino teleported over and Ash, too lazy to walk the mile, and smirked smugly at Lance.

The Champion narrowed his eyes. "You know damn well that was just Giratina doing your work for you."

He didn't bother asking her how she got him, knowing that she wouldn't answer.

Domino chuckled. "I'm evil, right? Therefore, I only care about the result."

She stuck out a hand. "Now give me the Leauge sign-up sheet."

Lance gritted his teeth and took a clipboard from a nearby Officer Jenny, handing it over to her.

The Elite grabbed it, and pulled… and pulled.

Agatha leaned over and whispered in his ear. "Let go, Lance."

Lance let go, and Domino grinned and took the pen, signing in her fanciest cursive writing, and placed the board back into his hands.

"You should've went for a 1v3." She added. "Oh wait, you would still lose."

Ash, Misty, and Brock laughed, and Lance's eyes burst in flames. "I'll be watching you closely! Don't even think about trying ANYTHING at Leagues!"

Domino stuck her tongue out at him and turned around, grabbing Ash's hand and walking off in the direction of a Pokémon Center.

"C'mon, let's go. Checking in had been way too much work."

Ash laughed lightly. "Still less waiting than last timeline."

* * *

"One room or two?" Nurse Joy asked as she took the cards over.

Ash looked over at his girlfriend with a suggestive glint, and the blonde giggled. Then sighing, he took both keys over. "We'll take the two."

A look of disappointment flashed across Domino's eyes, and Ash wrapped his arm around her. "I have to study for this year's trainers. Who knows if someone strong pops up?"

"Fine, Mr. Tryhard." Domino pouted and took her key. "I'll be in MY room, looking at new hairstyles."

"You need to study too!" Ash shouted after her.

"No I don't!" Domino yelled back.

"You know that's somehow going to come back and bite you if you don't!" Ash quickened his steps and caught up to her. "Knowing our luck, someone is going to turn up with, well, a clone of Arceus."

"I don't think Arceus can be cloned." Domino tilted her head. "He's a freaking God, Ash, literally. The machines will blow up."  
"True… which explains the ridiculousness of the games…" Ash muttered.

* * *

"Surround her with guards!" Lance slammed his fist onto the desk after everyone had left but his Elites. "Make it subtle enough that normal trainers don't notice, but obvious enough that she will."

"Arceus damn it!" He panted. "Why is my life so complicated!?"

* * *

"You think your life is complicated?" Sir Aaron deadpanned. "You don't have to meet a bunch of crazy deities and serve them for who-knows-how-long."

" _Yeah, your life is nothing compared to Ash's._ " Arceus laughed.

Sir Aaron looked at him. "I was talking about me."

* * *

A knock sounded from his door. Lance yelled an invitation, and it opened to show Mr. Goodshow standing there, stroking his beard.

Lance hurriedly welcomed him in. Goodshow was older than even Oak and Fuji, having been in the League since… well… for a long time. He had no official title besides 'President of League Competition Committee', but he had seen the coming and leaving of five Champions.

Rumors had it that Goodshow was once a Champion himself, and even a global Champion at that, when the world was in order enough for there to be an organized effort to host a Master Competition across the entire Home Islands.

"Mr. Goodshow! How nice of you to come by!" Lance motioned the man to a seat. "What are you here for?"

"Hello, Lance." Goodshow eased the conversation to his calm style. "I'm here to talk about the Rocket girl."

Lance seethed. "So you think you shouldn't be here too!"  
"Actually, quite the opposite." The old man shook his head. "I think we should not only let her compete, but welcome her as well, all while feeling great about it."

"WHAT!?" The Champion stared at him. "WHY!?"

Goodshow sighed. "Eighty years ago, the world wasn't as… turbulent as now. Teams were actually underground for the most part, or even dormant."

"I watched the entire process whereby they went from extinction to power." He sighed. "The problem is that the League is not tolerating enough."

"As League, we are supposed to be the ultimate symbol of power, Lance." The elder said. "We are so great that even if there are criminal Elites right underneath our noses, we wouldn't fret about it."

"We must think about ourselves as the most momentous of power, and nothing can move us."

"That's the way League should look at the world: We treat them with strategical seriousness, but also with moral superiority." Goodshow finished. "But the League is becoming just another soldier in a battle."

"We're not just 'another side.' We're supposed to be the lords initiating the war!"

"Tolerate the girl, absorb her into the League." Goodshow puffed off his chest in pride. "Don't think about it like: 'Holy Arceus, we have a Rocket Elite infiltrating into our competition.'"

"Think about it with supremacy: 'So what an Elite came into the Conference? We can still keep order even if all of the Elite Rockets dropped bombs onto the Plateau,' and then whip their butts for it!"

Lance stared at the old man.

Goodshow smirked. "Because that's how WE did in back in the days!"

* * *

" _This League may actually be interesting…_ " Arceus remarked. " _It won't just be complete annihilation._ "

"There must be a way to make this even more fun…" Sir Aaron hummed. "Something that doesn't involve time travel."

Dialga, ready to pulse a Roar of Time, sighed. " _Downer._ "

" _How about I go down there and fight them?_ " Palkia asked excitedly.

"NO/ _NO!_ " They shouted at the same time. " _You'll break the entire interspace of the world!_ "

A roar interrupted their conversation as a shadow materialized into a Renegade Dragon in front of the Hall.

Dialga waved at him nonchalantly. " _What's up, bro?_ "

Giratina's eyes flashed with an enriched red. " _YOU GUYS FINISHED THE HALL WITHOUT ME!?_ "

"Mmhmm…" Sir Aaron cringed. "To be fair, you were gone for four months, and we weren't about to hold up this separation for another four additional months if we could avoid it!"

" _Don't worry!_ " Arceus chirped, pulling himself out from underneath a bench press… with two parallel-universe-shaped dumbbells. " _Have Dialga take you back to when we finished with a gold nail._ "

" _It wouldn't be the same…_ " Giratina grumbled saltily as Dialga and he flashed back. His voice still trailed through time. " _At least I got to beat up some idiot's Dragonite in reality._ "

* * *

 **A/N: Shall League start tomorrow, or shall there be more fiasco?**

 **(I'm pretty sure you'll all kill me if I keep putting distractions in front of Leagues, but I live on the edge anyways.)**

 **Thank you for reading! Remember to vote on the poll on my profile page about whether you want to see Orange Islands!**

 **Please favorite, follow, and review! Love you all!**


	56. Cha 55: Kanto 45

**Cha. 55**

 **A/N: LEAGUES!**

 **I'm getting 6 hrs of sleep a night right now, so I hope you guys can give me some support by hitting that Follow and Favorite button!**

 **Please tell me what you guys think! It's really easy! Scroll to the bottom and type in a few motivational words!**

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* * *

"The rankings board?" Ash read the sign out loud.

"Yeah, I forgot to tell you. It's a new addition the Leagues made." Brock nodded. "It ranks the trainers from Top One to Thirty-two of whom they they think will place highly based on comments from Gym Leaders."

Ash searched up and down the board for his name, and found it near the bottom at number thirty. Domino's wasn't even on the board.

"Wow, these are SOOO accurate." The Ketchum boy coughed. "Can't wait to get thirtieth."

"Some Leaders, especially those in the North whom we never visited, give exaggerated remarks." Brock laughed. "As if they're saying they only lost because the challengers are super strong."

"This is ridiculous." Misty pointed out the Pokémon Center Door. "People are actually betting on them."

There was a betting booth outside of the Center, and a long chain that extended on, flooded.

Domino giggled. "Actually, I started that idea."

The three stared at her. She shrugged. "What? That's how good I am with money!"

"Watch!" She dragged them to the biggest station at the end of the block. The Elite pointed at the sign and read. "Most likely to win."

Her fingers traced down the list of thirty-two names. "Ash Ketchum: 1 to 1.05 odds of losing. 1 to 90 odds of winning."

"I feel bad for doing this." Ash snickered. "But I'm not rich yet."

He went forward to the station and dumped out his entire wallet… which wasn't as impressive as later in his journey. "I'll put this all under Ash Ketchum."

"Gladly!" The manager picked up the cash and displaced it into a bucket. "What place?"

"First!" Ash said confidently.

"In that case," The manager handed over a sheet. "When he loses, you will get 5% more of what you placed down…"

He was interrupted by Domino's laughter. She blurted. "He means to bet on Ash Ketchum winning!"

The manager stared at Ash, unbelievingly. "Is that right?"

"Yes!" Ash yelled. "Of course!"

"Okay… I've seen kids like you, trying to get rich fast." He took back the sheet and printed out another one. "You know you're going to lose all of your money, right?"

Ash gave him a look. "Just make sure you yourself don't run out when I come back after Leagues."

The manager snorted. "I'm supported by the Bank of Royale. I can't run out."

Smirking, Domino went up to him and slapped a bundle of cash down on his desk. "How about now?"

"Thirty grand." She smiled. "Ash Ketchum winning."

The manager's jaw dropped. He was contemplating whether it was possible for the League competitors to throw the battle for that much money… which they shouldn't, since the prize money is already in the hundred-thousands.

"And just to be safe…" Domino pulled out another bundle and pointed to the sign displaying a 1 to 50 odds. "Fifty grand on Ash getting second place."

Ash snickered and poked her. "Second place?"

She shrugged teasingly as she snatched the ticket from the manager and walked away. "Yeah. I'm gonna beat you!"

"I'll be your eternal masseuse when that happens." He replied snarkily.

Domino grabbed his arm. "You already are."

Brock and Misty looked at the station pitifully. Brock said slowly. "I think the Bank of Royale has a competition with Abra Assets, at least in Pewter City."

"In Cerulean too. Welp, good game, Bank." The Water Trainer nodded. "It would've had a chance if she hadn't put down the second bet… or if they placed a limit on the cash amount."

* * *

"WELCOME!" Mr. Charles Goodshow shouted in the microphone. "To the annual Indigo Conference, CHALLENGE OF 807 A.E.!

Firework blasted into the air, and the crowd went wild, wilder than any football game, than any gathering.

People's faces were lit with a cheerful red. Ash and Domino smirked at each other. They sat in Professor Oak's box, which he got as a privilege for being Kanto Professor.

The room was hung in the air, looking straight down at Goodshow, unlike most seats in the stadium, in which people could barely see the fields behind him.

"Let me say how much of an honor it is, for me to chair this year's competition again!" Mr. Goodshow yelled. "Give me some noise!"

A roared went through the arena and echoed off into the distance. It was destined to be a sleepless night.

"This year, we have 256 very talented competitors who have beaten at least eight Gym Leaders in Kanto!"

"And they are all gathered here tonight for this official start to the Indigo Conference, which shall serve as both a convention to exchange skills and a keystone to unite our powerful trainers from different areas!"

"Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, Unova, Kalos, and even a visitor from the unexplored Alola!"

"Let's all give these ladies and gentlemen a big round of applause for the spectacular show I'm SURE they'll put on!" Claps and yells roared through stadium, with families and friends cheering.

The Chosen and Queen's eyes met with a devious look. "It's time."

Ash threw his Pokédex out the window, followed by two of Domino's Pokémon, and then Noah and Zorua.

"Transform!" Ash yelled.

Domino's Pokéballs burst open first to show Mew and Moltres. The shiny soared to the sky, followed by Mew and Zorua, using each's ability to turn into a similar Moltres.

Dexter and Noah used Copycat and instantly changed as well, following their ascent.

Goodshow's speech ended, and the sky suddenly brightened up with bursts of flame as five Moltres danced in circles around the central altar where the Flame was supposed to be lit.

The people fell into silence. Most of them had never even seen one legendary, let alone 'five' together.

Goodshow roared into the instrument. "And here they are! Moltres themselves to bless our competition!"

The crowd went completely wild, becoming even more untamed than the start of the ceremony as they watched the miraculous act play out.

The Moltres started to descent toward the altar, and fire spewed around them and condensed into seemingly solid roses of blaze that encircled them.

"I can already feel the INSANITY of this year!" Mr. Goodshow yelled at the top of his lungs. "I predict, there shall be trainers from this year that would rise up to become the Champions of the regions, the heroes of this world!"

The fire legendaries finally reached the altar and all released a massive ember into the bowl, and the flame zoomed up into the air.

"LET THE 807 A.E. INDIGO CONFERENCE OF KANTO LEAGUE BEGIN!"

* * *

Ash smiled widely at Domino. "Pretty exciting huh?"

A similar grin hung on her cherry-red face. "Yeah. I can see why you like it so much."

He grabbed her, and they kissed, with the background as the roaring of the people.

"One day," He stared into her purple eyes and promised. "I will make this cheering directed straight at us."

"I don't doubt it, Ashton Ketchum." She leaned her head onto his shoulder. "Can't wait."

* * *

The night was restless for most trainers. Ash resulted to meditation, while Domino asked Mew to place a Hypnosis over her.

The morning came like than a swift of sunlight. Ash's first battle was scheduled at the Fire Field, while Domino's was at the Grass Field an hour after his.

The group of three sat at the section for the Fire Field. The ground was painted black, with charred igneous rocks pummeled on the ground. There were lava streams shooting up from underground, with random piles of volcano ash.

It was basically a simulation of a volcano, reinvented by advanced technology.

Already, the opposite trainer had taken stage, and he looked both nervous and eager.

Domino shook her head. "This isn't a physical battle. It's not good to get adrenalined. He needs to keep calm"

"It does speed up the brain though." Brock commented.

"There's Ash!" Misty pointed. The heads swiveled.

Ash entered the field, Pikachu on his shoulder, Pokéhat on his head, backpack hanging off another shoulder, smirking.

His opponent shouted. "You're Ash Ketchum!"

"You know me?" Ash was thoroughly surprised. He didn't expect any recognition. He hadn't done anything globally significant this time around yet.

"Yeah! You're that trainer ranked thirtieth on the League List." The response came.

Ash's face darkened.

"Thank Arceus I didn't meet up with the Top First or Second." His opponent continued. "Then I really would have no chance."

Domino turned to the two Leaders. "Your League's List is more misleading than when I disguised as a sweet, innocent student last timeline."

"I know…" Misty grumbled. "It was the stupidest decision it could've made."

Ash sighed and waved. "In that case, show me what you got, ummm…"

"Trevor!" He finished for Ash.

The referee held up two white flags. "On the left, we have Trevor of Lavender Town. On the right, Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town."

"Rules: You may switch out at the end of the battle, but no in-betweens. Ring-out would be if your Pokémon are launched out of the Fire Field."

"This will be a 3 vs 3 Pokémon battle, and the one standing at last with an awakened Pokémon wins!"

"Though there will be psychics protecting the audience, attacks may not purposefully be directly at them."

"With that," The referee raised his flag. "May the best trainer WIN!"

* * *

"Flareon!" Trevor threw the first Pokéball into the field, revealing the Flame Pokémon into the suitable field.

"Type with Field strategy huh?" Ash smirked. "Ain't going to follow that!"

"Tauros!" Ash threw a Pokéball, and the Leader of the Wild Bulls hopped out.

Ash's baby Ponyta stopped playing with her sister and looked up. "Is this what a battle is like?"

"Yes, and he is currently doing a really important one, called League." Domino stroke both of their fur. "I'm going to go up in a while too."

"Sounds really fun!" The Fire Horse Pokémon said, "I want to try it out."

"Mention it to Ash. He'll give all of you a chance." The Elite paused. "Probably not for Leagues, but something else later."

In the field, Flareon took the first move and charged at Tauros, releasing a Fire Blast in the process.

Tauros blinked and turned back to Ash. "Is he actually running or just jogging? I think there's a trick…"

Ash smirked and Aura-coated his words. "Not every Pokémon can infuse moves into all of their actions for a boost, like you or, well, everyone else on the team.

Tauros rushed to another side with Bulldoze, having the star-shaped flame land nowhere close to him. Flareon struggled to halt, so he instead jumped into a pool of lava and used Flash Fire to swim to the other side.

Tauros released a small Earthquake and then quickly ending it to continue his next move without hesitation. The volcano ash rising from the previous move continued in a torrent of blinding hindrance, which was transformed to Sandstorm.

The Flame Pokémon's fur puffed out in surprise. The storm was so big it covered the entire field, so both trainers couldn't see it… except Ash had Aura Sight.

A command in Aura was given to Tauros, who splitted into Double Teams and charged together in a direction.

Flareon heard the noise, from all angle, and managed out a Flamethrower in one side, which, unfortunately for him, did not hit the solid Tauros.

The Bull hit him square with a Charge Attack, launching him into the air, which gave the opportunity for a Double Edge, slamming him back down like spiking a volleyball.

Flareon yelled as he made impact with the rocky ground. Flipping right up, he dashed at Tauros with Flare Blitz.

Ash shook his head. It was not a good idea to get in a headlock with Tauros, even normal Tauros.

The Bull's eyes flashed up with anticipation as he crashed heads using Horn Attack.

Flareon went crashing back, partially because he was a lot lighter, and also because he was already injured.

Tauros was mildly burnt by the Fire Attack, but he shook it off easily. A trail in the Sandstorm indicated the location of Flareon's landing, and he rushed toward him.

The Fire Type spat out a Lava Plume, which joined with the lava of the field to impact with Tauros heavily, who held up a well-timed Protect to block the entire barrage.

Not losing momentum, he kept running and dived into the panting Flareon, finishing him off with Take Down.

"Excuse me, referee!" Ash opened his eyes and raised a hand. "Can you clear the sandstorm? I think Flareon's down."

"What!?" The other side shouted in disbelief. "That's impossible! How can you even see?"

The moderator motioned to the Alakazam behind him, and they cleared the field. In the upper right corner laid an unconscious Flareon and a very smug Tauros.

"How… how!?" Trevor pointed at Ash. "How did you know that!?"

Thoughts spun in his mind, and a reasonable explanation came back after a few seconds of brainstorming. "YOU CHEATED!"

Ash looked at him lazily and deadpanned. "I really don't need to cheat against you."

He walked off the stage and waved at the referee. "I'll take a small break. I'm assuming you'll need time to deal with this…"

He gestured across the field. "... Mess."

* * *

 **Commercial Break**

 **Guys! Hit me up with teams of 3 that you want to see be in a battle. Rules are already described in the last chapter if you want to refer to it.**

 **Also, the poll for Orange Islands! It's going to go down in a few days, because I need to know what you want so I can start planning! If all goes according to plan, Leagues will end in 2 weeks, which shall conclude the majority of Kanto.**

 **I need to start planning for the next arc NOW!**

* * *

After the Alakazam moderating the entire battle had ensured the referee that the battle was completely fair… besides Flareon having a trainer with down syndrome… he announced the first battle to be Ash's victory.

Trevor huffed and threw in the field another Pokémon, materializing to be Ninetales. "You know what you did! I will definitely beat you this time!"

Ash sighed and rubbed his forehead. "I hope I wasn't this… convoluted the first time around."

"Tauros! Stay in!" He sat down onto his chair. "Don't injure her too much."

The opposite boy decided with a more level-headed approach this time, starting off with a Sunny Day fired into the sky.

Tauros smirked. He loved playing Weather back at the ranch. He and his horde would ramp up Blizzards, Sandstorms, Rain Dances and Sunny Days, which Ho-Oh would turn into a giant Weather Ball, resulting eventually in an impressive firework show.

The Sunny Day was masked by rain clouds, which he kept in the limits of the Fire Field.

Ninetales pulsed out another Sunny Day, which failed to overpower Tauros's. Ash sighed. "This does feel like cheating."

The Wild Bull clouded himself in a ball of liquid and started off with a standard charge.

The Fox Pokémon launched herself over him, spreading her tails gracefully for a light landing. Tauros was not one to give up momentum easily though.

He rolled up a nearby hill and jumped off in the opposite direction of his initial route and ran back to Ninetales.

A quick Energy Ball on her part shattered the wobbling water shield Tauros had, and he immediately ducked left to dance out of the way of a following Flamethrower.

Swerving, he released a torrent of energy in the form of Boomburst, disturbing Ninetales in mid-jump, making her land sideways on the ground.

Pressing his advantage, Tauros fired Muddy Water toward her. She narrowly rolled out of the way, but still clouded herself in dirt.

Her rich coat now tainted with dust, Ninetales evaded the incoming Charge with Flare Blitz, which still glanced her due to its swift momentum.

She then swerved around with Fire Spin, crashing into Tauros, who slanted to the side to neglect some damage with Endure.

Taking back the offense, she followed with an Overheat, which felt deadly combining with the already roasting temperature of the Fire Field.

Tauros casted an Icy Wind around himself to temporarily lessen the effect. He knew he must disrupt the Fox Pokémon's constant Fire Type Attacks if he didn't want the sheer temperature to build to a point of lethality.

He then added to his previous move with a Whirlwind. He secretly praised himself for being Normal, giving him the potential to learn all of the moves without his own Type colliding with something opposite, much like Fire Type and Water Move.

The Whirlwind heated up, and it was enough time for Tauros to jump out of the range of the Overheat.

Too bad for him, it was also enough time for Ninetales to finish charging a Solarbeam, since the effect of his previous Rain Dance was interrupted by the Tauros's struggle with Overheat, rendering the weather back to the original state of sunshine.

The Grass Type attack hit Tauros straight on, and his Protect shield was shattered after shaking for only a few seconds, leaving the majority of the damage to be activated.

After all, Tauros wasn't as skilled in Aura as Lucario or Pikachu. Plus he didn't have enough time to prepare for the unexpected attack.

Instead of staggering back though, the Wild Bull felt a stream of anger mixed in with the blood rushing to his head. He roared, the gem on his forehead shining.

He dosed out a stream of water, unconcentrated but in large supply, onto the ground.

A burst of steam rose, and Tauros disappeared within. The effect of the evaporating water cooled the ground slightly, while hiding him entirely from sight.

Ninetales stood back in a defensive stance, watching the steam cautiously.

In the box, Trevor yelled. "Stay back! Don't enter! He's probably pulling his trick from last battle again."

Ash smirked. He could see exactly what Tauros was doing, and, surely, it was not that.

A while later, as Ninetales stared vigilantly into the mist, with a wall of fire behind her protecting her from any damage from behind, a hole appeared under her.

The Fire Type gave an undignified squawk, before a Tauros threw her into the air with Dig, followed by a Giga Impact on her side.

Ninetales spun out of control, due both to the torque and the force of the attack. Ash's Pokémon jumped after her and Body Slammed her into the invisible psychic shield lining the outer of the field.

The referee raised a flag sharply. "Done!"

"This battle goes to Ash!" He decided. "Ninetales loses by ring-out!"

He took a look at the fallen Pokémon, now with swirls in his eyes, and continued. "... And unconsciousness too."

"This is SOOO not fair!" The opposite side screamed and retracted Ninetales. "Ketchum! I dare you not to have your Pokémon use anything with fog next time!"

"First, do you have any brains?" Ash raised an eyebrow. "Second, have you heard me give any orders?"

"No! Exactly! That's because Tauros is doing all of your work, and it's the only strong Pokémon you have!" He shouted. "You don't have any strong Pokémon, and you're just a bad trainer, because you don't have a clue what's going on."

Below the stage, Brock and Misty were seething at the foolish kid. Domino, on the other hand, was rather calm. She wrote something down on her diary and ripped off the page, pocketing it.

Eight years ago, Ash would've stood up and retorted, starting a major argument in the middle of the battle. Now, with a growing sense of maturity, he just sighed exasperatedly and sat down, looking to the referee. "Doesn't he get automatically disqualified for unsportsmanlike conduct?"

"He's right. You cannot insult other trainer's skills in a League battle." The judge turned around and gave the Lavender trainer a hard stare. "I'll let you off with a warning. I do not want to see that again."

Trevor, face flushed red, felt embarrassment flush through him, which exploded into anger at being critiqued in front of an audience. "Magmortar! Go destroy him!"

"You know what?" Ash held out Tauros's Pokéball and withdrew him. "You want me to use a different Pokémon?"

"Fine!" Ash threw out a different Pokémon… a Safari Ball, which materialized into a… Tauros. "There you go."

Trevor gaped. Ash smirked. "I still have twenty-eight more, so I can let you request that a few more times if you want."

The Tauros in the field, second in command after the Leader, sat down and observed the Blast Pokémon, his eyes clearly wondering why he was wasting time with this diabetic lump.

As if feeling the mockery, Magmortar tensed up and fired a Flame Burst at his opponent.

Tauros moved three feet to the side, letting the move brush up against him without even minimal damage, and yawned.

Ash rolled his eyes. "You did the gyms up north, right?

"Yeah! Why?" Trevor asked, alarmed.

"Because the Leaders that I've worked with will never let you pass when you fire a Flame Burst first thing in battle." Ash deadpanned. "Especially Koga. He'll crush that awful strategy into pieces and throw it into a shredder."

"He insulted me too!" The Lavender trainer raised his hand. "He needs a strike."

Ash pressed his lips together. This first battle is really extinguishing the excitement of Leagues.

"Actually, no." Referee said. "He criticized your strategy, but never offered a personal attack."

"And my next statement is politically incorrect, so I won't say it." He raised a flag. "Now, I demand you to get on with the battle!"

Tauros charged, cracking his tails behind him into intimidating, Screech-like sounds. "Do you not know you should never start a battle with an easy-to-miss move?"

Magmortar grunted and returned with a Fire Punch. The two bulky Pokémon collided in a battle of strength, with the Wild Bull winning evidently because of the built-up velocity.

Tripping slightly, the Fire Type fell to the side and was clipped with Tauros's Thrash as he powered through.

Trevor's Pokémon went for an Ember attack, which was dispersed by the Bull's tail, shining from the protection of Tail Whip.

"I like rocks." He said plainly. A Rock Tomb soared up around Magmortar, entrapping him in a cage of rugged stones. The Bull waved to Geodude, floating in front of Brock. "Thanks man for the lessons!"

Geodude waved back. "Watch out!"

Cracks started forming in the tomb. After all, Tauros wasn't a Rock Type, so his move was still a bit off balance.

However, it had earned him enough time to finish powering up his type-advantageous attack.

When Magmortar broke out, he was greeted with a piece of flying Stone Edge that smashed him through the other side of the barrier and into a pool of lava.

Tauros dashed next to the pool and smirked. "I've always heard Spiritomb talking about what it's like to be a fossil."

"However, I've never created one myself…" He released a weakened version of Hydro Pump, hoping to crystallize the lava into solid obsidian.

"Damn… that didn't work." Tauros turned around and walked back to Ash, leaving Magmortar floating in the pool, passed out from the series of super effective attacks.

Ash rubbed his forehead. "Tauros, I really need to get you guys to start taking science lessons with me from Dexter."

* * *

"I… I… LOST?" Trevor stared at the referee, who just announced his verdict.

"You didn't just lose." Someone in the crowd yelled. "You got freaking murdered!"

A wave of laughter echoed through audience. Trevor trembled and pointed at the stands. "SHUT UP! SHUT UP! ALL OF YOU!"

He was then lifted into the air by a stern Alakazam, looking at him with hidden disgust. "I must ask you to leave immediately."

Trevor struggled violently in midair and was flashed away by the psychic security.

Ash shook his head and walked down the stage, his enthusiastic mood ravaged by the kid.

Behind him, the referee finished. "And the first round goes to Ash Ketchum, who will be advancing to the Grass Field tomorrow!"

* * *

"Welp, that was interesting." Ash blew a bubble with his gum, which was popped by Domino.

"No it was not!" She countered. "I sat here, almost falling asleep, watching some random brat, whom I have no idea how said brat got in, gets destroyed by two of your least attentive Pokémon."

"It was even worse than Rocket briefings." She whined.

"That was sarcasm." Ash rolled his eyes.

"I know." The blonde gave him a sunny smile. "I just wanted to complain."

"Thanks for cheering me up." Ash laughed. "When's your battle?"

"Another half an hour." She peeked at her watch. "I think Gary's is going on next at Water."

"Then let's go see him!" Misty piped up excitedly at the mention of 'water.' "This way!"

* * *

Lance placed down his binoculars and leaned back in his office chair. "No signs of blasphemy yet…"

"Also, you saw the idiotic kid screaming profanity against Ketchum, right?" He then turned to Lorelei next to him. She nodded.

"Put him in one of the boring lectures about respect and delinquency for ten hours." The Champion decided. "That should be enough of a punishment."

The Ice Elite's eyes popped open. "Taught by Agatha?"

"Yep."

"I don't think that's constitutional, sir." She remarked. "Ten hours listening to her talk about manners is the equivalence of cruel and unusual torture."

"Tell him to suck it up." Lance replied. "I have to go through the same Arceus damned thing twenty five years ago because Oak thought calling a dumbass trainer 'trash' was profanity."

* * *

By the time the trio got there, Gary's Blastoise had already slammed a Hydro Cannon into his opponent's third Pokémon, again one-shotting it.

"Have some mercy, man!" Ash shouted below the stage.

"You know, that was the fastest I've seen a Field Battle went on in my years here." The referee for the Grass Field announced Gary's victory. "But you're still fifteen seconds behind the record."

"What's the record?" The Oak boy questioned. "Also, how long have you been here?"

"Seven years, and 8.5 seconds." The referee said in an obviously non-respective order. "Not counting the transitioning time of Pokéballs."

"Apparently, according to Mr. Goodshow, the guy came in with a Magikarp that Hyper Beamed every Pokémon as soon as it showed up." The judge paused as Gary and his opponent shook hands. "Now, he's an ex-Hoenn Champion and the Grand Master of Water Pokémon."

"WALLACE!?" Misty looked up with enlarged eyes and a fangirl expression that the group never thought was possible. "I FREAKING LOVE HIS MAGIKARP!"

"Yep, this is why you don't mention the forbidden name around Misty." A voice came ringing in, and they turned around to find Violet walking at them.

Domino smirked. "I'm definitely going to aim to beat that…"

* * *

"That was more boring than Aaron's story about the War of the Three Hills!" Arceus concluded and shut off the crystal ball.

"What are you talking about!?" Sir Aaron crossed his arms. "How can anything be more interesting than Lucario and I defeating the ENTIRE court of generals in a duel?"

"Because you were an Aura Guardian and ex-Chosen fighting a dozen idiots with bronze swords." Dialga deadpanned. "Also, you tell the same story everything we play Mafia in some form or another."

The Knight opened his mouth to protest, but Palkia beat him to it. "Open the TV! I want to see Domino's!"

"Hers would be boring too." Arceus clicked his tongue. "Unless someone show up with a Rayquaza, I'm not watching."

"Timed Cable is freaking expensive!"

"THAT'S NOT HOW THIS WORKS!"

* * *

 **A/N: Fire Field Battle. Going super slow here. I need to salvage as many chapters from the League as I can. My goal is to hit 70 by the time Kanto ends… Also, keep the suggestions coming in for different teams!**

 **Enjoy! Please Favorite, Follow, and Comment! Recommend this fic to yours friends, your family, your pet, your dead plant, your cheesecake!**


	57. Cha 56: Kanto 46

**Cha. 56**

 **A/N: More unwrapping of the first LEAGUE! Remember to do my poll at the profile page!**

 **Be sure to review, favorite and follow. It's not hard, please show some support by doing that.**

 **It'll take literally two minutes of your life. It took me 5 hours to write this. Please, show your support.**

* * *

The next half hour passed rapidly, and before long was Domino's battle. The girl stood up and smirked.

"You know the record Gary's referee was talking about?" She smiled evilly. "The fastest time a trainer got beaten set by Wallace?"

"Oh Arceus." Ash gave her a good luck pat… even though she wouldn't need it. "Don't hurt the other challenger's feelings too much."

"No promises." She let her blonde hair shine in the sun, which had now extended past her shoulders, but still as curly as ever. Ash watched as his girlfriend bounced away. He would never trade his mischievous beauty for anything.

Maybe that's why he never had never gotten together with any of his female companions over the past eight years. None of them was his type… his type was more of a… badder girl?

Domino teleported onto the stage and stood there elegantly, like a black tulip wavering in the wind, without a care in the world, which definitely also did not include the shock on the faces of her opponent, referee, and audience.

She petted Zorua, who hopped into the field. The referee had to make her go back because he didn't officially start yet.

Domino pouted a little, and Ash sighed.

"Didn't you read the manuel!?" He Aura-coated his words.

"No…" The Elite looked at him innocently. "I was tired!"

"For four months?" He deadpanned.

"Yeah…" She trailed off. "Look! He's starting!"

The referee coughed. "This would be a battle between Languir of Vermillion and Domino of Viridian!"

"Rules are the same as the last battle. This is a 3v3, and you may…"

"BEGIN!" He raised the flags.

Zorua jumped into the field, knowing that every second is precious.

The opposite trainer threw his Pokéball, and it began to materialize.

Not caring for what came out of the ball, the Tricky Fox released a tempest of Hyper Beam, Focus Blast, Ancient Power, Dark Pulse, Shadow Ball, Flamethrower, Solarbeam, Thunderbolt, Water Gun, and Air Cutter.

Whatever poor Pokémon came out went blasting into the invisible psychic shield, which was maintained by thirteen Alakazams.

The said psychics were so glad they weren't bs-ing the job. The shield wobbled dangerously from the attack, and an unconscious Poliwrath slid down.

Domino smirked. That was one second exactly.

Languir stared at the scene, to his Pokémon which he quickly withdrew, to the nonchalant Tricky Fox at the center of the field, then to the referee.

"What…"

"Ummm…" The referee blinked as well. "I think… that was legal?"

"It definitely is." Domino held up a e-book displayed on Noah showing the entire League Manuel. "I just read it with psychic, and nowhere does it say it is illegal to fire out a barrage of attacks, or attack a Pokémon before it is fully animated.

"I can't really think of anything else that I could've done." She shrugged. "There weren't a lot of time."

The referee waved his hand. "You're… right…"

The Vermillion trainer's eyes twitched, and he drew out another Pokéball. Putting it next to his mouth, he whispered a few directions, before chucking it into the field.

It popped open. The timer started again. Zorua turned into a Wailord, pancaking the incoming Pokémon, who was apparently a Kadabra, into the psychic wall.

"Ring-out!" Domino yelled before the judge. Two seconds.

"Uhhh…" The referee began sweating and took out his manuel. "I'm going to declare a ten-minute break."

Ash sighed and leaned back into his chair. He felt really bad for Languir. Maybe he'll do him a favor after the battle… like recommending him to bet on Ash Ketchum for first place in the booths.

"Can you please ask your Pokémon to switch back?" Languir's face twitched. "I think Kadabra has claustrophobia…"

Zorua switched back and jumped to Domino, who smiled at him. "Sorry man! If you want to blame someone, blame Gary Oak for introducing me to the record time of a League battle."

Next to Ash, Gary stood up in protest. "THAT WASN'T EVEN ME!"

"It kinda was your fault for showing off…" Giselle pulled him down.

"Yeah, you don't do that next to my sister's companions." Violet spoke up.

"You're not wrong." Misty sighed. "Even I've given up on challenging these two. They can take a drop of water and turn it into a hurricane."

Domino shot a smile at Gary and teleported over the Languir's box. Ash's eyes widened. "That's against regulations…"

"No it's not." A psychic voice rang in his head. "As of 805 A.E.'s amendment of the rule under Section 4, clause 51b, a demonstration of positivity when stepping foot on another trainer's area is now legal."

"It's only two years ago. You wouldn't know, Ash, since you didn't read the manuel."

"Who cares about details like that! Psychic is cheating!" Ash huffed.

The blonde shook the hands of Languir, who joked. "I guess this is an early good-game handshake?"

The Elite laughed. "Nah. I just needed to do something to piss off my boyfriend."

"That jealous, huh?" He grinned and raised an eyebrow.

"No. It's an inside joke." She chuckled.

"So, say, why aren't you on the rankings for winner runner-ups?" The Vermillion trainer asked. "Your Pokémon is more powerful than anything I've seen, even those on TV."

"Her name is Zorua." Domino patted Dark Type, who curled on her shoulder. "The rankings are extremely wrong, as confirmed by two of my friends who are Gym Leaders."

"No kidding." He smirked. "I wouldn't be surprised if you win."

"Yep! Expect me up there at the podium!" She smiled.

* * *

"Sooo…" The referee sighed. "I guess there's going to be a new bill brought up by tonight."

"Nothing?" Domino smirked.

"No." He looked at the innocent Zorua on her shoulder. "I guess no one had shown up with a Zorua strong enough to morph into a Wailord in the past…"

Violet, Misty and Brock groaned simutaneously in the seats.

"Damn it!" The redhead shouted. "Now we have to stay up until midnight trying to sign this stupid proposal into law."

Violet rubbed her forehead. "Don't forget the pointless debates initiated by Lt. Surge, and then refuted by Bruce, and Lance's filibuster because he can't veto EVERYTHING."

Brock closed his eyes. Gary looked at him questionably. "Aren't you going to complain?"

"Nope!" He said, popping the 'p.' "I need all the rest I can get for tonight."

* * *

Languir held up his last Pokéball and whispered an apology, before throwing it.

Zorua had already prepared a massive torrent of move-storm, but the Pokéball landed on the ground in front of her, refusing to open.

The Vermillion challenger gave a weak smile. "That's Machoke for you."

"He wouldn't come out if he knows he is destined to lose."

The referee coughed. "I could give you another chance…"

"NONONOOO! It's good!" The guy waved his hands in front of him dramatically. "I'm good with forfeiting."

The moderator sighed, for what seemed like the twentieth time today. "Then I will proceed to announce Domino of Viridian as the winner, and will continue onto the Water Field for the next battle!"

"In addition, she had broken the League record of the fastest battle in 8.5 seconds with a… 2-second battle!"

The crowd cheered at the sheer demonstration of power. No one mocked the opponent though. Seriously, if you think you could block that insanity, stand up.

* * *

"Does that count as… ummm…" Bruce stuggled to find a good word.

"Debasement of League values?" Lorelei added helpfully.

"No." Lance judged. "However, now, we do have a stack of bills coming our way, so, in conclusion, the girl caused more damn trouble."

"What do you mean?" Lorelei looked at him, puzzled. "We only have one."

"Yeah, but we postponed opening up the House for more than THREE MONTHS!" Lance shouted. "Do you know how many bills had been stacked up because of procrastination!?"

"We can get crap done a lot quicker if you would just quit filibustering!" Agatha pointed her cane at him.

"I wouldn't be doing that if you pull your old conservative views out of there!" Lance retorted. "Not everything has to be paid for by Leagues, and global warming is a real thing!"

* * *

"Really?" Arceus pondered. "I feel really chill up here with the AC on."

Palkia stood next to said air conditioner, by the name of Kyurem, and deadpanned. "You kidnapped a legendary to fan you, Dad."

"Actually, Arceus may have a point here." Sir Aaron said. "When I was alive, there wasn't much heat."

"That's because Lugia made a mistake and casted an Ice Age over you guys with Kyogre's help." Dialga remarked. "Which was why geologists are still pondering to this day why random glaciers formed in Hoenn."

* * *

Ash smirked at Domino. "You're pushing me here, princess."

"What are you talking about?" She stared up at him guiltlessly.

"You're making me go and try to beat that time." Ash growled slightly.

Domino pulled him into a kiss. When they broke apart, she said huskily. "And you won't! Because you're a Goody-Two-Shoes, and you don't want to hurt people's feelings."

"You know too much…" Ash grabbed her, laughing, and led her back the way of the Center for lunch. "The top few guys are fighting in the afternoon, as well as Ritchie. Don't want to miss that."

"None of them are probably showing their prime Pokémon though." Domino shrugged. "They wouldn't be taking out a hidden Groudon to fight a Kakuna, especially in the preliminaries."

"Still good to watch." Ash responded. "Just get to know their styles and methods."

"Speaking of which," He turned to Gary. "You exposed Blastoise way too soon. You know that people are already trying to think of counters to that, right?"

"Let them!" He snorted. "I've got other trump cards."

"Oh? Mind to interest me in them?" The Black Tulip poked her face between the two Pallet Trainers. "I'm going to guess your precious Umbreon."

"Nah, nothing from last timeline…" Gary formed a half-smile. "Although she's a freaking powerhouse. I still don't get how she could store that much energy in that little body."

Pikachu coughed. "That's why none of y'all should use size as an assumption."

Brock chuckled. "Yeah, Ho-Oh had to learn that the hard way."

* * *

The plan was to go into the Center, order bacon strips as entrée, Macaroni and Cheese as the main dish with steak and Caesar Salad, a bowl of chicken noodle soup, and finally topping the meal off with some chocolate pudding with sprinkles.

Sprinkles go with everything…

However, the reason for the existence of plans was for them to be ruined.

Ruined they were when the Elite spotted the Rocket Trios walking into the Pokémon Center at Indigo Plateau.

Yep, walking, not sneaking.

* * *

"What are you three doing here?" Domino demanded after stomping over to them.

"Hello, m'lady." James, dressed in cowboy-style, tipped his hat.

The girl flipped the hat out of his hands. "Don't call me that!"

"Well," Meowth began. The blonde shushed him.

"Your accent is too confusing. Jessie, you're the only logical one here." She pointed at the female Rocket. "Explain."

Jessie put on the nicest smile she could manage. "Miss, do you remember when we said a while back that Boss is making us train Pokémon, since we got junior admin ranking?"

(A/N: For details on Rocket ranks, refer to Kanto 25)

"So we thought to ourselves: If we can train Pokémon, why don't we make a little cash by beating a few Gym Leaders?" Jessie paused. "Somehow, the Leaders are still as weak as we remember them from last timeline, so we somehow beat eight and got to Leagues."

"They're not that weak." Domino stated. "Especially Koga. What team did he use against you?"

"His three-badge team…" James said. "Bellsprout, Venonant, Golbat."

"That's why! They weren't trying." She exclaimed.

"They were tr'ing last timeline to stop us when we w're stealing dair Pokémon!" Meowth recalled. "And they st'll failed! It w's always Ash who caught us!"

"Whatever." Domino waved her hands. "If you are here, you better not get kicked out before preliminary ends. I will kick your asses if you lose Team Rocket's face."

She turned to walk away, then stopped. Turning back, she had an ominous glow on her face. "Did you three just walk into Leagues normally with the crowd?"

The three exchanged a confused look. "Yes, ma'am?"

"The security didn't stop you?" Domino asked quietly.

What was she talking about? The three looked at each other cautiously. Was she digging another hole for them to jump into?

"Of course not. We showed them our badges and tickets, and they let us in."

"Oh… damn." Domino walked back to her table. Within, her heart was roaring with anger. Sometimes, incompetency had its perks, she thought. At least, they wouldn't have League officials chasing after their shadow all the times.

* * *

The few hours passed quickly, and the group, now including Gary, Giselle, and Violet walked to the Fire Field for the next fight, conducted by the girl who was deemed most likely to win by Leagues- Addi.

Ash had spent some time researching about the girl, who had quite an impressive history, actually. She was from Hoenn, and then moved to Sinnoh, and now she was adventuring in Kanto.

She had participated in the Sinnoh Lily of the Valley Conference, in which she got into the Top Four, using a mixture of both Hoenn and Sinnoh Pokémon. Seeing that she was here in Kanto, Ash speculated that she had Kanto species as well.

A remarkable competitor. Ash smirked. The world was going to throw some really curvy balls at them. The winners from last timelines were not here, instead replaced by others who seemed incredibly stronger.

But no matter what… Ash's eyes shone with a determined light as he looked past the stage to the clouds in the distance… He was going to win, after eight years of hard work.

To become a Pokémon Master.

* * *

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* * *

Standing above the Fire Field was an Infernape, facing off a Rapidash. The Sinnoh Pokémon's flames burnt a purple gleam, and a dangerous power was released from it.

He ran towards the opposite Fire Horse, spewing a Flamethrower at her. Then, he jumped in the air and smashed down two Fire Blast that covered all possible tracks of escape.

Rapidash stood there unmoving, wondering why her opponent was trying to use fire attacks when she had Flash Fire, proving to be a horrible mistake. The special purple fire burnt straight through her ability and hit her for double the damage.

Rapidash screamed and crashed to the floor. Infernape then jumped through the flames and used High-Jump Kick, launching the other Fire-Type into the sky.

When she crashed back to the floor, he added an Ember to finish off the stunned Pokémon.

In the stands, Domino shuddered, a nervous tone leaking out unconsciously. "Arceus… that was mutated fire."

"This is why I said to be careful." Ash tightened his hold on her hand. He knew what mutated fire meant. His own Pikachu had mutated electricity. "This might not even be his strongest Pokémon. He could be saving his trump card, just like all of us."

A course of adrenaline ran through his veins. He thought back on all of the different insane trainers he met, he beat, he lost to. His eyes concentrated.

This was a new world, new timeline, new start. He would make this new beginning the way he wanted! People never got second chances, so he deeply valued this opportunity, and in no way would he allow carelessness to get in the way.

Feeling a resonance with Ash, Domino tightened her hold as well. "You know, I think this world as a whole might just be more exponentiated than last time."

Her eyes shone with an anticipated look. Ash's met hers. "Yes, just the way I like it."

A stream of confidence radiated from him. His eyes, shining blue, traversed the barrier of space and landed on the Championship podium. It was only a few kilometers away.

Ash had traveled an entire dimension to get here. That was the past eight years. Now, he just had to look forward to the next week. What would happen by the end of the next seven days?

He questioned himself. The referee announced the Sinnoh Trainer's victory, and Ash walked off to another battle.

It was now or never, and never was not an option. He was the Chosen One. He had to stand in front of the waves of the storm.

If even he couldn't take control of his own destiny, then who could?

* * *

Domino retired to bed, thinking about the day's events, then to the past. More and more memory flowed into her mind, and a pressure started to build up.

Eventually, it was stacked to a point that even her psychic powers weren't holding up… and then a light flashed across her inner-universe.

She was a Rocket Elite last timeline. Now, she was the Chosen Queen.

She wasn't just Ash's girlfriend. She was the person who had been chosen by Arceus, to represent him.

Her job wasn't to fight evil, because she was a part of said 'evil.'

Her role in this world was to lead humanity to evolution, but it was also beyond that.

Arceus had said in the Bubble that he recognized a Chosen One every millenium to counter the uproar that was deemed to happen every turn.

The Queen, hadn't been chosen since… a long time, he said.

Her hands shook slightly. Domino shuffled into her bed sheets a little, feeling an emerging coolness around her.

The world ended last time, but Ash was there, doing his task as the Chosen One… why did the world still end?

Her breath quickened as she followed down her train of thought. How could it be possible that it ended?

Was that why she was here now? Here to help him? Because it wasn't just a disaster that he could calm on his own?

Cyrus… he couldn't possibly cause that much trouble then! He was just a human… right?

A sudden goosebumps formed on her arms. A thought came to her mind, but it was pushed back by Kirlia's mental projection.

No! She thought and tried desperately to dig it back out. A feeling rose in her heart that she was going to regret forgetting it.

Kirlia interjected her thoughts again, and she sighed and sat up.

"It's time!" The Emotion Pokémon floated in front of her with a digital clock.

Domino blinked the stray thoughts away. The future would be up to fate to unfold. Her job was to concentrate on her current task...

She took a peek outside. With a sweep of psychic, she could sense six men watching her building, each with three Pokéballs.

The Elite chuckled to herself. Why did Lance think he could guard her with such untrained men? Even though they were well-prepared, they were still amateurs in her eyes.

Well, just to satisfy his vigilance, and Ash's desire to not be troubled tomorrow, she tweaked her plan a little.

The blonde walked out of her room, down the stairs, and out of the door. Immediately, she could sense the men pulling out their radios.

She smiled internally and started toward the League Headquarter, which was not far away at all. The men followed her… exactly what she wanted.

On the other hand, Zorua sneaked out from under the bed. With psychic, Kirlia took a look at the area. One guard left, and he wasn't paying too much attention.

Zorua disguised herself into a tall frame, covered by a cloak, veiling her face or any trace of identity. Kirlia floated into her hood.

"You do the talking." Zorua thought as her friend put on a Miracle Eye to pierce into her mind. "I'll do the acting."

Kirlia nodded, and the figure teleported off.

* * *

Domino knocked on the door of Lance's mansion, and the Champion opened the door. He saw her and peered at his watch. "Why are you here at this becursed hour?"

The Elite gave him a sweet smile, though her eyes told him directly that she knew he was spying on her. "I want to let you in on a secret."

Lance stood back carefully. "Are you ok? Because, if you have a fever, I mean…"

"Perfectly fine." Domino did a little twirl. She smirked to herself as a psychic message pulsed in. She needed to buy them ten more minutes. "Aren't you going to invite me in?"

Lance coughed. He quickly did a mental check of everything in his mansion. Nothing top-secret should be laying around without protection.

Then he looked back at Domino. He was the Champion of Kanto and Johto. By no means should he be afraid of a petite girl, even if she was the Rocket Elite, especially on his territory.

He thought back to what Mr. Goodshow had said. The League's attitude should be to absorb anything, with the confidence that it could digest all of the bacteria that could prove infectious.

"Come in." He motioned and led the way.

"Do you have a pen and paper?" Domino smiled and walk in. "Because I think you'll like to record this."

Lance grabbed a stray paper by his desk. He knew the girl was probably not going to lie and put him in a trap… that would be too obvious. As smart as an Elite was, she would probably manipulate the League to unconsciously help some Rocket cause.

"You see, Team Rocket dominates the underground of Kanto and Johto, as you know." The Black Tulip started. Eight minutes. "Recently, we've detected some underground activity at the borders of Kanto and Sinnoh that was both reckless and, most importantly, unstylish."

"In other words, non-Team Rocket." Her eyes met with Lance's. The Champion looked serious. The hook had been casted. "We've captured a few of them and found that they're Team Galactic, from Sinnoh."

Lance took a breath. He had heard about the scandals up north. The Gym Leaders there had told him about the sharp increase in both the frequency and the brutality of the crime.

He blamed them on their lack of skills as the protector of their towns, but also on Team Rocket's sudden heartlessness… well, more than before.

In the decades of struggle, the League had reached an unknown consensus with Rockets. They didn't push the line too far, and the League would keep one eye closed.

That was the unspoken agreement, and it kept peace relatively well… since they didn't have a better method… until the violent disasters broke out in the north, which was why Lance reacted so angrily when he saw Domino on his turf.

Team Galactic. He fell into silence. She was mostly not lying to get the pressure off of her Team. That would make no sense. It could be proven wrong easily.

"And you're telling me this because you don't want to be someone else's scapegoat?" Lance asked curiously. "Didn't know the Great Team Rocket could back down."

"We're not backing down." Domino said calmly. "We're just not jumping into a hole that other disgraceful criminals dug for us."

The Elite saw Lance's look and smiled. "I know what you're thinking, and I can assure you that Rockets aren't the same with them."

"But, of course, you won't believe my words. So, let me prove it to you by our actions."

"You're going to send people up there to deal with them." Domino's eyes met with his. Lance nodded, not liking how his moves could be so easily predicted. "We will too… to capture those Galactic airheads."

"You're… offering an… alliance?" Lance spat out the word, as if he had never learned that specific permutation of the eight-letters.

"Yep." Domino's eyes glinted. "Kanto is Rocket territory. We're not about to let anyone steal our space, and you're not either."

"I know you still don't have faith in us." Domino paused and placed on her most trustworthy face. "We don't either in you. But it had got to start somewhere, right?"

"Tell me your decision by the end of Leagues." Domino peered at her watch. All set. "Night, Champ."

The Dragon Trainer followed her shadow out of the door and sat back. Goodshow's words appeared in his mind again.

He was not stupid, or else he wouldn't be leading two regions. He had to admit, though, that he was nowhere near as talented as the Rocket Boss. Even his daughter could match intelligence with him.

It wasn't a scheme. It was too overt. Her offer was undeniable. Even if there was a hole, he had to jump in it, because it was the job of the League to eradicate crime, especially those as severe as up north.

Lance was a rational person, a very rational person, if he wasn't pissed off. However, he got pissed off way too easily if he was around Rockets. He had to deal with them since he was ten, and the first impression was fatal.

However, Domino's words put him into deep thought. The harsh methods he used against the Team had not failed, but had not succeeded either.

It wasn't just him. According to Goodshow, it was the combined effort of all four champions before him as well. Obviously, eighty years were enough, even for the slow processing of League, to come up with all of the greatest strategies for suppression.

He doubted he could come up with better ones.

They all had not succeeded.

So, could she be right? Was it time for a change in methods?

Agatha's far right voice screamed negatories in his head, but Goodshow's words haunt him as well.

Lance picked up a pen and began doodling on a scratch paper. It wasn't easy being the Champion.

Twenty years… how time flew.

* * *

"I think ten minutes will be enough." Kirlia feel silent after pulsing out the message to her trainer.

Then, Zorua kicked open the door with a Shadow Force. She slammed it closed, waking up the trainer sleeping inside.

The boy got out of his bed, eyes still closed, revealing himself to be… Trevor.

He yelled in annoyance. "Can you idiots keep it DOWN!?"

The dark figure muffled a raucous noise and navigated to his bed. She patted his shoulder.

"Huh?" The trainer forced his eyes open. At first, it was a mist, out of which he could only identify a translucent silhouette.

"What are you DOING in my room! Get your ass out!"

Zorua growled, the noise waking Trevor up completely. He reached over to flip open the lights,. After the initial sharp glare, his eyes fell onto the sight before him.

An eerie, eight-feet-tall figure towered in front of him. Dressed in all black, the cloaked shape sent a blood-curling chill down Trevor's spine.

Due to the bedlight, its shadow extended beyond the door of the bedroom into the living room, and on, as if to hell.

Trevor felt his heart being grasp by a powerful hand, which pulled the organ down into his stomach and continued to swirl in there. His eyes widened in horror.

He turned completely white and let out a high-pitched shriek.

The figure echoed in a hollow voice, not belonging to any form of living. "Keep screaming. Your fear entertains me. The walls are sealed. No one will come for you."

A dark pink light formed around the room, and his yells never got past that.

On the walls, blood started dripping down. Trevor trembled. "What… what… the hell are… are you!?"

The figure reached up to her mask and yanked it down. It was a malformed face. Her chin was missing, leaving her tongue dangling out past her chest. One eye bulged out, and the other missing, leaving blood pouring down, bringing maggots that dripped onto Trevor's lap. Her entire face showed evidence of decomposition.

He looked at the clock beside him: 3:45. He pinched himself, and felt a sharp pain. He was not dreaming.

A hand reached for him, showing its decayed flesh. Streaks of brown and black and dots of infection covered Trevor's horizon. He stopped screaming from his throat, losing his voice completely, resorting to gurgling moans. He began to convulse uncontrollably.

His breath sped up to an insane level, and he felt his brain exploding with sounds and colors. His pupils dilated to a deranged size, and his face distorted into twisted fear.

"Me?" The figure slurred in a hoarse timbre. "You're right. I am from hell."

The abomination launched herself at him, and that was the last thing Trevor saw before passing out.

The shape went through him, condensing back into Kirlia and Zorua. The both of them waved to the side.

"That was fun! It's been so long since we did anything cool!" Zorua chirped as if she didn't just scarred a boy for life. "Too bad he's too much of a weakling. That was too short."

Kirlia laughed. She was so glad Domino was her trainer. Ash would never have let her do anything this gory. "Thanks, Sableye! Nice job on the side effects!"

"That's only a small part of my super move!" The Darkness Pokémon floated out of a wall. "Brain Haunt took so much time! I'm so glad Giratina helped me finish everything."

"Just don't do that to me anymore…" Zorua said threateningly, thinking about the time he first experimented it on her. A trail of sweat dripped down her back. "I almost freaking peed myself, and that was under bright daylight."

Sableye shrugged. "Too bad by tomorrow, he would think that this was all a dream."

"Actually!" Kirlia picked up a knife in hand. "Let's give him a souvenir."

She sunk the blade deep into his palm and carved a bloody cross in it. The trainer slurred, but did not wake up. His brain was still a mess from Sableye's Brain Haunt.

The three of them smiled coldly and admired their work.

A psychic pulse reached their heads. The three looked longingly at their handiwork, before Kirlia sighed. "Gotta go!"

The Emotion Pokémon flashed with pink, before teleporting them all out, leaving the Lavender Trainer on the bed, sheets already starting to be stained with blood.

No one messed with their trainer. She IS the Black Tulip. Being the Chosen Queen meant she was in control of human evolution. It didn't mean she had to give up her brutality, because that was the side Ash needed help with.

After all, they were partners. Therefore, when he was too nice to retaliate, she would do it for him.

Much like how Rockets took care of the dirty, underground work of this world.

She was willing.

* * *

 **A/N: Yippy for crime and violence!**

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 **I want to see you reviewing the crap out of this chapter. The end scene took a lot of thinking and redoing. For the record, today was not a bad day or because I am distorted. It just needed to be done!**

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	58. Cha 57: Kanto 47

**Cha. 57**

 **A/N: Get ready for some emotional rides that would stir with your sympathy, continuing with last chapter.**

* * *

Ash stop his meditation as the alarm clock rang. He didn't like meditating… it was abnormal. Plus, it required constant focus to wash his brain with Aura. Even though it was a quicker way to replenish energy, it required too much effort.

In comparison, he preferred the more regular and less time-consuming way: Sleep.

He held an a Protect in front of his face, instinctively. No doubt, a Thunderbolt came straight at Ash's head, which sizzled out as it dissipated against the Aura shield.

Pikachu pouted. " _You're no fun when you meditate._ "

"Yeah… so fun." Ash remarked sarcastically and got to his morning routine.

Pikachu watched his trainer go, a smile curling on his lips. Ash was in for a surprise. That wasn't just any electricity. It had a prolonged effect that could stay on someone for longer than…

The Ketchum boy shouted loudly from the bathroom. Pikachu giggled and hopped on over. His trainer stood in front of him, hair on its end, glaring at him.

"What did you do?" Ash wondered if he should start cutting down on the ketchup supply. His starter was becoming more and more untamed.

" _Just something I engineered." Pikachu gave him a devious look. "My electricity absorbs all of the electrons around you, so when you lower the Protect, your own electrons diffuse out into the environment, leaving you positive._ "

" _Then, when you get to another place that is neutral, you get shocked because the electrons from the environment will flow back into you because of the voltage gradient._ "

"How do you come up with these things!?" Ash grinded his teeth. Pokémon never stopped to fascinate him, especially his starter… but sometimes they leaned on the edge of pushing him off.

" _I still have a few hundred variants of Thunderbolt…_ " Pikachu tried to look nonchalant, but failed to hide the smug tug of his lips.

"In that case…" Ash unplugged the lamp in the hallway and stuck the mouse's tail to it. "Power this!"

Pikachu shrugged. The lightbulb shattered into pieces. Ash sighed. "Great. Fifty more dollars."

" _You're becoming a miser._ " Pikachu voiced his observation. " _Ever since you found out Domino is richer than you, you're hoarding more and more stuff._ "

"Like what!?" Ash crossed his arms in protest. How dare he thought he was in competition with her!

" _Like the freaking receipt to a box of sushi!_ " Pikachu gave him a look, obviously containing a mixed emotion of sympathy, and judgemental pity. " _Don't worry. I understand how you feel. You feel that your masculinity is being challenged._ "

Ash snorted. "Is that because you feel similar with Zorua?"

" _Uhhh…_ " Pikachu's eyes widened. What does he know!? " _What are you_ talking _about, Ash!?_ "

"Don't think I don't know about you getting squashed by her in Snorlax form three nights ago." Ash shot him a look and walked off, leaving Pikachu to be doused in his own embarrassment and self-doubt.

* * *

Brock and Ash arrived the earliest at the breakfast area, which was surprising, because the girls usually took the lead, both of them morning birds.

And then the two guys would get woken up, either because their companions were hungry or punchy… most likely the latter.

When the two came downstairs, yawning, the two males gave a surprised look, before returning to their food.

Misty had black bags under her eyes. Brock raised an eyebrow. "The League meeting wasn't that bad…"

"Yeah, because I didn't fake diarrhea and leave like SOMEONE!" She gave the Rock Trainer a passive-aggressive look.

"Really? Diarrhea? You can't do any better?" Ash deadpanned.

Brock coughed. "Eat your pancakes, Ash."

The teen shrugged and addressed the blonde. "Why are YOU so tired?"

Domino debated whether she should say she was talking to Lance… and the other thing. "I was working out some special moves to destroy you."

"Cut your useless attempts. I have a counter for everything of yours." Ash smirked. "I was the one who introduced you to the style of insanity."

"Oh yeah?" Domino's eyes flashed dangerously. "Let's see if you have a counter to my roasts when I get handed the first place trophy!"  
The two's eyes clashed with potency.

* * *

Ash walked onto the Grass Field. Personally it was his favorite field, since there was no extremes, unlike the other three.

As the Chosen, he had seen way too many calamities that would push people past their max, breaking them and straining their minds. Sometimes, a little peace was necessary.

The boy laughed to himself for thinking too much like an old person. To be fair, his experience was probably as full as the elders, at least in the world tragedies section.

He sat down patiently after entering his box. Ash was early, which gave him a little time to run through his concentration techniques again. Picking out a Pokéball, he threw it up and caught it, while his mind ran through the lists of combinations.

Who was going to be his opponent this time? The League won't place people who could definitely get past the preliminaries together, because that would just be unfair.

He didn't show as much power in the last battle, but he WAS shown on the inaccurate rankings, plus his ease from the last battle also showed evidently, allowing him to decide that his opponent wouldn't be one of the hardcore runners.

His thought was brought back when his opponent finally arrived, barely on time.

Risky, Ash thought to himself. That would make this interesting, because he wasn't one known for safety either.

She was a girl with pure white hair and a dark blue dress with a NIKE hightops.

"Hi! I'm Chloe!" She waved across the field and introduced herself.

"Ash!" He said cleanly. "Look forward to battling you."

"On the left is Chloe of Celadon!" The referee raised his flag. "To the right is Ash Ketchum of Pallet!"

"The rules are just like the previous battles! May the best trainer win!"

He raised up the white flags and shouted. "Let the Grass Field Battle begin!"

* * *

Seeing that the girl was hesitating, Ash chuckled and threw out a Pokémon, who materialized to be…

Butterfree!

The Butterfly Pokémon had come back in the last two months of training and had stayed with Ash until Leagues. Now looking stronger than ever, the Bug Type buzzed fiercely across the meadow.

The girl threw out a Pokémon after seeing Ash's selection, and an Arcanine took form on the field.

" _Type advantage, huh?_ " Butterfree peered at the Pokémon. In his eyes, a flash of disdain passed by.

On the 'Legendary' Pokémon's face was a show of ferocity, at which Ash's Pokémon sneered.

Dangling a swift of spores down, she flew higher, flapping her wings in the designated pattern of Sunny Day.

The light shone down brighter, which powered Arcanine as well, but Butterfree could care less.

A Flamethrower shot Butterfree's way and met with the spores. An explosion rang out, and the Fire Type was sent crashing to the ground.

" _How did that Pollen Puff taste?_ " The Bug Type swerved a pattern in the air and started glowing.

Arcanine rubbed his paws and got up, already sore.

Chloe gaped at the power of the power, as well as the well-manevuered tactic. She commanded. "Arcanine! Get him down here! Aerial Ace!"

Butterfree's antenna jerked in surprise. He knew that Arcanine could in fact learn Aerial Ace, but most weren't able to due to its pure difficulty. Guess there was a reason why she was at Leagues.

He didn't bother to dodge though. If he had to dodge every move because of his size disadvantage… then he wouldn't be Ash's Pokémon.

As the Fire Type ascended straight for him, he released a quickly powered Solarbeam, which was powered by his Tinted Lens such that the type disadvantage ineffectiveness was fully neutralized.

The powerful Grass Type Hyper Beam variant smashed into Arcanine, knocking him back down without even scraping Butterfree.

After that, he just started firing down Solarbeams like a machine gun, as if the forceful move was just Pin Missile.

Arcanine was obviously shocked by the barrage of Grass Type energy. He was pelted and launched by the first three, and he frantically tried to jolt across the field against the rain of energy.

"What!? What is going on!?"

"How can he do that?"

"That is Solarbeam, right? Not Fury Cutter?"

The audience exploded at seeing the eerie scene. Ash smirked. This wasn't even Butterfree's most powerful move.

This was just his acting as a refractor, which condenses the sunlight into a beam. Even though it looked like Solarbeam, it was only half the damage… which still added up anyways if anything was repetitively pounded by half-Hyper Beams.

This was Hyper Beams we were talking about, not Water Gun.

"Rain Dance!" Chloe shouted frantically. "Get rid of the sun!"

" _That's not in my move set!_ " The Fire Type shouted back. " _Why would I know Rain Dance?_ "

In the moment of distraction, he was hit with two more beams, and he roared and shot up a Fire Blast, which was decimated easily by the continuous Grass Energy.

Butterfree yawned as he adjusted into a more comfortable position. By this point, condensing light was like breathing to him. In the past, he had bombarded a nest of Ariados with the same attack, causing the invader species to have no choice but retreat southward back to Johto.

"Use Morning Sun!" The trainer shouted. Morning Sun was a healing move at its greatest capacity when the sun was flaring.

However… the move required the Pokémon to stop at one place, proving to be disastrous. A dozen Solarbeams crashed into him, damaging Arcanine significantly faster than the healing rate, knocking him out.

Butterfree yawned and flew back to Ash. " _Can I stay out for another round?_ "

Ash chuckled. "Sure thing, but you look tired."

Butterfree stretched himself. " _Nah, that's just from boredom._ "

Chloe stared across the field at Ash in despair. "How could you!? How could you be that ruthless to poor Arcanine."  
Ash sighed. Why did he always have to deal with these problematic trainers. It was like they were psychologically prepared that this was a LEAGUE BATTLE!

Before he could answer, the crowd was already bustering with action. Some of them echoed the girl, while others defended Ash.

"She's right! The boy should at least show some mercy."

"Screw mercy! This is the Indigo Conference we're talking about here!"

"So what!? Can you use that as a reason to wipe out morals?"

"The moral here is that all is fair in war!"

The referee raised his hands, trying to calm down the audience. The people shuffled around for a few more minutes, before settling down.

The judge faced the girl. "Please throw out your next Pokémon."

The white-haired trainer bit her lip. "Hypno! Take _down_ that Butterfly!"

The Psychic Type formed in the field and looked up at Butterfree, who groaned. " _I hate psychic types. They're such a headache to fight._ "

In the seats, Domino pouted after hearing him with her powers. Zorua shrugged. " _I don't see why. They can't even touch me if they don't have Miracle Eye._ "

" _Eat Bug Buzz!_ " The torrent of Bug Type energy zoomed at him, and the Hypnosis Pokémon teleported out of the way.

" _Knew it! Teleportation is so overrated._ " Butterfree shrugged. He was so glad he managed to memorize at least three of the dozens of anti-teleportation methods that Dexter came up with… and one counter to a psychic counter to one of his ways.

The Bug Buzz didn't crash onto the ground. Instead, it spreaded like a wave through the entire arena.

There was no power to it, but it could clearly allow Butterfree to detect the where the disturbance was, and as a result showing his opponent levitating on top of him.

String Shots flew out of him and attached from side to side between the invisible shield. Almost instantly, the bottom of the field was covered in sticky strings with gaps small enough for Hypno to get trapped.

Chloe's face darkened. The only impression she could summarize about this eerie Butterfly was speed.

It was an insane tempo. His every action was marked by grace and elegance. The essence of fluency was carved deep into his soul.

Butterfree's eyes shone with a dark green, and the strings began to crawl up the arena uniformly at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Chloe had to think fast. "Umm… Shadow Ball! They travel through the webs!"

Hypno managed a few of the Ghost-Type Energy, which was easily popped by Butterfree's Megahorn.

"Crap!" The girl screamed. Hypno didn't have area-of-effect fire attack. All of his are psychic, which has no use at all.

She could try making him teleport Butterfree out…

Telling exactly that to Hypno, the psychic Pokémon moved into motion. Locking onto a construct down there that seemed like his opponent, he pulled the figure up.

It was indeed a 'Butterfree,' in fact, non-moving. Hypno blinked, and a terrible feeling rose from the pit of his stomach.

This was no Butterfree. This was a Substitute.

" _I've been waiting for that for so long!_ " A voice sounded from below him. " _Explode!_ "

The construct, filled with Solar Flares, blew up in the Hypnosis Pokémon's hands, and rays of powerful lights filled the top of the arena.

After it died down, a yellow Pokémon fell into the trampoline of strings below him, and was Returned by his trainer.

* * *

Butterfree sat in the middle of his nest like he was not, at all, ashamed of the tactic.

On the other hand, Chloe was seething. It was as if the Pokémon, or his trainer, could predict everything she was thinking…

She shot a look a the field, still filled with strings. She raised a hand and looked at the referee. "Doesn't he have to clear the field?"

The judge ran a hand through his hair. "Actually… no… A trainer or Pokémon has the right to leave the field however they like."

"That's so NOT fair!" She shouted.

" _You're the one who lost._ " Butterfree retorted silently.

"In that case," The Celadon Trainer sighed. "I concede the battle. It's impossible to fight."

Butterfree smirked and rose from his dungeon of webs.

Ash shot a grin at him, and Butterfree shrugged back. It really was no challenge… if Ash was going to use this as his excuse to keep him out of another League battle…

Well, there was going to be a problem. He didn't even get to stretch his wings that much!

"Then, with Chloe surrendering, I announced Ash Ketchum of Pallet as the victor of the Grass Field Battle!" The crowd cheered, mostly directly at Butterfree's insane skills.

"He will proceed next to the Rock Field tomorrow! I wish you good luck!"

Ash waved to the crowd, long used to being the center of attention, and walked off the stage calmly, and Butterfree took the initiative to flash back into his Pokéball.

* * *

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* * *

"Nice." Domino, Misty, and Brock exchanged a high-five with Ash.

The Ketchum boy shrugged nonchalantly. "Still haven't seen someone who was not going to be KO-ed."

Domino laughed. "If you use Butterfree against me, I have a million counters to what he just did."

"Yeah, Trick Room." Ash stated. "Fast is slow, and slow becomes fast."

"Or just Flamethrower." The Elite added.

Of course she would know how to beat that strategy, but Ash had a few sketches up his sleeves too. What else had he been doing for the past four months?

"My turn!" The blonde got up and started walking toward the Water Field. Truth be told, she was a little nervous the first time she went up, but the feeling died away quickly once she was adjusted. Now, she felt nothing but excitement and elation.

The Water Field was just a giant pool of water, with small boards dotting the surface. It reminded her of the Cerulean City Gym… but this one she could destroy…

A smirk perked up on her face as devious plans ran through her mind already.

The entrance to the trainer box on the Water Field was connected to a staircase outside, at which she laughed and resorted to teleportation.

Her opponent, a bulky-looking man in his twenties walked up to his position. He seemed unsettled, and Domino guessed it was his first League. She noticed how his fingers twitched, and his body swaying ever so slightly. His eyes darted around the battlefield, trying to be observant of all the details.

Domino curled her fist and held it under her chin. She flashed a sweet smile to Ash, sitting in the front row. He grinned back, and she re-focused on the battle beforehand.

The referee took the stage, after the timer expired. He held out two flags.

"To the right is Domino of Viridian! To the left is Brandon of…"

He cringed as he said the name: "HopHopHop Town."

The Elite burst out in laughter, joined soon by the crowd spectating.

"Yeah…" The man rubbed the back of his head. "I was expecting that."

Domino grinned. "Well, nice to meet you Brandon of HopHopHop!"

"You too! I've seen your previous battle." He responded and winced. "Please don't try for the League Record again with me…"

"We'll see." She laughed. Can't believe I already have a reputation in Leagues, she thought, amused.

The referee whipped down the flags. "Then with no further ado, let the Water Field Battle begin!"

* * *

"GO!" The man decided to go first before Domino could release something crazy. That way, he could at least stay on the field for a few seconds.

A Dewgong flashed onto the field. The Elite looked at the Ice/Water Type curiously. That wasn't a common Pokémon. This man was not as threatless as he tried to look.

She contemplated her choices. He hadn't been with her for too long, but with the last four months in check, he could probably deal with a preliminary battle.

Wartortle!

The Turtle Pokémon landed onto a floating plate, sunglasses in hand, and flashed a peace sign at his opponent.

Dewgong took his symbol as the opposite, a motion to attack, and dove underwater. Wartortle looked the water and zoomed straight into the air with Aqua Jet and fired a massive Ice Beam down below him, freezing the entire field.

When he halted and levitated, he was obviously panting a little. Ultimately, he wasn't as much of an insanity as the first few Pokémon who were following his trainer.

Nevertheless, the Sea Lion was trapped in the ice. He didn't think that she would fall into unconsciousness just yet, especially with her Thick Fat ability, but the ice barrier bought him time for some very interesting upcoming follow-ups.

A ball of condensed water appeared in front of him, just about the size of himself. It started to become smaller, evaporating until it rose just right above his head. It then cooled down dramatically and became a solid until falling below his feet. It then melted into water and floated back up, continuing the rotation.

* * *

Misty's eyes shone with a sudden realization of the _concept_.

WATER!

The sight of the water cycle struck into her mind like the first flash of lightning piercing through the clouds of the early Earth, striking the waters and creating the first amino acid.

Water. This was water. This was the TRUE meaning of water.

The redhead glowed with an invisible emission of force, and Ash, sitting right next to her, was the only one who detected anything.

He turned to his side in shock and felt the the seed of power planted deep in her beginning to sprout. It was an awakening.

Misty closed her eyes. This was what water consists of. At the microscopic level, it was a humble mix of two hydrogen and an oxygen.

At the macro-level, it was the ultimate component of life. Water was was the hardest material, able to break through anything, and also the softest, being resilient to any impacts.

She felt something threatening to burst through her, and it reached a climax. It was a magical feeling. Misty felt as if a hot liquid was soaring, jetting through her body at light speed. She saw an unseenable barrier appeared in front of her, and the liquid struck straight into the wall.

It shuddered and cracked, but it didn't break. The power within her struck at the wall several more times before it finally faded, as if running out of energy.

The wall was filled with cracks and holes. It was only a hair away from breaking, yet so distant.

* * *

A sacred expression formed on Wartortle's face. " _This is the truest form of water, and it is through this power instilled in me that I pronounce you…_ "

" _VANQUISHED!_ "

The cycle around Wartortle condensed into an abstruse form of a 3-phase water sphere, and he threw it down at the Dewgong, trapped in transparent ice.

The sphere passed through the ice easily, transitioning to gas form and going through tiny pores, then to ice form to go through the puddle of water that Dewgong formed within the hole she had made within the ice, then back to a ball of super-condensed water that smashed into the Sea Lion.

 _BANG!_

The condensed water, upon smashing on the Pokémon, was compressed at high speed to an unimaginable degree. The water atoms within the sphere began to combine into other molecules, creating a chain reaction of nuclear fusion.

A gigantic course of energy instantly swept out, crashing the Ice Type into a nearby wall through the water at near-sonic speed.

The liquid evaporated on touch, causing a steam explosion which the hole couldn't possibly hold. The effect of the powerful explosion wiped through the field, and the entire pool deformed and detonated.

A mushroom steam-cloud rose from the center of the field. Wartortle, sitting cross-legged, admired the beautiful sight in front of him. After months of hard work, the results had finally paid off… and it worked a lot better than he expected, even though this was because all of the factors were right.

First, it was because the ball of 3-phase water was released in a closed hole, and also because there was water in the hole to start off the reaction.

But, nevertheless, he, as a Water Pokémon, had created the first Pokémon nuclear bomb… not Fire Types, but he- A Water Type.

Even Ash was astonished by the powerful move. Yes, he could see a lot of flaws in it… but a freaking mini- nuclear bomb?

He knew plenty of attacks that was stronger, but this was a nuclear bomb, the so-called most powerful weapon forty-years ago.

He shot a look at the blonde beauty onstage. She wasn't as clueless about science as she was trying to trick him into thinking…

The referee stared at the field, now turned to ice and with a giant hole in the center, containing an unconscious Dewgong. He took a deep breath.

So this was the trainer Dave was talking about who broke the League record…

He waved a white flag weakly in Domino's direction.

"Brandon, please send out your next Pokémon."

* * *

The trainer from HopHopHop Town was just as petrified by the situation. What kind of madness was he fighting here?

He looked to Wartortle, still levitating in midair with his eyes closed, and tried to judge whether the Pokémon was completely worn out by the attack.

Brandon chose affirmative, and he sent out Tangela, who landed onto the ice.

Wartortle opened his eyes. He felt decently tired, but still far from strained. The 3-phased water was a lot more technique and control than raw power.

Super moves could be about power, but they could also be technique. Not everyone could spam Thunders or Solarbeams.

Most of his energy still remained. The slight wear was from freezing the huge pool and not actually the move itself.

Seeing the Vine Pokémon, he thought back to Butterfree and did the first logical counter for Grass Types.

" _Rain Dance!_ "

Dark clouds began to pile over overhead, giving Tangela a severe reduction in power.

She stretched out seven vines which twirled in a specific pattern at Wartortle, cutting off all escape routes.

Wartortle's eyes squinted, and his hands moved in a complicated pattern at a speed barely visible to normal humans.

Out of him, swirls of water flew and smacked onto the vine, acting as though it was solid and making the vines lose all accuracy. The water remained condensed though and continued to dance toward Tangela.

"Non-newtonian fluid." Ash concluded. "The special water become solid when facing pressure, which was provided amply by the vines."

On the other hand, the Grass Type thought it was just a jest of unresilient ice, which made her dodge to the side while controlling her vines to keep attacking, offering no defense.

Horrible idea.

The water constructs neared her, and suddenly bent at a unnatural angle, striking her from all directions.

The Grass Type yelled in surprise and fear, making the attacking vines break out of their offensive position.

Wartortle dodged easily out of the way with a Magnet Rise. His water streams wrapped onto Tangela as though solid and…

" _Constrict!_ "

It squeezed on the flexible Pokémon and reduced her size by almost half. The Vine Pokémon let out a painful, ear-piercing scream, but Wartortle ignored it.

Her vines laid uselessly around her. She had no concentration or energy to control them, or do anything else, completely distracted by the nasty tightness.

" _Solidify!_ "

The water constraint turned to ice, which expanded, squeezing her even tighter.

"STOP!" Brandon yelled from the side and held up a Pokéball, which shot a light toward Tangela, which dissipated upon hitting Wartortle's chains.

"RELEASE HER!" He yelled in absolute horror. "I surrender this battle! You're going to SUFFOCATE her!"

Wartortle raised an eyebrow and stopped. The ice melted from her, and she bounced back to her original size. Large stripes of bruises formed on her, and Wartortle gave an indifferent look.

" _This is Leagues. This isn't a game._ " He sat back down in air, levitating.

Brandon stared angrily at Domino across the field. "Do all of his attacks have to be this deadly!? And your other Pokémon as well!? Do you have no care for what Pokémon feels?"

The Elite casted a cold look his way. "If you care so much about your Pokémon, have your last one give up."

The man's eyes burned with fury and agony. His pride made him unable to capitulate without a fight, but his Pokémon, his Pokémon…

He'll probably be severely hurt, just like before…

"I know exactly what you're doing!" He shouted. "You're being this deadly so you can force other trainers after me to give up when they see you!"

"They'll cower under your cold and inhumane moves, which will grant you an advantage. And your Pokémon could save up strength for the fights after!" Brandon yelled.

"So are you going to surrender or not?" Domino's lips curled into a smile. Yeah, that was the plan, so what? "If you're not, quit talking and get on with the fight!"

"I know there are a lot of you watching here that would make it past preliminaries." Brandon roared and pointed to the audience. "Don't ever surrender to her, and don't be afraid to fight her!"

"Our Pokémon would never give up without a fight! Let them choose to fight or not, and I guarantee you they will! Don't let your care for them stop them from growing up!"

"And we would never bend down under her immoral, violent strategies!"

Domino leaned onto her box coolly with an inpenetrable expression. "Wartortle."

"Whatever his next Pokémon, you have three moves to finish him."

"And make him regret choosing this man as his trainer." Domino whispered telekinetically. "Violent? We'll show him real violence."

The Turtle Pokémon opened his eyes and looked back worriedly at his trainer. Even though the previous moves are extremely hurtful, they would just put the Pokémon to bed for a few weeks…

But now, she was pissed… good Arceus, he had to make sure not to kill…

Brandon's third Pokémon hopped onto the field.

* * *

Golem. The Rock Pokémon stared harshly at the floating Water Type, having heard all of what his trainer said. He would definitely beat this Turtle, even if he had to pay his life for it.

A will of determination built up and roared into a skyrocketing fire.

Wartortle met the Rock Type's eyes, filled with streams of powerful light. He chuckled. He had to stare at the eyes of Spiritomb and Giratina all day long for the past a hundred and twenty days… He was scared at eyes no more.

If glares could kill, he would be dead by now. Wartortle thought amusingly and touched himself. Nope, still alive.

He blew out a torrent of water, which expanded to form a giant hand and sent it crashing down.

Golem yelled and put on an Iron Defense and rolled away from it. The hand pancaked it into the ice. The entire audience winced.

The watery construct dissipated, and Wartortle peeked down.

The Megaton Pokémon stood up wobbly and looked up stubbornly.

A icy humph sounded in the Water Type's ears, signaling his trainer's dissatisfaction.

Wartortle bit his lip. Maybe a little more power…

A giant fist made of ice slammed through Golem's Rock Blast and drilled him deep into the ice.

That should do it. Wartortle sat back and waited for the referee to announce his victory.

However, out of the hole, a claw extended and attached to the side. And then another.

The arena watched in disbelief as the Rock Type pulled himself out. Wartortle's eyes flashed for the first time with a sense of seriousness.

In the trainer's box, Domino, now with a chilling air around her, glared. Everytime this Golem stood up was another time her pride was being challenged.

"Wartortle. I know you're the last one to join my team." She spoke hazardously quietly into his mind. "And I also know that you have one of the greatest potential… that's why I picked YOU out of the Turtle Island."

"Therefore, I don't care what you do, or what harm you will cause." She breathed out menacingly. "I want that Pokémon to be _unconscious_ after your next move."

Wartortle shivered. He didn't like disappointing his trainer in general. He feared disappointing her especially when she begged him to do something. This wasn't even begging. This was a command.

A command from the Queen. After being with Legends for this few months, he knew what that meant.

His eyes turned to a solid blue, not an Aura blue, but a Watery blue.

Before Golem, or anyone, could react, Wartortle himself turned to a meteor of water-ice.

With a impact that could match Kyogre's Origin Pulse, he hurtled down onto the Rock Type, with a force that could easily crush steel and titanium.

The entire Ice field shook, and a collective intake of breath was heard. Out of the hole, they could clearly see blood splash out.

From it, Wartortle rose up and panted heavily. That move took a toll on him. It was pure power, and it even surpassed his super move… but it was just releasing a crap ton of energy without technique, so it wasn't reliable enough to be called superb.

He washed off the stains on himself with a Water Pulse and went back to levitating.

The audience broke into quiet murmuring, and criticism and comments of shock echoed throughout the seats.

Suddenly, a claw dug out of the hole. It was missing fingers and dripping out blood, but it still held on, clinging onto the top like a fallen Pokémon by the side of a cliff.

Domino's face darkened even more than the black tulip in her curly hair.

Another claw was raised, equally as unsightly as the first, and a deformed Golem with numerous streaks of blood crawled out of the third hole.

* * *

 **A/N: No pain, no gain. This was not a normal fanfic.**

 **Yep, things get merciless. We've had cheerful times together, we will also have violent ones, emotional ones.**

 **The words of a famous writer comes to mind: "I don't write with kindness. I write with passion."**

 **Anywho, enjoy! Please favorite, follow, and review. I hope you review the crap out of this story, 'cause there's ample material to be commented on.**


	59. Cha 58: Kanto 48

**Cha. 58**

 **A/N: Reminder of what happened:**

 **Domino ordered Wartortle to beat the shit out of Golem bc his trainer insulted her pride. Blood spews everywhere.**

 **ENJOY! Follow, Favorite, and Review!**

* * *

The audience broke into thundering discussion and criticism. Some female trainers were crying at the state of the Pokémon. Some of the them yelled out, and others pointed fingers.

Brandon waited and didn't break his silence.

Even Ash furrowed his brow. This was getting a little too…

"Do you not see your Pokémon's health!?" He stood up and pointed sharply at Brandon, raging. "How heartless are you, making him keep fighting!?"

Brandon opened his mouth, but his voice was overwhelmed by Ash's, powered with Aura. "Forfeit the fight already! Get him to the Pokémon Center NOW!"

What did you think? By no means was he going to accuse his girlfriend of brutality in front of the whole audience.

"No! The girl should be the one getting punished!" A voice sharply contrasted Ash's, and he looked over to find a trainer in dark hair with orange streaks. "How could she be so harsh to other Pokémon!?"

Ash seethed.

The people looked at the bloody Pokémon in the middle of the field. Golem crouched down onto his hands and knees, but his head remained raised, refusing to back down, even though he was covered in gore and bruises.

A deathly iron-willed mood radiated from him. He refused to lose. REFUSED.

Pikachu, from Ash's shoulder, saw himself in the Rock Type's shoes. But, unfortunately, they were on different sides of the battlefield now.

Others shrieked at the mess of a Pokémon, pity and sympathy rose through the audience. All of them wanted to get Golem off the field, but the methods to do so differed dramatically.

One crowd, led by the angry orange-streaks guy, called for Domino to be disqualified because of Pokémon abuse.

Ash, on the other hand, called for Brandon to withdraw his Pokémon and get out.

Even the referee couldn't keep the uproaring crowd down. He quickly phoned a number and sat there helplessly.

Onstage, the Elite was oblivious to the opinions of the audience. To her, none of them was important, besides her companions.

She saw the look of disapproval on Ash's face for her actions, but he turned and fought for her anyways. She smiled at that.

But the disapproval still hurted, and it only got Domino angrier as she looked at the Golem at the center of the stage. She waved her hand, and Wartortle Aqua Jetted back.

" _Sorry, Dom… I'm really…_ "

"You're fine, Wartortle. I'm glad you didn't knock him out… yet" The blonde interrupted him, shooting daggers at her opponent across the field. "He wouldn't go down? Then we should prepare something more fun!."

She pulled out Wartortle's Pokéball and Returned him.

The crowd protesting against Domino stared at her in surprise. Was she actually going to listen to them and stop the match?

Ash looked at her in confusion… and fear. He knew she wouldn't give up. He knew what she had been through, what they've been through… which was also where the fear stemmed.

What was she going to do!? Ash could see her on the verge of explosion.

Domino pointed into the field and stroked Zorua behind the ears. The Tricky Fox purred into the touch, and she jumped out.

Oh Arceus!

Brandon's eyes widened and almost burst.

The Pokémon who had one-shotted every Pokémon she had been in contact with for full-health.

"STOP!" The command didn't come from the challenger, but from a red-haired figure darting closer from afar.

There was barely any people in this world who could affect her decision… but considering this was HIS turf, she backed down just a hair.

"Lance." She deadpanned and turned around.

The said Champion halted before the Water Field, which was now a messy arena of ice shards. An ambulance followed him.

The referee looked at him in shock. He only called his superviser… how did Lance get notice? Wasn't he supposed to be doing… important stuff?

The Dragon Trainer pointed to the field. "Stop the battle immediately! Take Golem to Nurse Joy NOW!"

The crowds quietly at the Champion's arrival, and he fixed a glare at both of the trainers upstage.

Domino shrugged it off. She had stared into the eyes of Arceus, and Lance was a far way from that.

On the other hand, Brandon cowered back. Lance first approached him and grabbed him by the shirt.

"Listen to me carefully here, you worthless scum!" He was an inch to spitting in his face. "You allowed your Pokémon to be in fatal condition, and you were still standing by doing ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!"

"SHE'S THE ONE…" The man tried to shout back, and he was pinned to the wall by the Kanto Champion.

"I don't care what SHE did, I'm talking about YOU here! Golem is near-death! You're his trainer, and therefore you will take responsibility." Lance growled. "You allowed YOUR Pokémon to stay out there just because YOU didn't approve of HER methods."

"UNACCEPTABLE!"

Lance motioned a few Officer Jennys over, who had shown up on sight. "Take him to the HQ. Let Bruce talk some sense into him."

"NO! I haven't done anything wrong!" He cried.

Lance gave him a hard slap across the face. "You'll think otherwise in an hour."

He chucked him into Jenny's arms, and he walked toward the real headache.

He saw the referee midwalk, still standing onstage with his jaw opened, and sighed.

Walking over to the moderator, he took the microphone over.

"Domino wins the Water Field Battle and will proceed to the Fire Field tomorrow."

Half of the crowd started yelling in protest, and Lance roared back into the microphone. "Now DISPERSE! Or else you would be detained by interrupting League business!"

The officers started squirming forward to force the crowd back, which was chased away from the area rapidly.

Domino had walked down from the stage and to Ash, slipping her hand into his. The boy gave her a hard stare, silently voicing a caution.

Lance took a deep breath and approached the Rocket Elite. His fists were gripped tightly, and he tried to control his voice.

It still echoed out harshly. "Was that necessary!?"

"You probably saw the entire thing." The Elite returned the stare. "And your men most likely repeated back the entire conversation."

"You did hit his Pokémon very unneededly powerfully."

"Every one of my hits are in League regulation, all including my last."

"No! Your last move with Zorua could've killed him. That was against the rules pertaining to life-threatening attacks." Lance countered.

"Yes, but I didn't fire the attack." Domino gave him a smug look. She was right. He arrived before the Dark Type could open fire.

The Champion opened his mouth, then closed it. "We both know you would've done it."

"Yeah, and we both know you can't do crap about me, or else you would've done it by now." She said in straightforward terms.

Lance's eyes flashed. If she was wrong a few days ago, she was not anymore after last night. He did finally agreed to a temporary agreement by the end of the visit, and called her back over to clean out the details.

Ripping the delicate string between them could mean he was going to lose his only chance at reforming the approach to deal with Team Rocket.

Goodshow's words circled his mind again. The League needed to sacrifice some people for the good of all. If they didn't do it, someone will, that being Rocket, and the Team would be the one growing.

Ying and Yang.

Eighty years of suppression. Still thriving.

The Champion sighed. All of a sudden, he hated the restrictions of this job.

"Can you please go up to my office with me so I can at least pretend to tell the people that we've talked it over and you're being punished?" Lance said begrudgingly.

As a Dragon specialist, he hated backing down. As the leader of League, he had to be flexible… like Goodshow.

He kind of understood now why Oak decided to come down from the high-paying job… the salary was not worth the troubles sometimes, especially after decades of already indulging in honor.

Domino shrugged. "I'll be back in a few, Ash."

The two walked toward the Indigo Headquarters, and Ash held his forehead. This League was proving to be more distressing than last time.

What was he going to tell her to do? To stop firing out powerful attacks?

Even he couldn't do that. All of their damn attacks were powerful.

* * *

" _What is this, a Korean drama series?_ " Palkia spat out the shells of some salted seeds into a nearby self-filtering garbage can, otherwise known as a black hole. " _C'mon already! I want to see some actual battling! When does the Ash-Domino battle begin?_ "

" _Patience is a virtual._ " Dialga said, flipping through a book at the speed of light.

" _Easy for you to say…_ " Palkia snorted. " _Just dial time forward a few days._ "

" _Actually, I'm enjoying this drama._ " Giratina commented. " _Her inner darkness is finally showing._ "

"Anyone's inner darkness would be showing if they were carrying you for four months." Sir Aaron pointed out.

" _Will you mother-f*ckers keep it down!?_ " Arceus looked up from a giant laptop displaying Fortnite. " _Tryna get a 360 here!_ "

"Actually, wouldn't that make them… you know… do you?" The sharp Knight questioned. "You are their creator…"

" _Damn! I got point-blanked!_ " Arceus stood up and fired a Fire Type Judgement into the Continuum. " _I hate this stupid game!_ "

* * *

Domino reached for the bottle of ice coffee and put her legs back on the table, much to Lance's annoyance. He sighed and went back to the agreement, trying to spot any flaws.

He looked up once in a while to echo a question, to which the Rocket Elite might or might not answer.

This awkward exchange went on for thirty minutes, and Lance decided to let her go.

Just before he voiced his invitation for the door, a League official burst into the office.

"Sir! We've…" He stopped abruptly after seeing Domino.

Raising an eyebrow, she stood up. "I should leave. It's been long enough."

A bad feeling rose from Lance's stomach. He held out a held to the Elite. "Wait a minute."

To the official, he continued. "Golem IS still alive, right?"

"Golem? What Golem?" His face was twisted into confusion. "Sir! We have an emergency."

The Champion's heart beat faster. He needed to get himself an Absol. Forcing the nervous feeling down, he asked calmly. "What is it?"

"A trainer called in just thirty minutes ago and said that he was attacked last night by some monstrocity, who had apparently sliced up his hand. He fainted until just half an hour ago."

Domino showed no change in expression as she sat back down and looked uninterestedly at the guy.

"We've got to his room, and his bed was stained with blood. His clock fell onto the floor, and the battery was knocked out. It said 3:13, so he was most likely attacked then."

"Does he remember who attacked him?" Lance stood up abruptly. He couldn't allow such an act of terrorism on his land, especially during Leagues.

He felt a wave of exhaustion wash over him. Normally, Leagues were already stressful enough. Now he had to deal with even more piles of stuff.

He thought back to the night of the ceremony, during which five Moltres lit the bowl. That was no sign of luck, he surmised. It was the symbol of disasters.

"He said it was… I quote: 'A being from hell.'" The officer sighed. "I think he's still under shock, so gave him to the mental ward and he is currently checked up on by Alakazam."

"Okay… thank you. I'll check on his room in a second. Nothing is removed, right?"

"No sir." The officer bowed. "I'll be out doing some sample tests. If you need me, I'll be at the lab building."

Lance nodded. A headache built up. He waited for the officer to turn out the door, and he looked at Domino.

She raised an eyebrow. "You don't think I was the one, do you?"

"I haven't said anything yet." Lance retorted.

"Mmhmm." The girl snorted. "Your eyes definitely are not the window to the soul."

The Champion took a deep breath. "My experience is telling me that something is leading this to you."

"If your senses are correct, you wouldn't be sitting here negotiating with me." She sneered. "You would have long had Team Rocket demolished."

Lance pressed his lips together. "He said 3:13. You were here at 3:13, at my place."

"Exactly. I'm here, and you had guards watching me 24/7." Domino raised an eyebrow at him.

"This seemed like way too much of a coincidence. You came to my place last night to set up an alibi, while you had some other people do your dirty work." Lance's eyes grew sharp and pierced into hers. "Why did you come at the midst of the night? Why didn't you wait until morning?"

"The only reason is because I didn't want Ash to know." The Elite laughed and stared straight back, not blinking. "Plus, do you really I think I'll be that stupid to terrorize the capital at the heat of the Indigo Conference, when some of the best trainers are here?"

"Plus, you really think that the sunlight is any more of a bother to me in comparison to the darkness?" Domino elaborated. "I can do just as much harm in brightness as the night.

"Lastly, if I'm going to pull something, I'm going to make it huge." Seeing Lance grip his cup tightly, the Elite held up her hands. "Not saying I would…my point is, there is no reason for me to cut up a random kid as an act of terrorism."

Lance contemplated that. She wasn't wrong about a few of the statements. Injuring a kid and hiding him until morning in a room really wasn't terrifying. In fact, even her orders to punch that Golem to near-death caused more of a commotion.

There may be other shady characters out here… lurking in the League.

* * *

A satirical smile floated on her face as Domino walked out.

It was funny he _thought_ he had her… Leaving no trace was the second lesson in her training.

The first was Boss was always right. She was able to go around that statement by thinking of him as her father instead when she didn't want to do something.

Now the easy part done, she sighed, she had to go back and face the nagging of Ash, which she couldn't just blow off.

At least he didn't know about the stupid kid. He would immediately know it was her. He knew about Brain Haunt too, and he had also punched his way out of it with Aura.

Her heart skipped a beat as she saw him stand there, looking for her. Domino paced up to him quickly.

Instead of the relentless speech, however, he merely held her hand.

"I don't have a battle this afternoon, and nor do you." He looked at her softly. "Can you teleport us somewhere… like the Arctic seaside?"

Domino stared at him.

No wonder Arceus chose him as Chosen. Unpredictability and charisma, just how she loved him.

* * *

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* * *

"What is scarier than terrorism," Ash started, looking into the distant oceanline, "Is when you know that you knew something important, but you couldn't remember."

His face was like an eternal stone, and his eyes stared calmly at the waves spiraling in the sea. The torrent of pulsating energy swirled madly within, and she could feel it.

All of a sudden, his figure seemed far away, and his shadow dark enough to cover the sun's rays. An acidic loneliness seeped from him, pushing her out from his disposition.

The sun was much lower here near the Arctic. In fact, it was already dusk here, leaving a few more minutes until the time passed into the twilight.

Ash watched the ball of fire settle down. As darkness approached, he faded into his memory, using the sky as a scaffold to draw his past.

"You've told me quite a lot with your childhood." He said quietly, the setting sun's rays painting his face orange, as if putting on an unidentified mask of grief and ambivalence. "It's my turn to tell you something."

Domino took a deep breath. Her Ash seemed so faraway. It pained her to see him this… trapped. His eyes sunk so deep back that they seemed like they were looking out of caverns at her.

She tightened her grasp on him, but she didn't feel any returning warmth. All of his energy had went into his mind, into his history.

* * *

Ash didn't know how old he was in reality, because all of the time warps had made his physical capacity unable to keep up with his mental maturity.

Either way, he struggled deep into his mind to find the little seed of memory. It was so faded that he subconsciously ignored it whenever his brain swept through the past.

But no, it wasn't his own doing. It was some sort of hypnosis, making him forget.

He tried to pull it out, and it struggled against his grip, barely able to be forced out, little by little. The feeling was beyond torture, even a hundred times worse than constipation.

Six year after he was born was when he lost his father.

Looking back, he realized that he didn't recall any of the times with him. He didn't even remember his face, and there was no photos at home to remind him.

He knew next to nothing about this man that had given him life, that had lived with him for six years… it wasn't normal.

His name was Hector, his mother had said once. She refused to talk about him…

Now that Ash thought back, he noticed how significant portions of his childhood was just… missing.

Gone.

As if someone had taken a shovel and dug it out.

Arceus said he had lifted all memory blocks when he teleported him into this timeline…

But why couldn't he remember?

An image broke through the barrier, the same image he saw when he was near death in the Unown Realm over four months ago.

* * *

 _ **Five Years Ago, Current Timeline**_

 _They never fought… he didn't think. If they did, he could recall it, which was part of the problem._

 _They weren't fighting on that morning… no. They were staring at each other._

 _As he walked down the stairs, the house had an ominous chill that couldn't be explained by the frosty weather of the morning. Ash, even at six, knew so._

Within the memory of the beginning six years of his life, only this day broke through the barrier, and he could remember every detail.

 _Like the rose on the table, which was stained with a dark red liquid that had blended in, he didn't pay much attention to the differences as he sat down for breakfast._

 _He didn't notice the similar roses around the house either, or the Pokéball pattern of their carpet had been changed from that of a Great Ball to a Dusk Ball._

 _Unlike normal, Mom didn't serve up her regular pancake and turkey sausage. She just sat there, frozen to the seat._

 _He glanced at them in confusion. He then looked at his Dad._

 _Hector Ketchum, from the first sight of him, could be deemed a gentleman. He was very tall and slim, with a darkish-pale complexion._

 _He was clean-shaven, displaying his thin lips and nostrils, with a high nose and heavy eyebrows._

 _His eyes were deep black, blacker and extended out farther than the universe's secrets. His hands were placed out in front of him, lengthy and controlled._

 _He held an air of confidence, just like Professor Oak had. But unlike the grandpa Ash never had, his father's confidence was unfounded._

 _What his profession was, Ash didn't recall, but it was surely not as significant as the Kanto Professor._

 _Even though he didn't remember much, he didn't forget how often his father had been in arguments with the Professor, and how he had always stood his ground firmly._

 _Professor Oak was the Legend of Pallet. Hector was a townsman. How he stood up to him, Ash didn't know, but he knew that Oak had receded everytime._

 _Hector was the man who always made it seem like good weather. When there was a dark cloud threatening to pour, he just stood there for half a minute, and the rain would be repelled away._

 _He was a man of power, of seriousness._

 _Ash withdrew his stare at the man and poked Mom, trying to get her awareness and give him breakfast._

 _Whatever happened in the next second was never even imagined by Ash, at six._

* * *

 _As his finger touched her arm, a blue light flew over her._

 _The boy felt himself suddenly extinguished of all energy, and the last thing he knew was slumping over. In the corner of his eyes, he could see that there was a sudden flicker of light in the space at which his parents' stares met…_

 _He then felt a sensation, like being tugged violently, out of… his body. The experience at that instant was not of pain, but of a foreign negativity almost unable to be explained._

 _It was as if he had lost the foundation of his life, and he was just a wandering soul floating around the matrix of the universe, lost and unable to find his way back._

 _He was homeless._

 _As he looked down, he couldn't see anything but a fog of white and flashing lights._

 _Fear soared into his consciousness. For a second, he thought he was still dreaming. He pleaded for this nightmare to end._

 _He detected that some time went by, although he didn't know how long. The world began to swirl, with his being at the eye of the storm._

 _The sky turned into the ground, he turning inside-out. Ash felt himself bursting into flame and dust, a thousand times worse than throwing up._

 _There was a drizzle of sprinkles. More time passed, and Ash floated in the midst of it, like the vulnerable first cells in the ancient oceans._

 _From the mist, a dark face materialized and twisted into different patterns. Out of it, blue hue flew into the air and sprialled wildly. And then, bright, rainbow lights pulsed from around the space. A llama-shaped figure flashed in and out._

 _Giant spots of black appeared and disappeared, each time bringing lights out of existence with it._

 _There were multiple silhouettes of mysterious shapes. For some reason, Ash could see a giant clock, which stood by a few others. He couldn't identify the rest. After all, he was still being tossed uncontrollably through what seemed like an eternal centrifuge._

 _After what seemed like forever, the droplets died down, and the lights faded. He felt himself drop on something solid._

 _Tears streamed out of his eyes, and he didn't want to move a limb. He tried to throw up, but nothing came out. He opened his eyes and looked down, and his breath choked._

 _He couldn't even see_ himself _._

 _He shook powerlessly and extended his gaze upwards. He wasn't in a living room anymore. He was in a flatland of some sort. Two giant mountains stood in the distance, and a long river flowed from their gap down through the valley and into the plains._

 _It flowed past a lonely tree that stood tall in the field. There was no other vegetation as far as he could see._

 _The tree, at first sight, seemed like a normal oak tree. However, as Ash moved his eyes from it, an illusion flowed into his mind._

 _The tree seemed to zoom up infinitely, breaking through the barrier of the sky, extending beyond._

 _At the same time, the mountains mutated into a setting of gigantic stature, blocking out the sun. It flashed into a mysterious background of blackness, lights and wormholes that Ash would, many years later, identify as the Continuum._

 _The river turned transparent. As waves splashed out, scenes of the past materialized in midair, then dissipated like the fireworks, getting only a single moment to let out its beauty and magnificence._

 _The ground beneath him turned to strings, strings of infinitude that pieced together to form a giant web, on which he stood._

 _A box dropped from the tree onto the net and stuck there, unmoving. In a flash, it shrunk down and dissipated._

 _Ash shook as a fightful aroma from the sheer power of the Concepts, emerging from the mysterious sight, pushed down on him._

 _He turned around instinctively, trying to run away. He stopped mid step and let out a gasp._

 _The world behind him… there was no world. It was a void of nothing. Literal nothing._

 _This was the end of the world._

 _Or… was it?_

 _Before Ash could continue thinking, a light shone above him, and he whipped his head up. A few hundred feet above him, he saw something he didn't take in when he was looking into the distance._

 _His father shone with a Dark light, facing his mother, who was lit with a blue hue. Within the blue, there was chains of black, and they constricted her from moving._

 _Her eyes lit on fire, and tears streamed out. His father began to become less and less apparent, merging into a shadow._

" _NOOOO!" A scream pierced out from Delia. The sound struck through the field and echoed in the mountains._

 _It was so powerful, more than a hundred sonic shockwaves combined._

 _Ash felt his ears explode, but the sound continued to enter his brain, threatening to crush it to oblivion._

 _His mind shut off and lost all consciousness. The last scene he saw saw his father completing his transformation into a pure black figure and zooming off into the mountains._

* * *

 _When he regained thought, he felt himself drifting in a pond of light, just like before. But unlike so, he was… broken. He didn't have a body, but he felt ripped apart. He had no control over anything. Lights flashed by him, and he was peppered by many._

 _After what seemed like eternity, a white light that shone brighter than any others penetrated the sea of colors. It infused into his body, and he felt himself… being charged._

 _The feeling of separation started to die down._

 _He felt himself being pieced back together by something. A blue mist resettled on his consciousness. He felt his conscious being shoved into some solid, and he had control again._

 _Ash opened his eyes. He was sitting at the table in his house. His mother was looking at him in concern._

" _Ashy? Why aren't you eating your pancakes?"_

 _WHAT!? How can you ask that after what just happened!?_

 _Wait… what just happened?_

 _A chill went down Ash's spine. He knew he just went through something very important and insane, but he couldn't begin to remember it._

" _What happened?" Ash turned to his Mom._

" _What do you mean?" She looked at him worriedly. In the back of her eyes, a flash of caring deceit bolted. "I took out the pancakes, and you were just sitting here staring at it."_

 _Ash blinked. No, that wasn't what happened… was it?_

 _Whatever it was faded farther and farther away. He tried to concentrate more and found absolutely nothing._

 _Being a six-year-old kid, he shrugged and reached for the syrup bottle, before digging in. His brain prevented him from registering the empty seat next to him and his mother, or to inquire about his whereabouts._

 _Who was_ he _again?_

* * *

Ash stopped talking and leaned heavily onto his girlfriend, completely out of breath.

The memories ended abruptly. That was as far back as he could go. The invisible wall prevented anything else from leaking, and he wobbled dangerously.

Domino teleported a couch next to them and sat him down, and he placed his head in her lap.

She caressed his hair smoothly. "I'm… I'm so sorry…"

Ash stared up into the sky blankly. "I thought I wouldn't be emotional anymore when I think back on it…"

"I knew something was wrong since then, but whatever it was stopping me from thinking back was also limiting my feelings toward it as well."

"It had been bothering me ever since that part of the memory block broke in the Unown Dimension four months ago. But this is the first time I fully thought back to it."

"It was like watching a movie of myself. And it's horrible, especially now that I knew some of the things…" His eyes gained back a little light as he felt the blonde's presence next to him. "I'm… I'm so glad that I have… you, princess."

His body twitched. Domino held him closer. "Whatever that happened five years ago, it had to involve some sort of power beyond what we know…"

"The mountains, the tree, the river." He panted. "That wasn't an illusion. That was a part of truth!"

He stopped talking, and the two fell into silence. Domino didn't say anything. She couldn't.

She thought she could sympathize with him. She thought it was just his father abandoning him.

She couldn't, because it wasn't. He was entangled in some…

Domino shook violently. She knew what he was doing. He was going to tell about his childhood to consult her, to tell her that her days of the Viridian streets were in the past, and that she should walk out of the shadow.

He was going to convince her that he would be here with her, and that she should let go of the darkness after witnessing her brutality with that Golem.

But instead of that, he broke into his own bubble of protection, and the emotions he had bundled up failed to be contained, and they backfired.

A wave of regret went through her. If she didn't try to torture that Rock Type, he wouldn't be so hurt right now. She knew it wasn't her fault, but she still needed to blame herself. It felt right.

Domino kissed him softly, and he returned the gesture. Whatever it was, they were in this together.

She didn't imagine that he had such a tragic backstory. Even though only a small part had been revealed, she could already picture the possible schemes and fatality that contributed to it. He could too.

Memory block. Ripping of the soul. Lost of parent. They might just top her Viridian days. She held on tighter, but broke the kiss.

He leaned his forehead against hers. She stared into his brown eyes. "I'm sorry."

"You said that already." Ash said quietly.

"No, I'm sorry about what I did."

"Which one?" Ash searched deep into her amethyst orbs. "About Trevor or about the Golem?"

Her eyes resembled a wave of shock, and he sighed. "I overheard Lance talking with Aura outside because I was worried about him taking you into the office."

Domino closed her eyes to escape the stare.

Ash wrapped her into a hug and echoed into her curls. "We're going to be fine."

* * *

 **A/N: Hohoho, more unfolding. This fic is tracing more and more off of standard…**

 **Favorite, follow and review!**

 **Returning to League battles tomorrow.**


	60. Cha 59: Kanto 49

**Cha. 59**

 **A/N: Exactly half of the summer is gone… Another half to school…**

 ***Sighs internally**

 **Anyways, enjoy, and be sure to Follow, Favorite, and REVIEW!**

* * *

The next day arrived. The two didn't return to Indigo Plateau until the night had passed. Instead, they glided through the clouds around Kanto with Ash's Aura-made wings.

He had figured out that trick for four months, even though he never used it because Domino could just teleport.

He didn't care about getting enough sleep for the battle. All that matters was her in his arms, the two's laughter echoing through the entire region.

They've truly left their tracks everywhere. Ash wanted to tour the region of their births with her, when he still had the chance. Looking back, he realized that he didn't know when something unexpected could happen.

What was truly important was the present. Present the fragment that held the most power. What was in the past could not touch him, and what was in the future could not scrape him, if he didn't let them.

Upon this realization, he raised his head higher subconsciously. A beam of light that could lit up the galaxy shone from his eyes, and a disposition of confidence and power emerged.

It was the present Ash who held the future in his hand, not the past.

"Indigo Plateau." His sight laid on the Kanto capital. "Let's go."

* * *

The duo regrouped with Brock and Misty. The two of them instantly detected something different about Ash. He seemed more… built.

Not physically, but influentially.

The Ketchum boy smiled at them. Misty looked around her to see that there weren't many people, and pulled Ash closer. She looked worriedly at him. "There was a terrorist act yesterday."

Ash kept his silence. Domino's lips were pulled into a interesting smile. "Really? I missed the fun last night?"

"No. It was two nights ago." Brock shook his head. "It was found out during your battles yesterday. We didn't know until the evening."

The girl shrugged. "Ah well. I have a battle coming up at Fire. Got to go!"

Brock noticed that Ash didn't react too much, which solidified a suspicion in his mind. The boy followed his girlfriend, and he pulled his fellow Gym Leader a few steps behind the two leading.

"Ash is acting kind of weird." The Rock Trainer started.

"So you noticed too." Misty nodded. "I think the pressure of Leagues is really getting to him. He wants to win so badly. And he does deserve a victory after all these years."

Brock hesitated. It wasn't just the pressure. But he decided to refrain from venturing further. She was right. Ash already had a lot on his plate.

Domino took the stage first today. Ash's battle was in the afternoon at the Rock Field.

The Fire Field was identical to before when Ash first fought in it. The League construction team really contained experts who could reproduce the blueprint exactly.

And so should they. After years of having the field destroyed repetitively, they got used to the repairing process.

Her opponent was approaching the stage at the same time as she. She was a girl in her late teens, with flowing brown hair and an oval face.

She was extremely well clothed, and she had thirteen badges pinned across her scarf, as if bragging about the success of her journey. A PTI hat sat on her head, and a fancy dress in sparkles laid on her body.

Pokémon Tech Institute. Domino mused. Thirteen badges? She probably traded ten of them with fake test reports.

The girl saw Domino and instantly stepped back, her face twisting to that of horror. "You're HER!"

She raised her eyebrow. Who?

"You're the ruthless hag who abuses Pokémon!" The girl backed away, but her fists clumped in anger. "I'll show you how…"

Domino's eyes flashed dangerously. Calm down. Calm.

A hand touched her shoulder. Ash stared at her, giving a silent warning not to do anything irrational. She took a deep breath.

Fine. She'll excuse it this time. She shrugged off the hand, not letting its warmth distract her from the battle before her, and took the stage.

The PTI girl gritted her teeth at her back. She couldn't believe anyone could ignore her like that! She was supposed to be the star everywhere, even at a place filled with genius like the PTI.

Her plan was to first verbally boiled the blonde for torturing Pokémon, placing herself at moral superiority. Plus, it'll gain her plenty of audience approval, sticking up for a poor, hurt Pokémon like that.

She would come in like a shining light.

Then, she'll enter the Fire Field and leave her opponent standing, still depressed at her words. When Domino eventually join the battle, she planned to destroy her ultimately with her detailed knowledge of Pokémon moves, leaving her then to cry at her lost.

The crowd would cheer wildly, and she would once again shower in their appreciation and acceptance.

Her plan was smashed to pieces as Domino took the stage coldly without a word, leaving her to look like a rambling, dancing idiot.

She shot daggers at Ash, who came to consult her opponent. With a humph, she walked into the trainer box.

Ash shook his head upon witnessing the pointless exchange. He didn't even feel anger, just disappointment at this year's competitors.

Misty poked him in concern. "She's not going to nearly kill her Pokémon again, right?"

"No, she won't." Ash confirmed with a confident look. "I've already gotten that out of her system."

The referee watched the communication as well. Subtly, he took out a radio and hummed a few words.

"To the left is Sigma from PTI. To the right is Domino of Viridian." The crowd burst into noise at the mention of the latter. The referee waited for them to settle. Then, he looked back at the trainers. "Rules will be the same for the Fire Field Battle as the others!"

"Let the 3v3 battle begin!" He whipped down the flag, proclaiming the start.

* * *

"Go Magcargo!" The PTI girl made the first choice, trying to be intimidating.

Domino's eyebrow raised slightly in surprise. Since the girl went to school in Kanto, she expected her Pokémon to be Kanto-based.

Sensing her hesitation, Sigma showed off her white teeth. "I'm a transfer from Johto!"

The Elite shrugged. Team Rocket spanned from Kanto, across the islands, to Johto. She was super familiar with both regions.

Mentally going down the list of her Pokémon asking for a battle, she settled on one.

"Magnemite!"

* * *

The Magnet Pokémon started following Domino since Gringey City, when Ash went to retrieve his Muk. The timid little guy barely showed any signs of existence when he was in the ranch or with the group.

He trained diligently, working through the load in resilient silence. Being introverted, he didn't fit into the rowdy ranch too much, being friends with only Bulbasaur, Sableye, Shedinja, and Kingler.

Magnemite knew he trained hard, but he was still at the bottom of the ranking of the group, and he knew it.

He remembered being sent on a mission to inform the giant Pokémon by the seaside about lunch being served late and seeing Dragonite playing with the clouds with his breath, while Tentacruel dug up an underwater hill because it was in the way of their park construction.

Magnemite still remembered that night when he couldn't sleep. When he got up to take a walk, he saw Pikachu standing by the cliff, sparring with Lucario, that late at night.

Pikachu was throwing around giant bolts of Thunder that lit up the sky and shaping them into creative structures with ease, all while making sure they didn't make a loud _BANG_ that would wake everyone up.

Lucario flung dozens of Aura Spheres in a second, and they manipulated through the air intricately and well-calculated, deflecting the mouse's electric attacks.

He couldn't believe his eyes. Those two were among the laziest in the ranch. All he ever saw of Pikachu was he and Zorua flirting, while Lucario sat there motionlessly, watching everyone, sometimes sipping chocolate ice cream.

He backed away after watching them for a while. After that day, Magnemite pushed himself to an even higher intensity. In his heart, Pikachu was the ultimate competition.

However, he still constantly had wonders when he saw Pikachu. Once, towards the end of the training season, he asked the mouse for a duel in between one of the mouse's cuddling session with his Dark Type.

That ended in three moves after he foolishly tried to beat Pikachu in a raw power competition.

* * *

Magnemite landed in the field. He didn't look at Magcargo. Instead, he shot a look at the yellow mouse.

He needed to perform really well. This was his chance to truly prove his strength, to show that he, being Domino's Pokémon, was not inferior.

The Magnet Pokémon turned his attention back to the Lava Pokémon. Noah had said that heat turned magnets unfunctional, scientifically speaking.

The flaming snail started off the initial move, pulsing off a Sunny Day.

He would prove them wrong.

Magnemite rose up with Magnet Rise and neared him instantly with Extremespeed. The Johto Pokémon had to stop his casting of the previous move and attend to his opponent.

Materializing a rock in mid air, the Fire Type threw it at his incoming form.

The Magnet Pokémon sizzled as he divided up his protons and electron into two different sides of his body and shot off a quick beam of electricity away from him, repelling him away from the Rock Throw.

The lightning crackled, and Magnemite manipulated his way in circles around the Lava Pokémon.

Magcargo sensed danger, and he darted out of the circle with a Quick Attack.

Before the Electric Typer could follow, he was faced by a barrage of molten magma. He shot off with a Sonic Boom, which could replicate the effect of going at Mach 1 for such a small Pokémon as he.

He blasted off easily on top of Magcargo and threw down an Electro Ball.

His opponent never saw the move coming and was pummeled to the ground. However, showing his well-trained reflexes, Magcargo extracted his head into the shell and rolled off swiftly.

Magnemite chased after him with a Charge Beam, which sputtered away against a coat of Rock Polish.

"Anti-electricity?" He felt ashamed. If this was Pikachu, he would've probably said screw rocks and blasted the hell out of him with Thunders.

He roared out a Metal Sound. The sound echoed through the stadium, only bouncing off of the psychic shield, creating waves resonating off.

As for Magcargo, the effect was more apparent. It struck against his shell heavily, knocking him over horizontally to stop the roll, while shaking the insides violently.

He then lock onto his target with a Flash Cannon.

The Lava Pokémon, sensing danger, poked his head out and hoped to choke the risk in its crib.

Three Flame Charge were fired at him, and Magnemite recalled what Lucario taught him and placed a Steel shield in front of himself.

The steel quickly melted under the heat of the attacks, but it gave him enough time to evade.

Dodging out from the wall of fire, the Magnet Pokémon retaliated by zooming right to his opponent and throwing down a point-blank Zap Cannon on his not-yet-extracted head and blasting him back into a corner.

He then seized him back with Electroweb and slapped him with Meteor Mash, sending him crashing to the ground.

" _Counter!_ " Magcargo got the chance to initiate the move since it was a steel attack, which lingered a little due to the natural effect of heat on steel.

A similar steel type energy struck back. A Protect with electricity mixed in lighted. The attack smashed the shield, but it tanked all of the damage for Magnemite, who was still recoiled back though.

A strained sighed came to his mouth. The only Pokémon on the entire squad who was able to learn Aura was Pikachu and Lucario. He had tried numerous times, but always ending up with a half-aura that created an unstable mix that could even backfire.

Magcargo, taking the lead now, advanced forward and pulsed an Overheat. The Fire attack blasted the Steel Type back, hitting for super-effective damage.

Magnemite's eyes twitched in desperation and fury. Even Wartortle was stronger than he, and he joined the team a lot later. He could smash a Golem with a shell into fatal condition in three hits, and _he_ was still here, tangling with a Magcargo.

The Magnet Pokémon roared and leapt forward, not caring about the scorches that an arriving Inferno had on his body.

A Gyro Ball spun out and slammed into the Lava Pokémon, having maximum efficiency due to his slowness. The attack made the Lava Pokémon lose his aim, sparing Magnemite of the continuing Fire attack.

He crashed down after releasing Magnet Rise and charged himself up with electricity and initiated a stored up Plasma Fist, finally punching the shelled Pokémon into unconsciousness.

"And the first round goes to Domino of Viridian!"

* * *

 **Commercial Break**

 **I've always been confused at a game mechanic in Pokémon. After Pokémon battles that were so intensive Pokémon PASS OUT, they could be taken to the center and healed within hours, while human death and illness are shown MULTIPLE times to be a reality in the anime.**

 **I don't know what to say to that… It's no problem right now when I'm writing Pokémon battles, because they're still to 'normal' standards and the Pokémon could be healed.**

 **But once I venture out into more dramatic attacks, the limits of healing becomes more and more apparent. What kind of attack will render a Pokémon… dead?**

 **If you have any ideas how I can explain away the Pokémon healing mechanics, please leave a comment!**

* * *

Magnemite released a heavy breath. That wasn't nearly as cool as he wanted the battle to be. It dragged on for a lot longer…

He didn't get much rest time, since the second Pokémon arrived a few seconds later.

He looked up into the eyes of Houndoom. Magnemite didn't know much about her, only that she was Fire Type with a Dark subtype.

"I thought PTI trainers played with type advantages." Domino smirked sarcastically at her. "What an exception."

The girl looked at her seriously. "I used to, but there was a battle sent to me, taped, by my teacher about this demonstration that went on six months ago, and type advantages really didn't show much."

An amused feeling rose from the Elite. "You know that I'm one of the trainers, right?"

"Yeah, and you lost!" The girl laughed and pointed a finger. "You were one of the punching bags."

Domino's eye twitched, and the Calm Mind she placed on herself worked on full juice. She gave Gary a glance, who looked away cautiously.

"Sure. Now let's see if the roles have switched."

She pulsed out a psychic command, and Magnemite sprang into action.

He had been working for a while now to combine his Electric and Steel Typings, and he finally found a way only a week before Leagues.

He had wanted to save it for the last Pokémon, but since the Houndoom's trainer had pissed off his, a change of plans was required.

Doing a flip in the air to dodge a hurried Ember, Magnemite smashed down with an Anchor Shot, chains made of pure electricity.

It locked Houndoom in place, while shocking her. Her knees locked in place as she was in mid jump, making her tip over.

He then materialized a Wood Hammer in midair, only made of Steel and struck down repetitively.

Houndoom roared, but the combination of Steel and Electricity produced a substance that neglected any type advantage she could have.

Resorting to retaliation with Dark Pulse, she tried to blast him away. He minimized the damage by coating himself in Spark, and kept hitting.

Houndoom Howled, temporarily stunning him, and finally broke out of the chains, with bruises over her whole body.

Magnemite came back to senses and growled slightly. If this was Pikachu here, he wouldn't even back down to Groudon's Howl.

Feeling a wave of self-consciousness, he advanced with Shockwaves pulsating in front of him, popping Houndoom's Double Teams.

She flashed, and the Magnet Pokémon rose into the sky and stared down. " _You really think I don't know the real-Substitute switcheroo with the cover of Double Teams?_ "

Houndoom broke out of the ground and re-absorbed her Substitute, looking up in surprise. " _How did you know?_ "

" _Because my trainer had been playing around with the move since before I met her._ "

Houndoom huffed and fired a well-charged Solarbeam at him, using the time she gained from their time in communication.

The Grass Type Energy reached Magnemite and… popped him?

Magnemite burst out of the ground and hit the Pokémon with Hyper Beam, who was unable to dodge in her moment of immobility due to the previous Solarbeam, sending her flying across the arena.

Sableye had taught him that strategy. If a Pokémon used a technique that he identified, don't use a counter right away and intercept it.

Allow his opponent to finish it while he himself did something else sneaky. When the Pokémon thought her plans had worked, then he revealed his counter, rendering all of her attempts useless while hitting her.

Just like in this situation. Easy move for some extra damage.

Houndoom rolled over to get up, heavily leaning one side while doing so. She rushed at him, trying to land a few strikes before he was done recovering from the kickback of Hyper Beam.

She didn't take into account the level of her injuries, nor the skill of her opponent. By the time Houndoom covered half of the distance, Magnemite was done recharging and sent a wave of Thunder his way.

Houndoom managed a wobbly Feint Attack to merge out of the way.

Sensing electric residue remaining for his attack behind him, Magnemite turned around with a Bullet Punch ready.

Yep! The expected Dark Type stood behind her, ready to strike with Foul Play. However, before she could initiate the attack, he launched out first.

Due to the nature of Bullet Punch's priority, his electrically constructed fist reached destination first and launched Houndoom into the air, sending her crashing into oblivion.

The referee held the flag up in Domino's direction. "And Domino of Viridian takes Round Two!"

* * *

Magnemite was a little happier at the process of the second round. A look at Pikachu made him darken again. He was barely paying attention, instead all snuggled up and talking with a disguised Shaymin.

He puffed out an air of depression.

The female trainer across from Domino was already holding out her third Pokémon. He moved back in caution and prepared some more Charges.

The next Pokémon landed with a _THUD_.

Pupitar.

Magnemite grinned. He could handle this. If it was a Tyranitar he would be dealing with, then he would have a lot more trouble.

Even though he was an introvert, he was also very proud. All of them were. He could never let a silly Pupitar step on his pride.

He had been saving this move. It wasn't quite a super move yet, but it was only a step away.

As the Pupitar launched an Ancient Power at him, he soared into the sky and fired down blocks of steel meteor.

The Hard Shell Pokémon dodged away with the help of a Rock Slide, and Magnemite followed him as he threw in a spiral pattern behind him, forcing him in.

Noticing that he was trapping him, Pupitar jumped up and launched himself at the Magnet Pokémon using Smack Down.

Magnemite collided with him with Metal Claw, sending him flying higher into the sky, and Pupitar crashed down into the center Magnemite made for him.

On the other hand, as Magnemite flew outward from the attack, he still had the skills to cast a well-aimed Rock Tomb, but with Steel-Type energy.

Therefore, instead of being encased in a prison of rock, it was of metal.

Pupitar yelled, muffled, and slammed the wall. It bulged out of shape, showing that it couldn't last more than a few hits.

But that was plenty of time.

Magnemite took a deep breath. Here he went. He had only tested this out once or twice, so may luck be with him.

A dozen Magnet Bombs flowed around him, joined by electricity flowing in a specialized pattern.

What Noah had said flashed across his mind.

Electricity and Magnetism are intertwined. One could be changed into the other.

He threw down the electric ring, pulling the Magnet Bombs down with it.

When a magnetic current circled around a conducting loop, more electricity can be generated.

The strands of electricity connected the spiral of steel that he threw down in the beginning, and a visible loop formed.

Electricity could be generated up to the units of megavolts, if you have a loop big enough and that ran for long enough.

The Magnet Bomb exploded, releasing a giant current of magnetic wave that entered the steel ring.

* * *

Pupitar punched a hole at the top of his trap and sighed in relief. Only the bottom to go before he was free.

He took a look out of the hole and completely froze. His expression changed into a mutilated one, as if looking at a scene he never thought he would encounter in his life. In his pupils flashed looks of horror and shock he had never had before.

Before him, he saw the steel cubes that reached up to his waist lit up in a magnificent yellow that pierced all sight. Torrents upon torrents of it built up, and the lightning increased at an exponential level he had never imagined.

The entire horizon was replaced by a grand yellow, making the entire world seem like it was of an electric makeup.

Magnemite had held this move for over a minute now. Even he was shocked at the result. When he performed it at the ranch, he usually stopped at fifteen seconds, and it only made a decent size hole afterwards.

However, since the increase in electric magnitude was quadratic, and he held on for four times longer, the effect was more than two hundred fifty-six times more powerful!

Onstage, even Pikachu did a double take. Sure, the move charged for a long time, but the result was one that even _HE_ couldn't fire. The mouse was beginning to specialize more and more into the manipulation of electricity and Concepts instead of raw power.

Magnemite focused and connected the last strand of electricity from the spiral to the steel tomb trapping Pupitar.

There was no fear that he overdid it. He definitely could prove himself THIS TIME!

The circuit was completed. Megavolts upon megavolts of energy zapped violently into the tomb… and the Pupitar.

A boom that shook the entire field and traveled across the entire League stadium sounded, louder than Wartortle's nuclear bomb.

In this frenzy thunder, the ground cracked into pieces, before it was completely uprooted by the blinding flash of electricity.

Pupitar instantly passed out from the blast, and the lightning continued for almost ten seconds, streaming into the steel tomb.

When it died down, the entire Fire Field was now gone, replaced instead by charred and steaming stone, replicating more of the Rock Field than a Fire Field.

A smell of burnt flesh emerged from the waste of melted steel covering the ground.

Magnemite turned to face the stadium. He caught sight of Pikachu standing up, jaw dropping. His eyes were filled with amazement, and the mouse started to clap quietly.

A surge of extreme joy pulsed from within him. He turned to look at his trainer, who mirrored the same expression of astonishment.

Magnemite then stared into the distance, his eyes growing brighter and brighter in realization.

He thought he could never be as insane as some of the other guys. It wasn't just an issue of effort. It was of personality.

He focused on even the small techniques during training, because he was more attentive to details than the other guys. But, he wasn't imaginative. He had thought this would limit his development because it stopped him from focusing and creating the big attacks.

At least it had in the past.

Looking at the result of the last attack, he fathomed something.

It wasn't his personality that restricted him. It was his heart that swayed from recognizing his potential.

He could be just as equally powerful if he dedicated to his own destiny, instead of following the footsteps of the other guys.

Magnemite was the Steel and Electric Type Pokémon that no others were, and he would slice a path through the blindness that no one had traveled before.

His own way!

He would lit the darkness with strands of electricity, and slice through the barriers with a steel sword!

He would find this on his own! Not as an Electric Type! But as a Steel-Electric!

As the knowledge settled in, a pool of evolution lights flowed onto him. The reservoir was more ample and concentrated than normal evolution, and it flooded the Magnet Pokémon.

He felt his powers grow dramatically, and felt his head being separated into three, each containing one-third of his consciousness.

After a minute, the lights died down… revealing Magneton!

* * *

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	61. Cha 60: Kanto 50

**Cha. 60**

 **A/N: This chapter took twice as long as usual to write because I'm trying out a different style. Tell me if you guys like this chapter!**

* * *

The PTI girl extracted Pupitar and walked off with a angry huff. Domino shrugged and Returned Mageton back to her ball.

"Domino of Viridian takes the victory! She will proceed on to the Rock Field!" The referee announced the obvious decision.

She went back to her seat and took the congratulation her companions threw at her.

Ash grinned. "Mine now!"

The four proceeded over to the Rock Field for Ash's battle.

* * *

Ash recognized the trainer as soon as he saw him. Long brown hair, black eyes, the signature striped T-shirt of purple and green.

He was number third on the rankings board, a trainer from Hoenn. Ash's lips tipped up. Finally, a worthy opponent.

The two got to the Rock Field at the same time and shook hands, each observing a similar feisty glow in the other's eyes.

They took to the stage. Seeing the challengers are ready, the referee picked up the microphone. "To the left is Ash Ketchum of Pallet. To the right is Zeus of Hoenn!"

After he finished saying Zeus's name, the crowd cheered. The Hoenn trainer looked over and smiled. "I guess I have a slight reputation."  
Ash smirked. "I hope that will help you in battle!"

"Of course it will! I can feel the power of the support." He laughed.

"Anyways! This is a 3v3 battle! May the best trainer win!" The referee waved his white flag, and the battle zoomed into action.

* * *

Ash threw out his most balanced choice, and Bulbasaur landed in the Rock Field. His opponent threw out his ball at the same time, revealing an Aggron.

Aggron. Ash's brain twirled as he formulated different strategies to deal with the Pokémon. He was a tank, and it was going to be hard without some impactful damages.

Across from him, Zeus also went into overdrive after seeing Bulbasaur.

The Seed Pokémon was common in Kanto, and he had encountered it many times already, having multiple ways to defeat it.

But this probably was no regular Bulbasaur, especially since the Bulbasaur was still not evolved yet at LEAGUES. It must have some pretty unusual factor.

Never underestimate first-level Pokémon.

The two Pokémon in the field walked in circles around each other slowly, eyes searching for any vulnerability, any faulty gesture.

For the first time in a while, Bulbasaur had failed to find a weakness in his opponent. His eyes narrowed. If there wasn't an opportunity, he would make one HIMSELF!

The Seed Pokémon Dig underground abruptly. Reacting equally quickly, Aggron jumped up and stomped the ground with Earthquake.

" _Knew it!_ " Underground, a flexible Grass Type energy filled a hole that contained Bulbasaur, creating a cushion-like substance around himself. " _That's literally the most common counter to Dig. Thanks for softening the ground!_ "

He, being the master of counters, had worked out numerous moves that could neutralize the effect of Earthquake, this one being the most effective.

Bulbasaur barely took any damage and took advantage of the newly softened soil, reaching Aggron in a snap.

He burst out and pounded him with Double Edge, while wrapping vines around the Iron Armor Pokémon's feet, thus tripping him.

Aggron didn't go down easily though. He retaliated before hitting the ground, sending a slab of Stone Edge, which Bulbasaur had to face while he was still in midair.

The Grass Type smashed it with a Take Down, pushing himself back from the recoil. Using the distraction to his benefit, Aggron rolled and got up swiftly, giving Bulbasaur no time to complete his upcoming cycle of attacks.

As soon as he landed, Bulbasaur immediately zoomed right back into action. A Focus Blast led the way as his entire body followed, using the energy of a Bone Rush.

A sheet of Iron Defense flashed over the Steel Type, and his Metal Claw connected with the Focus Blast. He spun around, using the force, and slammed an Iron Tail against Bulbasaur.

The gracious movements were as well-trained as a karate master, directing the attacks and using his energy perfectly.

Bulbasaur's eyes narrowed. He had a counter for that too.

His paws gripped onto the shining anatomy and lifted himself up with Acrobatics. Doing a flip in midair, he executed his combo perfectly and landed onto the back of Aggron, much to the other Pokémon's surprise.

Suddenly, spikes grew from the Iron Armor Pokémon's back. Bulbasaur had the time to use one Fire Punch before he was knocked off balance.

Aggron turned around and tried to grip the fallen Pokémon. Bulbasaur glowed with Extremespeed and darted off into the distance, returning to his beginning position of the fight.

Ash took a deep breath. Bulbasaur was known for his expertise in move manipulation and situational awareness. Still, this was the beginning and already quite an exchange.

* * *

Aggron started the next barrage. He stomped forward and started with Hyper Beam.

Bulbasaur stared at the orange beam, thoughts racing through his head.

Aggron was obviously an expert Pokémon, unlike the few before him. Therefore, there was no reason for him to start off the battle with a Hyper Beam that Bulbasaur could dodge easily… unless he wanted him to dodge.

The Grass Type materialized a construct of wood in front of him. He wasn't going to give Aggron what he wanted.

The beam crashed through, and Bulbasaur tanked the rest easily, repairing right after with a Synthesis.

Aggron blinked. He did fully expected Bulbasaur to dodge, so he could trap him in the next torrent of moves.

The Grass Type sneered and sneaked in with Quick Attack and threw out dozens of leaves, forming a boosted Fury Cutter.

The Steel Pokémon let out a Flamethrower to burn off the leaves, which also, unfortunately, covered up his sight.

As a result, he missed the flash on Bulbasaur. When the momentary fire died down, he advanced forward and slammed down with a Dragon Claw.

The attack touched Bulbasaur…'s Substitute, which deformed into an Energy Ball that blew up in Aggron's face, sending him tripping back in surprise.

Then he felt the Brick Break on his back, and he squawked out in pain and surprise.

The super effective Fighting move sliced through his Iron Defense like butter, and he felt a deep gash down into his gut.

He split into twelve Double Teams, trying to get a break. Bulbasaur laughed and instantly pounded toward the real one.

A shocked Aggron released the illusion and forced himself back while holding up a rock as defense.

" _How did you find me!?_ "

" _Magic!_ " Bulbasaur laughed. Ash had been looking out with Aura Sight through the entire battle, and he spoke as soon as the Double Team occurred.

His Tackle broke the rock on contact and swung forward with Hammer Arm, making contact with Aggron, sending him rocking back in a fight of raw strength.

"Pull out the distance!" Zeus yelled, and Aggron promptly did so by repetitively blasting out high energy Dragon Rush to keep Bulbasaur back.

The Grass Type knew his opponent couldn't keep that up that kind of expenditure for much longer, so he backed up to wait for it to die down.

* * *

Zeus's mind spun fast. He was obviously losing in a battle of tactics. He needed to step up his game and come up with something special…

The Dragon Rush extinguished as per expected, and Bulbasaur took the initiative this time to start the third round of exchanges.

However, instead of advancing forward, he retreated and ran straight up a hill. Instantly, the hill turned into Grassy Terrain. Trees spurred up around him in the light of Synthesis.

The eccentric smell of honey and forest mixed to form a sweet and refreshing scent that was only available to the most uncontaminated nature.

Flowers stood up, and a wave of plants flooded the plain around the hill, expanding at an unnatural rate southward and eastward.

Instantly, Zeus knew that Bulbasaur was planning to trap Aggron in the Grass Type's field, although he didn't know why that would be harmful.

The Iron Armor Pokémon stomped the field, and a Fire Blast lit into Bulbasaur's creation.

Within seconds, the plants turned to ash, and both Aggron and his trainer raised their eyebrows.

Then, their jaw dropped.

The flowers instantly rose back out of the ash and kept spreading as if nothing had happened.

The field almost reached his feet, breaking through any rocks in its path. Aggron made an Earthquake, instantly destroying half of the plants.

They grew back within a second and finished spreading through his half of the field.

Next, saplings rose out of the dirt like a spring shower had just passed. It dotted through the ground, beginning to turn the entire field into a small woodland.

A gasp echoed in unison from the entire crowd.

"Did he just create a forest on sight?"

"How is that possible?"

"No one could do that!"

"That Bulbasaur is insane!"

Aggron knew he had to do something fast. He had a feeling this might be the last chance he had to defeat the Pokémon.

The Steel Type rushed at Bulbasaur's hill. As he approached, the trees sprung up like madness in front of him, and vines materialized out of the air to tangle him.

Aggron only made it halfway before Bulbasaur opened his eyes. His voice sounded ancient and distant, abnormal for such a young body, but with so much experience.

" _And this is MY Epiphany!_ " Bulbasaur echoed.

No one knew how many nights Bulbasaur had stayed up to Realize this move. He had stayed up past Butterfree, past Kirlia, past Pikachu and Lucario, even through Jigglypuff's Sing.

He was the last one asleep, the first one to get up in the morning. Days and nights.

Then, he spent the mornings and afternoons being in charge of the ranch, failing to control everyone, as Pikachu and Zorua sneaked off on most days.

The Pokémon around him only saw his glory and power.

But who had truly seen how hard he had to work, the sweat and tears behind each day?

Even now, his move just got started. There was still a long path to go to its perfection. This wasn't just a normal move. Not even a super move.

This was his path. His future. This was the concentration of his hopes. His heart.

This was his ultimate.

" _Living DOMAIN!_ "

The saplings all extended out into the sky, turning into full grown trees that instantly trapped Aggron in the middle of a living forest.

Zeus stared at the field in disbelief. How was he going to beat that?

Bulbasaur lifted a paw. Endless Frenzy Plant started to pound into Aggron.

His defense shattered only after the third strike, and the Grass Type energy downed him shortly after.

* * *

Zeus's list of Pokémon zoomed by his head, trying to find one who had a chance against this… outrageous vegetation.

He crossed off the giant Pokémon off the list immediately. Yeah, they were powerful. But were they strong enough to wipe out the ENTIRE woodland AND one-shot Bulbasaur before the forest could regenerate?

He sighed. Violence won't work here.

His choice then fell onto a special bird. She was tiny, deceitful, and extremely manipulative. She was his starter Pokémon… this may do the job.

He held out a Pokéball. "Go!"

A flash materialized in the field. Before her shape could fully take form, the Pokémon darted into the forest.

Ash smirked. He knew what it was from a glance of Aura Sight. Good choice, but was it good enough?

It was a Natu. Bulbasaur knew as well. He could smell her scent, a strange scent trapped in the forest of growth.

Vines snapped at her. The Tiny Bird Pokémon swayed in a rapid z-shaped pattern and splitted into Double Teams, covered with layers of pink.

Bulbasaur frowned. He couldn't see through, Ash said.

Oh well. Then elimination by testing.

Energy Balls started to condense on trees and smashed down at Natu.

This was HIS Domain. No one could touch him as long as he stayed within this. It was his world.

That was what a Domain meant.

The Energy Ball released a giant wave of energy that splashed all twelve Double Teams into nothing…

Wait! All twelve?

Damn! Psychic. Teleportation.

Bulbasaur felt a threat behind him. He sighed internally. The Domain was far from perfect. If this was completed, teleportation would be cancelled out instantly.

A Petal Dance stirred up behind him, entrapping the incoming Psycho Cut.

He could hear a grunt of disappointment. He smiled to himself. He wasn't that easy.

Around him, the storm of petals and leaves kept twirling, emitting a Grass Energy with a hint of Darkness that stopped any penetration of psychic.

Natu blinked into another part of the forest, gritting her teeth. How was she going to take down this monstrosity?

She could wait him out, but she didn't know how long Bulbasaur could keep up this Domain.

She had no confidence if she could survive until he powered down.

First, she needed to lure him from the protection of his storm of greenery… but how!? Bulbasaur wasn't stupid.

She dodged through the collection of branches that came squashing at her.

 _SNAP_!

Vines cracked and swiped, and she operated a dive straight down and left until she was nearly at the ground, and did a sharp U-turn up through roots that soared up from the ground.

Sweat dripped off her forehead. She had activated her potential to the fullest in this battle.

Almost thirty minutes had passed since she joined the battle. Some of the evasion that she had managed were so much more than what she was trained for.

Most of them she had only thought of at the last second.

It was either think of something or get blasted off. There was no alternate option.

She panted heavily, knowing that it was hard to keep this up. This forest was way too scary.

Teleportation had failed. So had trying to approach him subtly. The vines always chased her in a circle back to the beginning point.

It was a miracle she still hadn't gone down yet.

Plan C.

Se narrowly avoided a vine vibrating in a weird pattern at him. It still scraped a few feathers, and a chihll dotted on Natu's wings.

The first time she was touched was fifteen minutes ago. The second time was five ago.

This, however, was already the sixteenth near miss. She couldn't go on like this.

What does plants fear? Not fire, Aggron already disproved that.

Poison? Won't work. Her opponent was a Poison Type.

Darkness? This was a living forest, not Viridian Forest.

ICE! Natu pushed the idea out of his head. She was a Psychic, not a Ice Type.

A branch came straight at her head like a baseball bat. She crashed directly into it and dropped like a stone.

Ash closed his eyes, and reopened them. "You're good now, Bulbasaur."

The forest immediately collapsed, and the storm faded. Bulbasaur laid on the ground, revealed from the disappearing greenery, panting. " _I still have a lot of work to do on this move!_ "

"Yeah, it takes a lot of energy!"

" _No kidding!_ " Bulbasaur sighed, barely able to get up. " _I think I want a rest, Ash._ "

Ash nodded. "That's fine."

The referee held up a flag. "The second round goes to…"

Then, a sharp, sudden change befell!

Pink lights sparkled across the Rock Field in the form of Natu and bounced sharply into Bulbasaur.

The unexpected Grass Type felt the heavy impact and saw the Tiny Bird Pokémon as he flew off rapidly, and he glanced off in disbelief at Ash.

Bulbasaur saw the ground fly past him, the bare scent of his flowers still flowing, and then a tough, invisible wall made contact with his delicate pulp.

A wave of exhaustion and pain finally overcame his system, and his eyes closed.

In the field, the Natu was also sent back from the recoil. She fell onto the ground and bounced a few times, and laid.

Unconscious.

* * *

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* * *

Ash's jaw dropped in surprise. He checked with Aura Sight, and double checked. Triple checked. There was no way…

He knew Bulbasaur was tired, but he still checked very carefully…

She was definitely out!

A scene flashed across his mind. He remembered when he wasn't able to detect her Double Teams apart…

He looked on at the Natu. One possibility came to his mind. Only one thing he knew could disguise from Aura.

It took almost ninety percent of the user's life force. The remaining was only enough for one critical strike.

Then the user would pass out as well.

This move was only used in desperate conditions to seek a double out, or double kill… whether in humans or Pokémon.

It was bet on life, tossing away most of the life force, leaving a tenth of her health.

If she was discovered, she was doomed. If not, she would pull her opponent into oblivion.

She didn't have a second option.

Sacrificing themselves to neutralize the enemy.

The ways of the Ninja!

* * *

The Hoenn trainer took in a deep breath.

Last chance, last hope.

His opponent had two Pokémon left, but he one.

This one, he believed, would turn the tide, no matter WHAT!

Dragonite!

Pseudo-Legendary!

Ash's pupils contracted. This guy wasn't like the fools he fought before. Normally speaking, the League wouldn't pin them against each other, since they were almost guaranteed to make it into the 6v6.

Ash licked his lips. In this case, he needed to borrow from his line-ups in part two.

"Charizard!" The Kanto Fire starter burst from his Pokéball and landed, growling slightly.

The two Flying Type stared at each other, their eyes bulging out. They could both see the ferocity in each other.

A sense of respect rose, followed by the desire to select out the stronger.

Though their power was similar, there was still a difference between the two Pokémon.

The Dragonite was very well trained, giving off a sense of stability, like a giant mountain with its peak extending far beyond the clouds.

Unable to be sway, unable to be topped.

Charizard was more active, like a roaring volcano, vowing to melt through the land with its magma.

If he couldn't top it, he would bring the summit down to him!

The two Roared at each other, sound waves shattering rocks over the field.

Charizard took the lead in attacking. Opening his wings, he zoomed into the sky.

Before Dragonite could follow, he released a Blast Burn down onto the Dragon.

The Dragon decided to tank it since it was Type-ineffective.

He would soon come to regret that decision!

A stream of fire was forced down his throat as Dragonite was pummeled repeatedly by highly-energetic, isolated protons.

He roared in an unimaginable pain, which didn't seem to be dissipate with his agonizing cries.

It steamed into his Dragon Scales, reminding him constantly of the power of fire. The smell of roasting flesh filled his nostrils.

Dragonite's eyes flashed a dangerous green, and shot out a leafy laser.

The green bolt crashed through the Fire Energy into Charizard's mouth.

Ash's Fire Type, believing that his Blast Burn could melt anything, was sent crashing back unexpectedly.

His mouth shut off, blood spewing out of it. He lost his flight and smashed onto the ground. His Tail Flame waved dangerously.

The Dragon Pokémon wasn't much better off either. He stood there with scorch marks through the top half of his body, penetrating through the Dragon Scales.

His hands were on his knees, panting profusely.

The first exchange was one deadly tie.

* * *

Ash stood up abruptly in astonishment.

"MUTATION!" He shouted out. He didn't think he'll see another mutation at Leagues, the first being the Sinnoh trainer.

The green fire was a modified fire, and he identified it straightaway.

Even in HIS collection of Pokémon, there were only two mutated.

Dratini and Pikachu. All of the others were just super-powerful.

His eyes squinted. This requires ultra-focus…

Meanwhile, across the stage, Zeus was equally as shocked. He had never seen a Pokémon able to hold his ground against Dragonite.

Even when his father challenged him with his Latios did Dragonite stood his ground. That battle ended with Dragonite barely winning, but that was only because he had his starter gone first against the Legend, in turn weakening him.

Shaking his thoughts back to the field, he took a careful look at the Charizard. "Routine 6!"

Ash also shouted out the first command since League started. "Sunrise!"

* * *

The two Pokémon moved at the same instant. Dragonite rose into the air this time at the same moment as Charizard.

The Flame Pokémon's Tail Flame burst in a bright light, one that could match the sun. It then extended down his tail onto his entire body.

Charizard began to grow in size, as if… evolving!

The crowd sucked in a deep breath as they marveled at the scene.

His horn began to elongate, and spikes grew out of him. His wings became sharper, and his body texture becoming rougher.

Even Ash looked at him in disbelief. This wasn't a full Mega Evolution… but it was most of it.

'Sunrise' just meant to execute the combination of breathing Flamethrowers, releasing hydrogen gas and…

WAIT!

Did Charizard figure out how to half-Mega Evolve without using a Stone, but, instead…

COMPLETELY on his OWN?

Gary swiped out a pen and his notebook and started scribbling faster than the time he found out there was a homework check, which turned out to be an uncompleted essay…

However, Charizard wasn't the only one with a transformation.

Meanwhile, Dragonite spun rapidly in the air, and a storm of green formed around him. It wasn't Grass energy, but an extreme type of Dragon Energy that could…

Suddenly, something clicked.

Outside of the field, nothing happened. But, within the field, everything… slowed.

The rapid spreading of Charizard's light began to devolve into a crawling speed.

The falling dust from previous blasts floated without settling. The shadow of the two Pokémon on the ground wavered at a decreasing rate.

The only thing going at the same speed was Dragonite's green light storm pulsing throughout the field.

As if he was not part of this world… or at least of the field.

The Dragon Pokémon acted as normal, in this space of sudden slowness.

Ash's pupils contracted dramatically. He wasn't a stranger to this force. In fact, he had sworn this force to be one of his deadliest enemy, because it had tried to take Domino from him.

The force of Time.

The Dragonite was infused with the power of… Time.

Among the most mysterious of the Concepts, one of the main elements of reality.

A force that Ash only had a _slight_ idea how to counter.

Curse Room? No! That won't work. Their speeds didn't change. Charizard was just trapped in a slower Continuum.

Ash started sweating. There was literally no Pokémon move that could counter Time… he needed to improvise.

If this was Pikachu, he could just rip through space-time like he already figured out four months ago. Lucario could Mega Evolve and disturb Space, which could curb Time just as well.

But, CHARIZARD!

He looked over at Zeus, who had a confident look on his face. Ash squirmed. This was only preliminaries! He didn't want to use Pikachu this early on!  
He was the CHOSEN! He could do this! He just needed to focus.

Dragonite launched a Dragon Rush at the sluggish Charizard, hitting him easily and smashing him onto the ground. The Dragon then followed with a series of Hyper Beams, slamming Charizard repeatedly, only but missing one.

Ash's eyes grew red. Time… Time… TIME!

His mind sped through the experiences he had had. He paced through his entire memory once, from the last timeline to this.

NOTHING!

IMPOSSIBLE! He knew there must be a method! He had escaped the time warps before!

Time warps… Ash's thoughts faded to a realm that he hadn't thought of before. He remembered his purpose, why he traveled to this timeline.

To stop Cyrus.

Cyrus. Team Galactic. Space and Time. His own world. Arceus.

ARCEUS! Bubble Realm! Arceus could manipulate time!

SO what!? His brain shouted. He was the damn God of ALL! OF course He could!

HOW THOUGH!?

Dragonite picked Charizard up from the ground. The Fire Type fired a lethargic Fire Blast, which Dragonite Endured, and threw his down with a Seismic Toss after slamming a few more punches in, damaging the Flame Pokémon even further.

Ash's eyes bursted. His vision turned black, and the Bubble Realm appeared in front of him.

A voice that had sounded eight months ago, a timeline ago, echoed through time.

" _Here's the memory lift I just made…_ "

" _Time is only a fragment..._ "

" _Memories trump time!_ "

MEMORIES! THOUGHTS!

He felt something enter him from the sudden realization.

Ash focused his mind. In his hand lit a bubble of blue, but this time, it lit up with a slint of gray.

He squeezed, and sound pulsed out at the arena, through the Time barrier and entered Charizard's mind.

Inside Charizard, the Fire Type was screaming frantically, but his body couldn't move any faster, and he could only see himself being slammed by Dragonite over and over.

Suddenly, a voice sounded.

"To be or not to be?" It was ASH's voice!

"Your existence shall come from your thought." What is he SAYING!?

"Who are you? What are you? Why do you live?"

"The thought is what you are. Your thoughts are who you are." The last two sentences struck a bolt of lightning in his head… _Thoughts!_

"To think is why you live!" A realization flashed for just a second across Charizard's mind.

He got it.

But he missed the other 99.9999%.

Nevertheless, it was enough.

In the trainer's box, Ash slanted back onto his chair, his Aura disappearing completely. He breathed in and out heavily, a mist forming over his eyes.

He was completely out of energy, only a little better than when he fought Mewtwo months ago. Sweat poured down, wetting his shirt, making it cling to himself.

However, his eyes shone with an intense light of understanding. Memories!

They transcend time. Time could definitely block the memories, which was why Arceus made that memory lift…

He still didn't understand what memories and thoughts actually were, or what Time and Space were.

But he knew enough.

Enough for the fight.

He knew how to activate it. Touching a body was merely the smallest part. Its real function…

He watched as Charizard's head shone with a brighter light. The light was dark gray, sprayed on with a hint of fresh red.

It didn't appear bright, but something directly told anyone watching it that it was bright… brighter than anything in the world.

Why? Because it shouldn't exist.

Domino stood up. She saw the light too, and a similar one resonated within her.

A feeling of belonging soared within her, making her want to walk toward the light.

She didn't know what this meant… but she knew that this was…

The light pierced through the green energy barrier of Time like melting through pudding. The storm wrapping around Dragonite solidified and shattered.

Then Dragonite, frozen, fell onto the ground like a bag of bricks.

Charizard clutched his head and yelled in pain.

What just happened?

He dropped as well.

Two banging _THUD_ sounded through the stadium.

Silence.

* * *

 **A/N: More secrets unveiled. I know you guys aren't tracking all of them… My Google Docs titled "Holes" is almost up to five pages now. Even I need something to write them all down.**

 **When the next arc comes, a lot of them would be explained. If you need them explained, PM me.**

 **Enjoy! Review, Follow, and Favorite!**


	62. Cha 61: Kanto 51

**Cha. 61**

 **A/N: Fourth battle.**

* * *

"Just… wow!" The referee found his voice first within the crowd. "I don't know _what_ I just saw!"

He casted an amazed look at the trainers. "The Bulbasaur was just… and then the Dragon..."

"Okay, I'm not here to comment!" He shook his head. "I couldn't understand half of it anyways!"

"What I do understand is that Ash Ketchum took a lead in the epic battle, having one last Pokémon remaining, while Zeus has, unfortunately, run out!"

"Congratulations, Ash! You will proceed to the last field, the Water Field, next!"

The audience exploded in cheers and congratulations. Ash smiled widely, this time he truly meant it.

Worthy opponent. Very intense battles.

He walked up to the Hoenn trainer and shook his hand.

Zeus looked him straight in the eye. "You know, you're the first one I've known to take down Dragonite single-handedly."

"And your Dragonite is the first to take down my Charizard." Ash paused and smirked.

This timeline, at least.

"I bet that was your strongest? Your starter perhaps? I understand that one of the standard Kanto starters is Charmander." Zeus asked. "I knew from the moment I saw your battles that I need to go full-out against you."

"Actually, no, to both questions. Ash's eyes gleamed with pride. "Charizard is up there in power… but he's only in the Top Ten."

"You're kidding!" Zeus remarked in surprise. "You're saying that there are more Pokémon of yours even tougher than Charizard?"

Ash simply nodded. He didn't like bragging, or exposing too many details. That was his girlfriend's job.

Zeus pointed at the other Pokéball he had seen Ash use. "Then it must be Bulbasaur?"

"No. Bulbasaur barely made Top Ten." Ash winced a little. "I didn't actually know he had that move until today…"

The Hoenn trainer stared at him dubiously. Ash continued. "Actually, don't tell anyone this, but my starter here is my strongest."

Pikachu waved a peace sign from Ash's shoulder. Zeus took a look at the friendly yellow mouse and smiled back. The Pokémon sat there calmly, like a pet.

There was no way. Even Natu couldn't hide her power this well.

"Is he a Ninja?" Zeus questioned.

"Actually, Pikachu specializes in Aura." Ash corrected.

That got the teen's eyebrows even higher. Aura was known to be the wildest force… and he wasn't detecting a single wave of it from the mouse.

"Well, in any case!" Zeus shook Ash's hand again and handed over a card. "A very nice pleasure to meet you, even though you knocked me out at preliminaries."

"I hope we can stay in contact." He bowed. "I better hear the news of you winning!"

"You're not staying?" Ash asked, a bit shocked.

"No. I got another League to catch actually." Zeus smirked. "The Ever Grande Conference is in a week. I was going to skip that if I made it up here at Kanto."

"But since I lost, I'll go there for a try!"

"In that case, good luck!" Ash smirked at his savageness. "I hope I can say that I had defeated the Hoenn Conference winner this year!"

"Hey! That was only a 3v3." Zeus smirked back. "Next time we meet, you're giving me the 6v6!"

* * *

The rest of the day was just like the previous days. The group sat around watching battles, identifying big-shot trainers, guessing the uniform color of Lance's spies.

Giovanni showed his face physically at League once, but he didn't approach them, showing his recognition of them only with a hidden wink.

Therefore, the day was pretty uneventful, compared to the morning.

However, once they finished dinner, and Ash and Domino separated from the Gym Leaders did she finally burst with the questions.

The blonde dragged him into her room rapidly.

Before she could say anything, Ash wrestled her onto the couch and took a seat beside her.

"I know what you're going to ask." He said plainly. "Charizard's lights that bursted through Time?"

Domino nodded and held onto him.

"To be honest, I'm not quite sure either." Ash sighed. "Remember when we were in the Bubble, Arceus gave us a memory lift?"

"Yeah? You can use it to remind people." Domino stared back. "You reminded Charizard already."

"Apparently, that wasn't the only use." The Chosen revealed. "When I was concentrating on how to beat the force of Time, the memory lift just popped up in my mind… in the shape of the Bubble."

"I don't know why or how, but I heard this voice questioning me about what I am, who I am, and the purpose of my existence."

"On the field, the power of Time was affecting me too, since the trainer's box was also in the realm of the Rock Field. The effect was just not nearly as significant as with Charizard."

"Although I still felt it, my Aura was able to cancel out the rest."

"However, with the voice starting to speak, I felt… the pressure on my Aura was, just, gone. Out of the blue, I suddenly recalled when Arceus said eight months ago about memory transversing through Time."

"He said that Time was the only thing that clouded memories, but they do still exist throughout the timelines and parallels. The memory lift was able to activate _certain_ memories."

"I don't know what that means, but I decided to coat the voice up and send it to Charizard." Ash clutched his head. "I don't know how I did it, or what I did, but I knew I could bottle it up and deliver it."

Ash shuddered against her. "I still remember how terribly sick and de-energized I felt right after. It was like… something draining not just my Aura, but my soul."

"But, as you saw, it worked. Charizard released that weird light of memory, which broke through the Time trap."

"I guess the light also had a massive aftereffect on Charizard, which made him pass out. Same thing with the Dragonite. The breaking of the Time trap gave him a recoil, knocking him out as well."

Domino closely examined his face. His expression was so detailed, concentrated, and she knew this was one of the confusing moments that they were living through… again.

"Whatever it is, I'll be here." She held onto to his hand.

What else was she going to say?

"I know." The reply came.

* * *

Ash's battle on the Water Field was first again, being right after their brunch. The group decided to sleep in that day, since Ash's battle wasn't until twelve.

His headache had gotten much better over the night, and he wished for another exciting battle, like the one from yesterday.

When the Ketchum boy arrived, he was slightly disappointed. In front of him was a trainer he didn't quite recognize, hinting that she wasn't one of the commotion-causers.

Ash still have some hope that she was just hiding her cards, and she could still afford him a surprise.

The girl was dressed in a plain black dress with boots and some other decorations. But her most notable wardrobe choice was a gigantic, fluffy, pink, frilly hat that sat on her head. It tipped up, showing its giant stature while not covering its owner's face.

Even Ash couldn't control his laughter as he took on the sight of the hat. The girl smiled back.

"The hat?" She asked knowingly. Ash nodded apologetically.

"Don't worry! I get it!" She smiled back knowingly. "It's a good luck hat, believe it or not."

"Ah, well, I don't beliebe in luck. My luck had been terrible since the day I was born." Ash said half-jokingly, half-seriously. "Ash."

The girl stuck out her hand to be shaken. "Lizzy."

Ash took her hand… and sparks flew.

His eyes opened widely in astonishment. Wha… why…

The boy tried to subtly throw down her hand. She smiled at him again before taking the stage.

Within him, Ash's stomach churned and his heart pounded quicker.

What was happening? Why were there sparks!? They were definitely sparks!

But he was with Domino! He wasn't even searching for a relationship. HELL, the girl wasn't even HIS type!

Pikachu noticed that his trainer had been frozen on the spot and pushed him slightly. " _What's wrong?_ "

Ash shook his head clear, but a sting echoed in his heart, making him look at Lizzy with a ambivalent expression.

She caught the glance and smiled back again, and Ash whipped his head around.

"Nothing. I just thought of a possible strategy." Ash took a breath and walked onstage.

Pikachu shrugged and jumped into the box.

* * *

"To the left, Lizzy of Saffron! To the right, Ash of Pallet!" The referee declared in clear cut terms. "3v3! Same rules! Good luck!"

He raised his flag. "Begin!"

Lizzy smiled at Ash sweetly and waved. "Go easy on me, okay!?"

Ash winced, and he didn't know why.

Pikachu sensed something and looked back at him. Ash decided to keep his silence and throw out a ball.

Wartortle! The Turtle landed onto the water and stood.

He looked in front of him and posed. " _Let the power of determination and will charge through yet another barrier to the END!_ "

Lizzy giggled and threw out a Luxury Ball. It opened to show…

"HOLY SHIT!"

A Wurmple.

Wartortle's eyes twitched… This was what he was going to fight?

The field sat in motionless silence. Wurmple sat, unmoving. Wartortle was frozen as well.

Suddenly, he turned back to Ash and yelled. " _I can't do this, Ash!_ "

" _I am the Leader of the Squad, the promoter of love and happiness, and protector of the universes and timelines._ "

" _I have honor! I have dignity! I have…_ "

Ash cut him off with a shout. "Okay! I get it. You don't want to fight."

" _No, I DO NOT!_ " Wartortle stopped talking and Returned himself deliberately, locking his Pokéball up.

Ash sighed. He didn't want to fight either.

But this was a League battle.

It never went across his mind how the girl was able to get this far without a legitimate Pokémon… or that even a Wurmple could be extremely strong. If Magikarp could, so could it.

He chose another Pokémon. "Kingler!"

Said Princer Pokémon also jumped into the field. He took a look at Wurmple then extracted himself too.

A weird feeling stemmed from Ash's stomach. Something was… wrong.

With a click, Kingler locked his Pokéball up as well.

A dangerous thought flashed across Ash's mind. He threw out Wartortle's Pokéball again.

The sphere landed onto the field and bounced. The Water type didn't come out. Ash's jaw dropped.

What!? Even if they didn't want to battle, they'll still come out!

Pikachu suddenly looked up at Ash, blue glowing in his eyes.

" _ASH!_ " He shouted.

Ash looked at his starter in confusion. Pikachu spat out slowly. " _I'm not sure if you realized this… but you went through two Pokémon already… and neither of them was willing to fight for you._ "

A chill went down Ash's spine. His starter's words pierced like lightning through his brain, instantly wiping away the cloud that was clogging his mind.

Cold sweat began to drip down his back. In a swift second, he realized what went wrong.

In the past five minutes, his mind seemed cluttered, like he didn't get enough sleep… but worse.

He looked up from his trance at the opposing trainer, whose hat seemed to flash. He refocused his pupils, but saw nothing.

Pikachu looked up at his trainer with an inquiring look. Ash nodded. "Yep, I saw it too."

Suddenly, the world turned pink.

Not a psychic pink, but a brilliant pink.

A hot, hot pink.

A completely different world.

Lizzy moved in front of him and looked into his eyes.

* * *

"Hey, Ashy!" Lizzy showing off her pearly teeth. She waved happily. "I don't think we've met yet. I'm Lizzy."

The Chosen stepped back in caution and complete shock, his starter jumping on his shoulder and going into an attack position.

Even for a boy who had seen so many weird things… being trapped in a girl's… whatever this was… that was filled with pure pinkness and sparkles… was just…

HUH!?

"I… we met… already? Remember?" Ash sputtered out senselessly. What the hell was going on!?

"Ah, yes we did." The girl confirmed, receiving another strange look. "But I forgot my title."

"Tit… Title?"

"Yes." She smirked with her cute hat pointed straight at Ash. Her eyes glowed softly, and her lips puckered. "I'm the Goddess of Glamour."

"I'm in charge of the Dimension of Charm." The girl smiled. Ash's eyes twitched dangerously. This is NONESENSE!

Then, he felt something being casted over him again.

He shouted out, something white in his mind flashed, and he came back to full consciousness. "CHARM! You're trying to charm me!"

The girl tilted her head. "No I wasn't. That was just my ability. You're the one who doesn't have a firm enough heart."

Ash's tongue stuck out. Wha…

Pikachu stopped listening. All that he understood was that there was an ability-bearer who had trapped Ash and him into something and was trying to charm Ash.

That was all he needed to understand.

With that, Pikachu fired off a giant Thunder in the direction of the female.

A shining pink flowed over the girl, and the Electric Energy stabilized in her hand.

She pouted at Pikachu. "Why are you so mean? I could've been electrocuted!"

Seeing her cute pout, Ash began to become dazed again, before another flash of mysterious white brought him back to his senses. "WHO ARE YOU!?"

The girl turned to him and twirled her beautiful silver hair. "I told you already. I'm Lizzy."

As she twirled her hair, Ash finally located the problem, for the first time.

A natural charm radiated off of her. It was true, like she said. She wasn't trying to lure him. He was being lured himself unnoticably.

The girl had a magic around her that just attracts him, like the opposites of magnets.

But… why?

Oh wait… She did say she was the Goddess of Glamour.

Even when he stopped focusing for a little bit, he fell into her current of charisma. It was like charm had melted into her bones, and each movement of hers represented all of the attractiveness of the world…

Lizzy stared at him with big, golden-colored eyes, and Ash had to put effort into not staring at them for too long.

Pikachu thought less. Seeing that a Thunder had failed, he released a Galvanic Burst on command.

Unlike eight months ago, he had eaten through all of the strategies for powering it, and had practiced it so much that spontaneous generation was simple.

The powerful attack went near Lizzy. A pink light shone from her onto the beam of electricity, which melted like snow under the sun.

Before Pikachu could continue, Ash grabbed him. "Wait! Stop! She's not lying."

* * *

"If you're a Goddess, why are you here?" Ash asked. "Hold on! Does that mean you're like Arceus?"

"No, I am not!" Lizzy made an almost disgusted look. "I'm here because I'm dead."

Whaaaaaaa?

Seeing his confusion, Lizzy sighed in realization. "I'm alive, in your terms."

?

Ash wanted to stop thinking. The pain was too much.

Pikachu spoke up. " _Don't believe what she says, Ash! I don't trust her._ "

Lizzy sighed. "Of course you won't. Humans and Pokémon are both known to be questioning and skeptical."

"Wait… so you're from, like, another universe? Since, you know, you said that you're neither…?"

"Ummm… I can't answer that." Lizzy sighed. "Arceus would ground me if I do."

"WHAT!?" Ash couldn't believe his ears. "But you're also on the God Level, like him!"

"But I'm dead." The girl stated flatly. "But you won't know what that means because you're so weak right now, so you don't have the power or privilege to find out yet."

Seeing their looks, she held up her hands. "I'll stop talking about this… You don't even understand Time and Space yet. Of course you won't get this!"

Ash and Pikachu just kept staring.

"Fine! I'll explain something you would understand!"

"You asked where you are before." Lizzy placed her hands up. "You're in my Domain!"

"A Domain is a field around you that you could exert when you reach a certain power level… normally Mid-Formation."

"It's a mix of mental power and energy in complicated methods that could fill up books after books!" She exclaimed. "Then, you use that mixture to extend your control beyond your body into the world!"

"If you succeed, you create a zone around you that you are literally the God of! If you are powerful enough, you can reshape that space however you like with your energy or Aura!"

"If you've Realized a Concept, then you could mold that into your Domain as well!"

"Wait… What's a Concept?" Ash held his head in pain. "For some reason, that word had appeared repetitively in the past, especially during the last four months."

"But I don't know how I know that word!"

Lizzy frowned and floated over, placing a hand on his forehead. Ash couldn't help notice how nice her hand looked, or how it pressed against his…

FOCUS!

He blinked rapidly, and Lizzy extracted her hand.

"Arceus gave you a memory implant." She stated flatly. "Of course you would know random information…"

"Did he not tell you?"

Pikachu looked at Ash curiously too. Ash shook his head. "No. He just gave me this memory lift and made me go into reality."

" _Ash, I'm not sure if you notice, but…_ " His starter took a breath. " _You're throwing around words like reality like it is normal…_ "

" _Even for you, that's kind of… weird._ "

Ash's brows furrowed.

Lizzy nodded. "That's because it IS normal."

"When Arceus gave you that implant, it automatically replicated and inserted some of His own memory. Since you become gradually powerful, it broke the seal. And then, all of his knowledge started to seep out into your brain, which subconsciously put words into use that you feel like you understand, but you don't."

"Seal?"

"Of course." She looked at him in confusion. "That was his intention."

"Hold on! I'm lost again."

Lizzy sighed. "The seal is what you called the memory lift. That is completely different from the actually implant."

"The seal is just used as a practice for you to work with the Concept of Memories, which is what Arceus's concept is."

"If I'm not wrong, each time you use the seal, you feel something surge out of you into your Pokémon?"

"Yes." Ash nodded. "And you've been watching me?"

Lizzy gave him an ambiguous look and refused to answer that question. "That's the power of memory. Each time, Arceus is demonstrating how to use the Concept of Memory."

"Since the implant is finally leaking, that means the seal would be gone pretty soon, and the memory lift will break."

"WHAT!?" Ash shouted. "Then how am I going to remind my Pokémon?"

"You can't…" Lizzy sighed. "Unless you Realized the Concept of Memories yourself, which is what Arceus had been trying to get you to do. I'm guessing that's why he gave you the implant- for you to learn each time you remind a Pokémon."

Ash was fully snapped back from his previous daydreaming. He was getting a little side-tracked, but now he was now on full alert.

"What's a Concept?"

"Good question! Formations had been trying to figure that out for millennium." Lizzy smiled. "A Concept is the heart of this Universe."

"A Concept is the makeup of the matrix that makes up Universe. There's Space, Time, Energy, Life, and all kinds of others."

"The process to obtaining these Concepts is called Realization. When you Realize a concept, it means that you've understood enough about it to connect with it."

"The feeling is almost like merging souls with the same piece of this universe that created Time, or Death, or Light…, what whichever else you are trying to Realize."

"It is almost impossible to explain, because the wonder you feel could not be described by words… or at least not one-dimensional words that you use."

"However, I could tell you about the power of Concept."

"When you have successfully merged, the first thing you should know is that, you're standing on the top of this world, because only Cosmics or pre-Cosmics could understand Concepts."

"In the past Big Bangs, there are millions and millions of Top-Formations who couldn't be recognized by the Concepts…"

She took in a look of confusion from Ash, and she sighed. "But that's way too far from you. Just know I've seen way too many genius and protagonist of each world be stuck in Formation, never able to step foot into Concepts, until they ran out of life and die."

"Even for you, it's almost impossible to do so…"

Ash clutched his fist. "I would do anything to get back my friends!"

"Determination and the bravery of youth." Lizzy looked down. "I'm glad to see it in you, Chosen. Because, all of ours are already gone, dissolving as we have to watch years after years go by."

She held up a hand to stop Ash from talking and continued.

"My Concept is Charm, and I can tell you what this will do."

"I'm able to charm anything in this universe if I want to. Just to show off the ridiculously powerful a Concept has, let's go into the Continuum."

Ash's sight turned cloudy, and back clear shortly after… standing in the bustling expanse of black holes and time sequences, just like he remembered from the first time.

This was his second time standing here.

Lizzy's hand waved. A black hole flew over and threatened to swallow the two. The girl's hand glowed in slight pink, and the hole stopped pulsing.

Squirming over instead, it squeezed itself again Lizzy, as if begging for a hug.

Ash's eyes widened and his jaw went numb. This was beyond anything even HE could comprehend.

"But… what… That's not even an animate object!" Ash threw up his hands "And it's a BLACK HOLE!"

"So?" Lizzy shrugged. "Concepts could change the fabrics of the universe. "By charming it, I am removing the lifelessness of it and giving it a conscious."

Her hand waved again, and the black hole stopped glowing with the pink hue, returning it to its normal state. "Don't worry, I'm a God. I make it look easy."

"To remind your friends, you don't need to play with a Black Hole. All you need to do is to step into the beginning phase of Realization, and that would be enough."

"This, Chosen, is the power of Concept… and why, like I've said, barely anyone each Big Bang has understood it. It is the most complicated thing in this world."

"I can't describe it with words. Only through your own experience could you find out what it is."

"Should I even ask what a Big Bang is?" Ash rubbed his hair.

"No, you shouldn't." Lizzy flashed with pink, and Ash was back to the original pink dimension.

"For now, just know that it's a cycle of the universe that restarts it."

Ash closed his eyes and contemplated.

Lizzy waited. The time in her dimension had stopped since she pulled Ash into it. There is no Time in the dimension of Charm. There was only Charm.

Ash sat there, going through everything in his mind.

After nearly half an hour, whenever that was, he re-opened his eyes. Lizzy looked at him patiently.

"Then what is this place?"

"This is my Domain, and it is filled with Concept. If I am actively charming something within my Domain, even Arceus would be charmed if he doesn't struggle back with his own Domain."

"Cosmics or Gods have their own Domain. Like Dialga, he has the Realm of Time, and he could control it at will. That's his you insert a Concept into your Domain, it turns into… well, insanity, but you can't understand it."

"You don't know what Time means, so I can't explain it to you. Even Space! You think you do, but you don't."

"What I CAN say, is that what your Bulbasaur has, that's nothing compared to real Domains. It's a pre-pre-pre-Domain, and the weakest field I've seen this Big Bang."

"Which is why it's surprising, because it means that he had Realized the very beginnings to constructing a Domain at what is, at most, a Pseudo-Level."

"A miracle!"

"Also, just to clarify, a Domain and Concept are two different things!"

"Domain is a field around you, while a Concept is the internetworkings of the Universe."

"I've filled you up with way too much information for an hour." Lizzy took a look at his distorted face and laughed. "I'm going to be on my way now."

"Good luck ,Chosen… also, I've explain this to the Queen at the same time as you."

She winked at him, and Ash stood there robotically, as if his mind had been wiped like a motherboard.

"My present for seeing you, is the victory of the fourth preliminary battle."

* * *

The hot pink around him pulled away, and a translucent glow formed, and the reality was freed again.

Ash took a deep breath and reached his hand out, as if grasping something.

Space. Time. Memories. HOLY SHIT!

"Lizzy has conceded the battle!" He heard the referee shout. Ash turned his head that way numbly.

"Congratulations to Ash Ketchum of Pallet!" He cheered into the mike. "For winning the Water Field Battle, his fourth preliminary battle!"

"This means that Mr. Ketchum has successfully made it into the second part of the Indigo Conference of 807 A.E.!"

"Please, let's hear a thunderous round of applause for Ash Ketchum!"

'ASH! ASH!"

"ASH!"

The crowd started cheering Ash's name repetitively. Ash stared into the crowd, not feeling a single strand of happiness.

His eyes met Domino's, the girl mirroring his look.

The memory lift would… break?

* * *

 **A/N: If you want to understand this chapter, you need to go back and read it again.**

 **Christ there was a lot of information…**

 **For the people disappointed at not seeing the fourth battle… well, do you really want another regular chapter of Ash wrecking some dumbass trainer again?**

 **I don't.**


	63. Cha 62: Kanto 52

**Cha. 62**

 **A/N: Roller coaster coming in, and it shall go out with a boom, signaling the last battle of preliminaries!**

* * *

Ash pulled Domino aside as soon as he got off.

"What do you think?"

"I think I shouldn't have followed you into this mess." Domino scratched her head, messing her curls up in the process. "Seriously, I remember being extremely lucky last time after I got past Agent Training!"

Ash sighed. "How much did you understand?"

"Most of it, actually." Domino shrugged. "She communicated with me in psychic, so it describes a lot more stuff than plain words."

"Well, you're going to have to explain some things to me…" Ash stomped the ground.

"Well, to start off, let's take care of one thing." Domino reached up and pinched his face, and her hand was slapped away by an annoyed Ash.

"What was that for!?"

"For drooling over Lizzy!" She exclaimed. "You know I get jealous easily!"

"Yeah you do…" Ash muttered. "What was I supposed to do!? She's the Goddess of Charm."

"I wasn't attracted." She smirked.

"Thank Arceus. If YOU're attracted, then there's going to be a problem." Ash deadpanned.

Domino giggled and glanced at her watch. "Okay… Still got an hour until mine. So basically, this is what she meant!"

* * *

"Cool!" Domino finished. "That's about it."

She tapped Ash's head on her shoulder. Ash lifted himself up, eyes blinking. "We're done yet?"

"Yep! I'm going to dissect this information tonight." Dexter rang from his hands.

"Your battle now?"

"Yes! Can't wait for Rock Field." Domino sighed. "Hopefully I get to play with someone cool this time."

"Wonder what the trump cards of the second and first trainers are? Zeus's Dragonite was pretty insane…"

"Mmhmm. Maybe the League do indeed have some basis for the rankings."

"I highly doubt any Gym Leaders could force the power of Time out of his Dragonite." Ash shook his head. "He said his father had a Latios, who lost."

"Yeah, well, not surprising. Latios is a pre-Ancient. Dragonite himself is a top-Medieval. If you factor in the force of Time, then of course he lost."

As the two chatted, they arrived at the Rock Field. One look at the trainer brought surprise to both of them.

"Him?"

"Wow!"

I'm going to beat the crap out of him. Domino's lips perked up.

The trainer standing there had streaks of orange hair and was staring at her in the same way he had a few days before.

He was the guy who was protesting against her when she had that Wartortle-Golem battle.

Coincidentally, he was ranked fifth on the ranking list, but he didn't show any extremely special traits.

Even in battles, he defeated his opponents only after a long time of struggling, and no where near as stunning as a Pokémon trained by a potent trainer.

Ash automatically filtered him out as one of the people who were ranked due to exaggeration and switched his attention to some others during the week.

Domino and the orange-streaked traded glares.

The blonde girl sneered and levitated himself gracefully into the air, onto the field and into the trainer's box, leaving a trail of rainbow in her path.

The teen grinned. He snapped his fingers and disappeared, reappearing again within the box.

Ash did a double take. Wow, another psychic?

The idea was immediately refuted by Domino.

"That was definitely not psychic. I would've detected residue waves if it was."

Ash closed his eyes in Aura Sight, and the boy's body had a normal Aura.

Now, if it was a different Aura, even by a slight bit, Ash would've been satisfied.

However, there was NO difference, which pushed his suspicion even further.

That couldn't be possible… could it?

He sat down warily and turned Aura Sight onto full juice.

* * *

"This is a battle between Nathan of Viridian and Domino of Viridian!" The referee said.

A few snickers came from the crowd. The man continued. "It is the last preliminary battle, and the winner will proceed to the next part of the Indigo Conference!"

"And now, without further ado, I bring you this 3v3 Rock Field battle!"

"Begin!"

As he swiped down the flag, both Pokéballs were chucked into the field.

Out of Domino's dropped out Exeggutor in his Kanto form.

Across from him, a wave of blue materialized into Lapras. As she formed, a wave of ice condensed below her, turning the rocks around her frozen solid, which then extended toward him.

Exeggutor planted his roots down into the ground. Wooden spikes zapped out of the ground, penetrating the incoming ice while creating a barrier between the two.

Lapras couldn't be stopped that easily. She used Avalanche, producing an effect near the ability of an Earthquake, wiping out the extended wooden tips.

She then slid toward him at a rapid place, ice continuing to form below her.

Exeggutor broke into twelve Double Teams surrounding the Transport Pokémon.

Lapras fired out Blizzard, the wavering snow sweeping across the field, but leaving three unbroken.

All three charged at her. She ran at one and fired an Ice Beam, which connected solid, knocking him on the floor.

She smirked and followed with Body Slam.

The attack connected, with Lapras now on top of Exeggutor.

However, Lapras found herself trapped in his roots that he had extended and tied her to him.

Why was he doing that? She was confused.

So what if you tied me up? I could still pummel you repeatedly from close distance.

Then, she felt a powerful wind behind her.

A Solarbeam and Ancientpower crashed against her, cutting deeply despite the shell.

She screamed and looked back in disbelief. The other two Exeggutors stood there, unpopped and each glowing with energy.

Lapras looked down to the Pokémon trapping her and pressed.

Also solid…

Three?

She didn't have time to think it through though. Whatever the heck was going on, she needed to get out of fast.

The two behind her was charging up two more type-effective attacks.

Water Pulse!

A torrent of water exploded between the Transport Pokémon and Exeggutor, blasting her out of his grip and sliding off into the distance.

The other two's attacks still glanced her, leaving two more deep marks on her shell.

Nathan stood up from the trainer box and shouted. "TIME OUT!"

* * *

"That was three Pokémon!" He stated, adrenaline pumping.

"No, it wasn't." Domino countered. She snapped, and all three Exeggutor combined to form one.

She had figured out this trick during the four months. If she separated his heads, then he could maintain three Double Teams solid.

This special form of his, Exeggutor decided to call Polar Bodies. They could act just like Exeggutor could, but with one third of the energy, which was still a lot an attack from all directions.

They looked to the referee in unison. He looked at the blonde. "Did you throw out one, and only one, Pokéball?"  
"Yes." Domino nodded confidently.

"Did that Exeggutor just summon another Pokémon from your team?"

"No, he had not."

"Okay, then it is in League rules." The referee put down the competition manuel.

Domino smirked at her opponent in triumph.

Nathan narrowed his eyes. "You want to play it this way, huh…"

"What are you going to do about it!?" Domino challenged.

* * *

"Lapras! Crossing Over!" He shouted.

In the field, the Pokémon zoomed back into action.

Lapras, who had pulled out of the Exeggutor gang, pulsed out six Ice Beams vertically at the Grass Type.

Exeggutor flashed, and he turned into Alolan Form. A giant shield of purple Dragon Energy materialized in front of him, expecting to block off the attacks.

"Switch!"

Upon the command, the Ice Beams on top and bottom disappeared. The center Ice Beam hit the shield, cracking it.

Domino's jaw dropped at what happened next.

Following the Ice Beam was another Ice Beam, one that wasn't there before!

The second beam made the hole bigger, and another followed, and another!

The third penetrated the construct.

The last three went through the hole exactly and blasted Exeggutor back heavily.

Domino winced. Getting struck by three Ice Beam in Alolan Form was not a good choice.

She could see ice forming on the tips of Exeggutor's leaves, and their eyes seemed more droopy.

"How!?"

"I'm an illusionist." Nathan smiled. "I perform illusions for a living… that's how I fund my journeys!"

Domino sucked in a breath. Illusions…

Illusions originated from psychic. It was over three thousand years ago when it started, promoted by the first illusionist to global frame.

He was not a psychic, but he observed other psychics and tried to identify ways to trick the mind.

The acts and tricks were perfected by upcoming illusionists over the centuries by observing ways to counter the brain.

If Ninja was the way to conceal from Aura, illusionists are the opposites of Psychics.

However, they typically did not use their skills in battle. They were just magicians, performing largely popular shows.

However, around the last thousand years, illusionists began to disappear as more people became educated, rendering them harder to fool.

The ancient tricks could be searched up easily, making the show harder and harder. Illusionists now have to create original acts that not only required different and more difficult methods, but also extremely deviated acts.

But just two hundred years ago, a man decided to incorporate Pokémon into the performance of the illusions, and that became a boom in the industry.

His popularity swept across the entire globe, just like three thousand years ago. Along with the first performer, they were named the Fathers of Magic.

That, was also Nathan's great-grandfather.

This was one of his basic tricks in the family book. The movement of placementof beam attacks.

Lapras turned into four different Lapras and zoomed at Exeggutor at the same time. The Psychic type couldn't identify which one was real. Everyone seemed exactly the same even in a psychic eye.

He blasted out a Leaf Storm in hopes of popping the fake.

Though the storm, the four Ice Type still continued. Domino's eyes squinted.

"Draco Meteor!"

A torrent of Dragon rocks crashed down toward Lapras.

All of them were hit and popped. Behind Exeggutor, Lapras merged out from nowhere and slashed a Ice Blade down his trunk.

Dragon Rage!

The energy waved out… popping Lapras's form… but the gash still remained deep.

A sharp inhale of breath was heard uniformly.

Exeggutor turned back to psychic and sprayed a wave of energy in all directions, and he saw the entire arena covered in a Ice Typing energy, with dozens and dozens of Lapras.

He opened his eyes. There was no one in front of him.

Then, a Frost Breath appeared in midair and struck his hurried Light Screen, shattering it.

A second Bulldoze appeared from below him, striking him in the knee, making him kneel.

The Coconut Pokémon roared and punched the ground. An Earthquake formed, and nothing occurred.

Domino exhaled out a long breath.

This was interesting. She doubted, as smart as she was, she could decipher all of the illusions that were designed to trick the mind that had been passed down through generations from a master illustionist.

But she knew one thing about illusions: It was all about the mind.

Scenes flashed across her brain. A dark room within an ominous tomb popped into her mind. A long hallway. A list of solutions on the ground.

The group had believed that the hallway was messing with their minds, and they…

"Bullet Seed!" She yelled.

The Coconut Pokémon complied and sent out a torrent of Seeds in all direction.

Nothing.

Domino smiled. She didn't expect the seeds to hit anything. It may seemed impossible to dodge, but to a well-trained Pokémon, even of large size, it was easy.

However… what was hard was to make sure the seeds on the ground won't be trampled.

Hard, not impossible. She observed that there weren't any prints on the ground.

What was impossible, though…

Exeggutor opened his arms, and its trunk dissipated.

The three heads dropped onto the ground and broke apart into thirty six eggs in the form of Exeggcute.

The thirty six eggs lined the Field into six hexagons that formed one giant hexagon.

The eggs shot up a beam of light into the air, forming a… giant egg.

The huge egg was unmoving, but a powerful radiation shone from it.

It was nearly impossible to hit all thirty six at the same time, no matter how much illusion she was putting on.

A puff of ice from nowhere stabbed into an egg, shattering it. The hexagon spun, and the egg at the top released a pink beam that shone onto the missing spot, replenishing the one.

Stalemate.

* * *

 **Commercial Break**

 **Hey guys! I've mentioned this previously. I'm currently looking for a platform to post online fiction that is non-related to any fandom.**

 **I hope there could be some suggestions for me! Websites that people actually read, not dead ones like Wattpad.**

 **If you can give me ANY suggestions, that would be the best gift you can give me for my birthday, which is coming up in one of the upcoming 364 days.**

* * *

Nathan peered at the giant egg on top. The thing begged to be smashed.

He knew what his opponent was doing. She was luring him to hit the giant egg.

Should he hit the egg?

No! It was a trick!

… But what if it's reverse psychology?

There must be another way!

Blizzard!

A wave of ice storm swept through the arena. The giant egg twirled with a soft flash. Defog cleared the entire field.

Nope, that didn't work!

Nathan knew exactly where his Pokémon was, but she didn't, obviously. The game was in his favor if he remains a clear head… wasn't it?

Now, first thing first!

He needed to stop the regeneration.

A Hydro Pump flushed out of nowhere, washing through the arena. Half of the eggs were destroyed. The rest started rotating, and they were regenerated instantaneously.

Nathan's eyes crossed. He noticed the rotation. That meant… if he wanted to defeat everything, Lapras would need to destroy the hexagon making the giant egg that healed… so she needed to extinguish all thirty six eggs at the same time, so they can't rotate anymore.

They were spread out so well through the arena, there weren't any good ways to do that unless he was at the same plane as all of them and swiped an attack through the plane.

That won't work! They were all levitated to different heights. She couldn't strike everything unless she flooded the entire arena.

Which was EXACTLY what he was going to do!

Out of the ground bursted torrents of water, and more water dropped from the top of the arena, washing over the giant egg.

The field was instantly filled up to the height of the last egg and froze solid.

A figure dropped from the top of the arena onto the ice.

Ice Break!

The entire field shook, and the ice dissipated, leaving thirty-six eggs lying on the ground, cracked and unconscious.

Domino started clapping. "Memorable! What a memorable show!"

Nathan's eyes narrowed. A terrible feeling started to bubble. "You just lost the first battle."

"No, because _you_ did."

Domino waved her hand. The thirty-six Exeggcute disappeared in a flash of pink.

The egg above Lapras began to break.

Nathan's eyes bulged. "Quick! Attack the egg! It wasn't a trick."

Lapras splashed out an Ice Shard, shattering the giant egg, revealing… a Lapras?

Lapras launched herself forward and struck a Freeze Ray down the center of the fake clone… and the attack went clean through.

Domino took her cup of ice coffee and sipped calmly. "The egg isn't the issue."

"The issue is that you, master illusionist, have been fooled!"

The entire Rock Field began to dissipate. Nathan's eyes misted up. When he blinked away, another Rock Field showed.

Jaws dropped.

This Rock Field had seeds shining pink all over the ground. In the middle, an Alolan Exeggutor clutched Lapras by the throat.

The Transport Pokémon was completely out.

* * *

"Was that all… an illusion!?" Nathan gasped.

"Yes, and no." A gallon of smugness poured out. "That was psychic."

"It can't be! Lapras could identify all illusions! Especially your field illusion. You couldn't trick her, especially with her being a master in illusion AND being in the field."

"If you're this good, you would've found her hiding place instantly!"

"I'm not this good, but I do know one thing: Your Lapras is following your orders."

"So if I want to trick Lapras, I have to trick you."

"You can't!" Nathan exclaimed. "I'm a better illusionist THAN Lapras! I TAUGHT her the tricks!"

"But the important part is," Domino pointed out. "She's in the field. You're not."

The fog in Nathan's mind clearly dramatically, and his mouth opened in realization.

"Okay, so you played a visual prank on me." He deadpanned.

"Yep. You're not in the field, so I just have to change the field."

"How though? You didn't use any illusion methods!"

"Of course not! Then you would've figure it out." The blonde stated. "Therefore, I used psychic."

"The Bullet Seed I used at the beginning wasn't with regular seeds, but psychic covered seeds. Lapras would've known and told you if she touched even _one_."

"However, I knew you would make her dodge, since you probably thought I was going to use a Seed Storm to detect her."

"When the seeds fell onto the ground, they formed the pattern of Psychic Terrain, but it wasn't just that."

"Recently, I had a friend who just taught me about a very special ability a Pokémon could have, called a field. A Pokémon could form a field around them that they control totally. Even though Exeggutor was nowhere near as strong to use that, he could use his powers to create something that imitated the field using certain methods that my friend had told me."

"Instead of manipulating reality, all he had to do is manipulate your brain."

"That was what Psychic Terrain turned into. The field was still the same, but the seeds provided a 2-dimensional psychic covering that was made of brain waves that joined together to form the illusion of another 2-dimensional Rock Field right on top of the original."

"Now, Lapras was still not tricked, because, wherever she was hiding, she still had some form of contact with the actual Rock Field, either under the ground, or even floating in air. Maybe not physical touch, but mental link by sight. As long as she wasn't directly in contact with my covering, she would still see it as just a carpet of seeds."

"However, you, Nathan of Viridian, don't have any clue that it wasn't the Rock Field anymore. Since you're not psychic, and you were staring from your box INTO the field, you don't have any points of reference that tells you it wasn't the field, besides the ground."

"But it wasn't the ground anymore. It was my psychic carpet. That means that you, from the moment you started paying attention based on the ground unconsciously, your brain waves was caught into the seeds."

"From that point on, all that YOU saw was an illusion, formed by manipulating your brain waves. So from Exeggutor turning into eggs all the way to the end before the real Field came back, you were staring at a 2-D apparition."

"So I was fooled." Nathan took a breath. Domino smirked and nodded.

"I think I get the rest." Nathan continued the explanation for her. "Lapras was still not fooled. However, when I communicated to her about the eggs, her attention diverted for a second, putting her point of reference on me."

"That caused her to turn back to an illusion of the psychic carpet, and then she started seeing the Exeggutor breaking down into Exeggcute. If she ignored it, she would've been fine. Even if she was seeing it, if she didn't do anything, the illusion will break after the small span of distraction from looking at me."

"But, I was the one who told her to pay attention to your Pokémon, which made her cast more brain waves into the psychic field, pulling her further and further into the illusion."

"I'm actually quite impressed that you could catch that half a second of lack of attention. Normal trainers, even if they're insanely observant, couldn't do that without training."

Domino smirked. "I've had that training before."  
"I can tell."

"It probably didn't matter that Lapras broke the eggs. It was just that she was paying enough attention to have her brain waves sucked all the way in to be completely immersed."

"Then, your Pokémon probably took full control of her brain to span some crazy things in there."

"By then, Lapras had either broken her illusion, or that Exeggutor had enough of her sample waves to locate her body."

"While she was still trapped in that 'field' of yours, he finished her off."

Nathan stared Domino in the eye. "Am I right?"

"Yep!" The psychic smiled. "That's exactly right, Master Illusionist."

* * *

Below the stage, Ash rubbed his head.

He could barely follow the conversation past the fake substitute of psychic Domain, let along creating such a detailed plot like this.

His specialty was creating favorite environments with moves… NOT mind games.

Ash could've defeated Nathan using other methods, but Domino's…

No thanks!

Even he was trapped in that psychic field for a brief few seconds from watching from outside, before he awoke from a flash of white light that leaked from the memory seal.

* * *

"Do you want me to continue?" Nathan asked, dejected.

"I don't know. Do you dare?" Domino asked, smirking.

The Master Illusionist closed his eyes. "There are more traps, aren't there?"

"Very smart." Domino waved her hand, and the current Rock Field disappeared. Another one appeared, with rocks sticking out the bottom into pillars.

"This isn't it either." He deadpanned.

Domino snapped. Another Field switched in, this one with an intricate design of mountains and valleys.

"How many more layers?" He sighed, tired.

"Enough." The reply was short and clear. "Have you made up your decision now?"

"There's no way my Pokémon or I can get out of this 'field,' is there?"

"Of course there is!" Domino smirked. "It's only whether if you can figure it out."

Nathan bit his lip. Ten seconds later, he slammed down his Pokéball.

"I can't! I concede."

* * *

The crowd burst out in an explosion of confused cries.

Misty pulled Ash's sleeve. "Do you understand what they were saying? They were talking in code!"

Ash fell into a short silence before he began. "I got a little bit of what they said."

"In simple terms, the main conflict of the battle began when Lapras began her illusions. Exeggutor couldn't find her, so he needed to trick her out."

"Now… he casted a psychic spell over the entire field, which tricked the eyes of the trainer."

"Nathan ordered his Pokémon to attack things that are illusion, which got Lapras trapped in the illusion as well through some psychic technique that I don't quite understand."

"Then, eventually, Exeggutor punched Lapras's lights out because she wasn't able to hide anymore, since she was in HIS illusion."

"Domino actually casted multiple layers of illusions on the Rock Field. No one besides her knows exactly how many layers… kind of like Russin Matryoshka stacking doll."

"Therefore, no Pokémon of Nathan's could stand on the field without being pulled into the illusion, which would eventually lead to unconsciousness anyways."

"I guess Nathan couldn't think of a counter to that. Plus, he didn't want his Pokémon to get hurt for no reason, so he conceded the battle."

"That's the extremely non-specific terms of the battle." Ash paused. "At least what I got out of it."

Brock and Misty's jaws dropped open.

"How are you going to beat her when YOU face her?"

Ash sighed. "I have no freaking clue."

* * *

A hot pinkness flashed into the Bubble Realm.

Arceus took a look at her. " _Done?_ "

"Yep!" The pinkness chirped.

" _Good!_ "

" _In that case, welcome back…_ "

The charming pinkness began to condense, and condense more, into the form of a light pink plate.

Arceus stuck his hoof out.

The plate drifted over.

Behind the God of All, seventeen Plates floated.

As the eighteenth Plate joined the collection, a powerful glow flashed over the Hall of Origins.

Dialga, Palkia, Giratina, and Sir Aaron zapped behind the Alpha instantaneously.

They found Arceus staring off past the Continuum, into the Abyss.

His backside seemed so strong and determined. A light of glory and power shone off of him, lighting up the Bubble.

Time, Space, Life, Charm, and dozens of Concepts spun around him.

" _We're ready._ "

* * *

 **A/N: Battles would become more and more unconventional. Be prepare for some wild rides.**


	64. Cha 63: Kanto 53

**Cha. 63**

 **A/N: Day-off.**

* * *

In the darkness, there was nearly nothing.

Small dusty rocks and ice clumps were the bare minimum, soaring across large gaps to their unknown destiny.

If a pair of eyes would've peered in any direction, they would see bright, glowing clumps that is surrounded with spheres that circled them in a elliptical motion.

Beside one of the giant clumps, a flat, bottle-shaped disk appeared from the void.

The giant ball released a burst of heated flames that opened like a mouth, attempting to swallow the disk.

A gray light lit up on the disk, a luminous glow that could trap the spirit of anyone staring into it.

The flames washed against the disk. When it died down, the glow faded as well, leaving the disk untouched.

The top of the bottle opened, and two figures stepped onto the platform that extended out like a balcony.

Both were clouded in fog, a dark mist that contrasted sharply against the stars in the background.

It was so dark even the rays couldn't penetrate, like a marsh that devours all living that dared to enter.

The only exterior distinction between the two was their obscene difference in their physique.

The one to the left was both round and short, making him look like a giant beach ball that had rolled through mud. The one to the right was slender and tall, like a chopstick covered in slime.

"So this is Solar Flares?" The Ball spoke.

"Indeed." Stick answered. "We're next to the Central Sun right now. The Central Planet is right there!"

"Good. That journey, even through folded space, was too long."

"Yeah, long enough for me to stabilize my Domain."

"Well, let's just set up the colony right here, and we will obtain some souls for us. Maybe a few treasures."

"Stop thinking about treasures!" The Stick slapped the Ball on the back of the head. "Think about all of the dangers that it contains!"

The chubby figure sighed. "I know. I memerised the manuel just like you."

"Well then! You know the mission! Get two Concepts, become pre-Cosmic and get our asses out of this Hell!"

The Stick hummed. "We're lucky enough if we can get out alive with two strands. The obvious treasures have already been dug out by the challengers before us."

The disk suddened glowed luminous. The Ball whitened and bounced up. "Crap, did we trigger the field?"

"STOP all mission!" Stick yelled into the disk. It paled and merged into space.

The world disappeared in front of their eyes, and they both wiped off some sweat from their brow.

"That was close…"

"Here's the plan! We're going to revolve around this Central Sun for a while, then we're going to go down in a few days. Need to make sure it's not following us."

"Now! Do you still want to go for treasures!?"

"Nah… let's just make sure we live…"

"Then let's go for the safest route on the map… it's called… Arancia Islands?"

"What's the concepts there?"

"Resilience and Energy."

"So we're obviously going for Energy?"

"Of course we _WANT_ to get the Top Concept, but we're probably not going to get it."

"Well, let's just get it and get out. I'm actually regretting having to complete so many tasks to come here…"

The Stick slapped the Ball again. "Shut up! You only completed two thousand and five hundred fifty. I had to do all three thousand to get enough points."

"We're here, and that's final! If we want to break into Cosmics, determination is key! There's no backing out now! Fear will just make you die faster!"

"I don't know about you, but I just want to get my Concept and go back and marry my Teacher."

The ship shook again, even in the void they felt the impact. "We're clear."

"Then let's go. We need to get the Concepts before they arrive after us."

"Especially Walter. He'll probably rob the entire land of Concepts."

* * *

"Can't wait for Leagues tomorrow." Ash lied on the couch comfortably, playing with Dexter's interface.

"Mmhmm…" Domino sat on Ash's bed, in her hands twirling a rubix cube. "I can't break my record of eight seconds!"

"Keep trying. You're three seconds of the world record." He mumbled.

"Screw this!" The cube disappeared in her hands, and a book substituted the object. "It's really no fun just sitting in one place."

"Well, the League _**apparently**_ has a day of free time between the preliminaries and part two of the battles." Ash shrugged. "The pause really isn't necessary."

"Yeah, it's really boring just sitting around…"

* * *

The Pallet amusement park was closed by the Giants because they were at Indigo Plateau, which led the Pallet Mayor complaining to Professor Oak about losing thousands and thousands of revenue by day.

Oak just shrugged and replied with three words. "Suck it up."

'Professor Oak' watched him leave, before returning to the park and casting a giant psychic illusional shield over it.

Then, she shifted back into Celebi form. "Come out, you guys!"

A gap sliced through the space on top of the park, and Reshiram, Darkrai, Xerneas, Suicune, Regigigas… poured out.

Along with dozens more legendaries.

" _Party time!_ "

* * *

"It's so nice to be actually in charge." A figure in yellow sighed and collapsed against Giovanni's office chair. "Boss haven't left this place for so long…"  
" _Actually, I wonder why he left for this League in particular…_ " A psychic voice popped out next to him.

The figure in the Head Chair jumped. He turned around angrily to a materializing Deoxys in Defense Form.

"What did I tell you about surprising me like that!?"

" _Calm your nuts. I'm the only one who could scare you, so I'm taking full previlege of that. Seriously, you're so hard to scare._ "

"Damn right I am." The figure smirked proudly. "Even Yveltal didn't scare me when you trap us in the cave together."

" _Hmmm, next time I should give Yveltal some LSD to mess with his brain more then…_ "  
"DON'T YOU DARE!"

* * *

"Well… damn." Lance sighed and threw down his documents. "That's enough Arceus damned paperwork."

Lorelei poked her head over. "Which folder?"

"Bring me the Unexplained Incidents folder!"

"Really?" The Ice Elite tilted her head. "For a terrorist act?"

"Yep! It's freaking unexplained." The Champion growled. "We even brought over Old Man to search the scene. There's nothing. No psychic waves, no energy residue, nothing."

"We're dealing with a hallucinating kid right here."

"Then how are you going to explain away the cut?" Lorelei asked.

"Well, the idiot thought he dreamt something and tried to fight back with a knife, which he sliced himself with and knocked over the clock."

Lorelei looked at her Champion worriedly. "Is something wrong? You're usually not this jumpy."

"Things have come up." He said quietly. "Things."

* * *

" _They're here._ " Arceus retracted his gaze.

" _Why?_ " Giratina tilted his head. " _Why would anyone come here?_ "

" _Because they've used up all of their chances, so they're trying to come to the center to be closer to it._ "

"What are we going to do?"

" _Don't worry. We're going to lure them in. It's not everyday you get to replenish with Formation._ "

" _We'll let them build up a little bit, and let's wait until right before Cyrus starts._ "

* * *

Jigglypuff and giant Jigglypuff stared at the legendaries playing in the water park.

They smirked deviously to each other and started singing.

Celebi froze in midair and dropped like a stone into the water, followed by Articuno, Lugia, Zekrom, …

* * *

Domino poked Ash in the arm. "Ummm…"

"What?" He looked up groggily at her from his nap. "Hmmm?"

"I think… well, yeah." She held up a book.

Ash looked down.

 **Pokemon Types:**

 **There are eighteen different types of Pokemon in the world: Fire, Water, Ice, …, Fairy.**

 **Their abilities differ dramatically from…**

Ash puckered his lips.

"Shit!"

* * *

"Okay, stop pulling me."

Ghastly stopped.

A growing light shone around the Ghost of Maiden's peak.

"They're back."

* * *

 **A/N: Day-off from Leagues, Day off for me, day off for everyone!**


	65. Cha 64: Kanto 54

**Cha. 64**

 **A/N:I shall declare, as the Commander of Sign of Times, that Part II of the Indigo League shall begin TAW-DAY!**

* * *

Flames roared across the top of the Grand Stadium, as all two hundred fifty six pryo-sprinklers sprayed the burning splendor over the top of the construction.

Dozens after dozens of fireworks penetrated the large, opened trapdoor at the center of the Stadium and skyrocketed through the fountain of fire, before bursting into a mix of crimson, azure, and viridescent magnificence.

They were like the blooming of a rare rose that opened every century, captivating the minds and hearts of the audience below, who waited in an impatient trance for the befalling of the beauty's next flare.

Loud roars and shouts of anticipation and excitement filled the arena between the implosion of vivid brilliance, while matching the sound of the combustion as the vibrance of the lights carved deeply, forming a trace into their hearts that would be carried into their souls.

An intake of the rugged fumes of the fireworks reminded them of the ways of the burly past, carrying a scent of prehistoric roughness, while creating a soothing feeling that spoke to them, that this is just the right place to be.

So they screamed passionately to that, into the Arena that bored the customs of Pokémon fights, a demonstration of the true majesty of power, of intellect, and of elegance.

"And here, ladies and gentlemen, gathered the sixteen most elite trainers of this year!" Mr. Goodshow gripped his microphone tightly, voice high and carrying a wave of zeal.

Even though he had been chairing the League for countless rotations, the enthusiasm inspired by the beginning of the pre-finals had only displaced him more and more into addiction, and not indifference.

Growing old of the League Conference was impossible, just like humanity's desire for strength, for independence, and for love was impossible to conceal.

"And for the first battle in the pre-finals, we welcome to the stage two of our own Kanto Trainers, both of them from the mysterious Town of Pallet!"

Pallet Town was a place of enigma in the eyes of the Kanto citizens. Most of the time, it was stagnant and was just a regular gathering, just like other towns, like O-Hina or Neon.

However, it had never stopped to produce some sort of legend every so long of a period of time.

From the orphanage that sheltered the First Emperor, to the first settlement of the Aura Knight, the town was a veiled vase containing ravines of secrets.

It was the home to the Hero of the Tidal Wave from a hundred years ago, and the current Professor Oak, who was the latest miracle that walked out of Pallet and shook the world by force.

Ash threw his head up. He was sitting in a special waiting room that connected directly to the east of the stadium. He didn't know when he would be called.

Seven other trainers sat with him. Unfortunately, Domino wasn't one of them, nor Gary. Ritchie, his analogous twin, was sitting on a couch to his opposite left, twisting his hands together. Ash didn't bother going to mingle with him.

Though it wasn't shame from last timeline, he felt a bit of unfounded awkwardness that made him just wanted to be pinned to his own seat.

There wasn't any conversation in general. When there was, the exchange ended quickly. Instead of sound, the rich smell of coffee filled the room. The trainers spread out across the massive and extravagant room, which was the size of a normal house.

Couches and TVs laid everywhere, with fridges and even a hot tub.

However, no one was relaxed enough to stick themselves in to enjoy the twirling water, its bubbling being the only sound that broke the carpet of silence.

They were too busy twerking their hands, or twisting and turning in their seats, or repeating the actions of getting up and sitting down. Even Ash was feeling necessary to rearrange his hair, which only made the untamed fashion devolve into a birdnest.

He stood up abruptly, feeling a rush of blood to his head, which he pressed down forcibly with Aura. Seven pair of eyes drilled holes in him.

Ash turned around with an indifferent face, covering up for the increasingly beating heart and the internal struggle which made him feel as though he was a piece of iron being pulled apart by two monster magnets.

Gary? He didn't thought the two would meet up this quickly.

His pace quickened as he walked, unconsciously even infusing a strand of Aura. His boots, slightly worn by the foliage on his journey, took him to the east Trainer's Box.

He peered out at the opposite end. Somehow, his opponent had gotten out even faster than he.

He felt a sharp breath catching in his throat as he stared at a familiar, yet distant figure who did NOT take the form of Gary Oak.

Then, the sunlight pouring in began to register with his eyes, blinding him for just a second. The crowd's roaring deafened his ears.

He didn't have stage fright, so the quaking feeling within was not of fear. It was a blend of nervousness, anticipation, welcoming, and addiction.

"Hey, Leaf!" He yelled loudly. His Aura helped carry his voice in a linear stream toward the other trainer without having to overpower the entire stadium.

His fellow Pallet Trainer heard his cry, evidently, and replied by excitingly waving her arms in the air.

With Aura, Ash could faintly hear her words. "Hiii! Long time, Ash! I can't believe we're all in the final sixteen! Gary's here too!"

Ash smirked. All three Pallet Trainers. All finals at the Indigo League. It was the little changes to this timeline, even without his doing, that warmed his heart.

Leaf was one of his greatest friends back in his group in school. However, as they graduated and each embarked on their own adventure, they separated, just like how a river randomly flowed the dropped leaves each to their own destination.

Ash hadn't see her for eight years, until this timeline… so in total, he hadn't seen her sparkling face for nine years. Hadn't seen her delicately putting her hair behind her ears. Hadn't heard her soft, honey voice yell out his voice in too, too long.

He smiled. She better give him a good run. He was aching to stretch himself, and, of course, his Pokémon.

The roaring of the crowd thundered on. One conversation began when another ended, just like the cycling waves of the Pallet Sea, striking against Goodshow's dedication to start.

Finally, with Goodshow's hundredth or so attempt for silence, the audience settled down.

Filled to the brim with excitement, the old President blasted into the device in his hand.

"To the right of me is Leaf Greene of Pallet Town! A dedicated trainer, she had gathered _all_ sixteen Kanto Badges, eight from the North, eight from Central!"

The crowd went back to roaring as Goodshow took a breath.

The old man quickly turned up the amplifier even more and continued before the noise level could be exponentiated. "To the left is Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town! He is even recognized by Lance himself to be an outstanding trainer!"

The mention of the name of the Kanto Champion casted excited chills down the audience's backs, stacking up to the level of even anguish. The roaring got even louder, if it was possible. Seats shook, either from the stomping, the cheers, or the madness of their emotions.

"I have no doubt that these two from the great Town of Pallet will give us an amazing opening for the second part of Leagues, and a memorable battle that will be inscribed onto this battlefield."

"With that." Goodshow take a deep breath. The crowd miraculously silenced themselves in anticipation and suspense. "I declare the first battle of League pre-Finals to BEGIN!"

* * *

Ash grinned furiously at Leaf, who returned the expression.

Raising his hand, a Pokéball flew to the sky, and Pidgeot soared high into the air and kept going until she was at the clouds within a second, and she swept her tail cleanly through the vapor, dispersing the rest of the mist with a graceful ease.

A gasp of marvel echoed from the audience at her energy and velocity. Leaf's eyes flashed at the first demonstration of power. Her lips twerked up into a smile, a welcoming gesture of a challenge.

Her voice was still represented by a mushy tone, but from within the cushion spun a jest of determination and aggression that paralleled Ash's.

"Fearow!"

Ash identified a familiar aura dash up, creating another column of Tailwind following his bird's. This was the Sparrow he tried to capture from the last timeline.

I guess since I didn't go that route this time, someone else fell in my spot. Ash mused, smirking. But only with her, she succeeded.

High in the air, Pidgeot already started her storm of potency. Seeing the soaring Fearow coming at her, she flapped her wings forcefully.

" _Depressurize!_ "

The air was completely removed from around Fearow. It didn't seem any different for anyone else spectating, but for Fearow, it was devastating.

By removing the air, he had nothing to support himself. Just like a bird couldn't fly in space, Fearow felt his ascent decreasing in speed. He knew if he didn't do anything quickly, he would drop like a rock all the way back down the thousand feet.

Pursuit!

He was in range of Pidgeot for the Dark Type energy to dart out and attach onto her, dragging her down with him.

Pidgeot letted out a surprised squawk. She didn't expect a flying opponent who could find a counter to the move. This one was quite imperfected, but enough to take her down as well.

She could cancel the anti-pressure field, but what was the fun in that?  
" _If there's no air, I will grab MY OWN!_ "

Her wings were coated in a magenta energy that expanded out into the distance, past her own airless area. In half a second, her wingspan had increased to over ten times the normal length. Over half of it was outside of the zone.

She easily stabilized herself, even with a Fearow hanging on a Dark chain off her. Fearow jolted unexpectedly to a stop, and he felt himself being twirled into a centripetal motion.

Just as he realized what was happening, he already reached a great speed from Pidgeot spinning him in a circle, and she sliced off the Pursuit chain clean off with an Air Cutter.

Fearow felt himself being thrown violently against the wind soaring by his ear. He tried to open his wings to stabilize, but the cracking of his anatomy and the sharp pain told him that if he pressed through, something WOULD break.

A Whirlwind formed around him. It wasn't Pidgeot's doing, but his own. The untraditional usage spontaneously pulled him away from the immobilizing speed his opponent had threw him in.

Now circling in his own wind, he just needed to get out.

However, before he could even start his next move, a Twister dropped on his Whirlwind.

Only one difference: Pidgeot's was backwards.

Her wind overpowered his after a short few moments of struggle, and Fearow was clipped sharply by the Flying Energy before he escaped with ruffled feathers and a crooked flight pattern, still at a disadvantage.

Pidgeot Skydived toward him, perfectly calculating how far out the extra speed would push him outward.

Fearow used Quick Attack right as Pidgeot was in front of him, dodging out of the way in the nick of time, with barely a foot between the two great birds as Pidgeot pierced the air to Fearow's left.

Despite temporarily dodging a solid attack, the strong push of the air still sent him spinning to the side, keeping him in an unwilling, uncontrolled motion as Pidgeot ascended from below him.

On the ground, dozens of cameras operated by professional photographers pointed at the two birds, struggling to follow their movements even with frames to the milliseconds.

Leaf's brow cluttered together in one knot. Through her bond with Fearow, she could tell that he was being thrusted into a disadvantage ever since the slow start.

He was evading these attacks by a hair each time, and Leaf didn't know how long her Pokémon could maintain his luck.

She had to think of something to twist the situation around… and fast!

* * *

 **Commercial Break**

 **List your favorite legendaries… maybe they might poof out somehow.**

 **Also, Pokémon is fine too!**

* * *

"Steel Wing!"

Fearow flashed his wings into a metallic quality and slammed it down toward Pidgeot.

If this move worked, that'll stop his motion and Pidgeot's fluency, making her take time to charge her next attack, giving him room to adjust his position to bend back the disadvantage.

Pidgeot's eyes narrowed and flashed into twelve Double Teams.

Fearow's wing sliced through the image below him. Taking this precious opportunity, he immediately tried to zoom out of the hole surrounded by Pidgeots, diving down with Agility without a second thought.

He felt a Brave Bird Attack come at his back, which forced him to go faster to lose the attack.

By the time he felt the move zoom past him, he was on the far side of the arena.

"Fearow! Turn around! CAREFUL!"

His trainer's voice rang from below. Fearow warily turned around and did a double take.

He didn't bend back his disadvantage. If anything, he maximized it!

Pidgeot was floating on clouds away from him, clouds that were quickly condensing into cumulonimbus buildups with her use of Rain Dance.

Now, a giant rainstorm began to burst from within. The clouds gurgled and churned, and they swiveled in all different directions, as if charging something magnificent and deadly.

Fearow's stomach flipped, like a giant invisible hand just found his heart squeezed tightly.

She had played him faultlessly. By trapping him in the beginning in a disadvantage and having _multiple_ close runs, she was forcing him into a mindset of the need to escape. As a result, when she allowed an opening, he instinctively dived down and was chased away, giving her ample time to prepare.

It was partly his fault too. If he didn't succumb to this desire for safety or fear of the near misses, he would still be tangling with Pidgeot. Even though he would be at a disadvantage, he would still have a big chance. Afterall, she never _actually_ hit him.

However, she successfully planted a seed of terror in his heart.

When the seed sprouted, the battle was lost.

Looking at the giant cloud of destruction, his insides boiled. He knew he needed to rush back in there, but he didn't want to.

Therefore, he hesitated.

If this was a relaxed occasion, or even just a normal battle, a second of uncertainty might not be important. But, it was the Indigo League Conference, and his opponent was Ash's Pidgeot, and this was a Flying-Type Battle.

A second might as well be a minute in a Ground-Type Battle.

" _You're very lucky, Fearow._ " The cloud stopped growing, and Pidgeot flew over with it trailing behind her.

Even though she didn't appeared as though she was putting much work into her wings, her slackened glide was much faster than even her top speed when she first zoomed into the air.

In only half a second, she was hovering over Fearow, still recovering from his shock and barely started the initial motion that led to his dodging Agility.

He never had the chance to finish the move.

" _You would be the first one to ever, in every timeline_." Pidgeot choked a bit on the last part, " _To taste my first super move._ "

" _Katrina!_ "

A torrent of energy, as if boosted from another world, poured down in the form of raindrops, turbulence, immense floods, and the cries of unstoppable destruction, poured over the Beak Pokémon.

Fearow felt the raindrops act like sharp swords that pierced deep into him. The winds blew away his consciousness. The thunder rang within him, vibrating, crushing, and dissipating his soul.

He was pelted by hundreds of heavy raindrops and slammed against an invisible wall. He slid down the rest of the hundred feet, slowly levitated by the security Alakazam.

Pidgeot's rainstrom then disappeared. Even for her, it was quite tiring maintaining the move. She twirled once in the sky, and a rainbow appeared after her, a trick learned from Ho-Oh.

In calming winds and scattering sunlight, Pidgeot chirped, signaling herself as the clear winner, and Returned.

"You didn't need to use your super move against him." Ash sent a Aura message into her Pokéball curiously. "You could've just beaten him, even if it took longer."  
" _Because, I needed to test it out against an actually aggressive Pokémon before you have me face some of the even more elite top trainers, maybe even Domino._ "

Her words appeared on Dexter's interface, which was linked to each of Ash's Pokéball.

Ash nodded in approval. He didn't really care about revealing secrets. So what if something was revealed? If it was potent enough, or intricate enough, his opponents _still_ couldn't find a counter even if they studied it for days.

From the referee podium, Goodshow waved the white flag in Ash's direction. "Ash Ketchum won the first round against Leaf! Let's give it up for this great introduction!"

The crowd cheered loudly, their enthusiasm carrying from the beginning.

* * *

Ash peered over at Leaf, who was quite distraught. He sighed internally. He felt some pity for her, since he connected with her on a deeper level from being friends only a year ago in this timeline.

Plus, it was exactly how he felt last time when Ritchie came into pre-finals and destroyed his first round.

Ash smiled at her kindly, to which she smirked back and waved, rebalancing her emotions. Then she took out the second ball.

"Since Fearow lost the first battle," Her hand cracked, and the ball flew out to released Snorlax. "I'll go first."

The heavy Pokémon crashed down on the ground. The polymer bottom of the stadium dipped a little because of the weight.

Ash made a thoughtful face and chose his best counter to a heavy Pokémon.

Oh, who was he kidding! Every one of them had been trained to handle situations like this.

Muk materialized onto the field, being the next in the line of the sign-up sheet. The gooey Pokémon sent off a rotting smell so potent even Snorlax couldn't ignore it with his Oblivious ability.

During the split second he was distracted, Muk Exploded into puddles, the force sending his central orb at supersonic speed to Snorlax.

The orb carved deep into Snorlax's Thick Fat.

Even though the Sleeping Pokémon was gigantic, it didn't mean at all that his reaction time shrunk.

He Body Slammed himself down to avoid the incoming goo, which gave the orb even more time to latch on.

When it was perfectly attached, the orb let out a eerie, pulsing purple glow.

The goo on the ground squirmed, and it began to crawl toward Snorlax from all directions.

Then, despite Snorlax's struggles, they began to slide up his leg, forming chains that began to grow.

A moist and eerie feeling surged into Snorlax's brain. Even for such a slow Pokémon, he cringed at the smooshy feeling.

The heavy Pokémon's arms flailed as he tried to tear the smush off, but it just kept coming back persistently.

"Hyper Beam!" Snorlax shot a Hyper Beam toward one of the piles of goo, which splattered all over the place.

Then, in a few seconds, it wiggled back together into a pile.

"Substitute!" Snorlax's form flashed, as his original body was replaced by an orange energy.

However, before the energy could even turn into a clone, the goo on him, which had stacked up to nearly seventy percent of the mass of Muk, turned from purple to black, and the Substitute collapsed and melted into poison acid.

Both the Normal Type and his trainer had chills down their backs. If her command would've come at just a second late…

Muk, quickly composing the rest of his mass, turned toward him. " _I call this the cookie eater._ "

Snorlax didn't know what to do. He was a heavy-hitter, but at close combat. There was no way he would get close to the creepy ooze pile, but then he would be restricted to long-range.

Problem was, the only long range he was good at was Hyper Beam, and it not only had no effect, but even for a size like his, he still couldn't fire more than a dozen without recharging.

So, he tried a Hyper Beam.

Muk, looking at the incoming attack, opened his mouth wide and swallowed the Beam. Burping, he moved forward as if nothing had happened.

The crowd bursted as a wave of shock and comments swept like a wave through them.

"WHAT!? Did that Muk just eat a HYPER BEAM!?"

"This is the craziest League of my life!"

"This is only the pre-final!"

"That Muk must be his strongest Pokémon."

"I wish I have Muk!"

"With your team? You can't even defeat a Grimer."

"At least I have a girlfriend!"

"Yeah, that's because I just dumped mine!"

"More like she dumped you for peeking at her showering!"

"…"

Back in the field, even Snorlax stared, bugged-eye, at the crazy Pokémon.

A wave of poison spread from Muk, traveling like a sea of terror toward him.

"Levitate!"

Snorlax gave his trainer an exasperated look. Is she hearing herself?

"Then do that trick!"

The Sleeping Pokémon sucked in a sharp breath and his eyes shone with disbelief, and pain.

Sharp, sharp pain.

" _HELL NO!_ "

Leaf yelled. "Then Levitate!"

" _I can't! I'm nine hundred pounds._ "

"Then what do YOU suggest? You don't have the next Substitute ready for still a while."

Snorlax shook in fright and regret. His eyes grew red as his entire cornea lit up in scarlet. Through his eyes, anyone could see the glares of fire that burned into infinity, the anger roaring into his soul.

A red Aura soared out from him. Ash did a double take and closed Aura Sight. He opened his eyes and dropped his jaw at the field.

"MUK! RUN AWAY! DIG DOWN! FLY! GET INTO THE CONTINUUM! JUST CRAWL OUT OF THERE!"

"Too late." Leaf said quietly. "I'm sorry, Ash, for doing this to you."

Snorlax's stomach suddenly shrunk, and his figure began to droop down.

" _I HATE YOU, you dirty, abomnible goo!_ " His face seemed desperate, his body twisting, his voice cracking, as if he was isolated for a thousand years.

" _You!_ " His fingers shook, unable to focus correctly because of his anger. " _AAAAAAHHHHHHH!_ "

As he roared, his body began to become tighter and tighter.

" _THIS IS WHAT YOU SHALL GET BY MESSING WITH A FAT SNORLAX! AND I AM THE FATTEST OF THEM ALL!_ "

Is… is Snorlax… getting… thinner!?

" _THE POWER OF ME SHALL BE RELEASED WHEN I DECIDE TO LOSE WEIGHT!_ "

" _THE POWER OF OBESITY!_ "

In just a second, all of the fat on Snorlax's body disintegrated.

" _LET THIS BE A LESSON! YOU DON'T MESS WITH FAT Pokémon!_ "

A red gleam of sorts, ninety-nine times more powerful and uncontrolled than Fire, blasted at light speed from Snorlax's chest into Muk, completely evaporating every last drop of mass he had besides the central orb.

Then, a thin Snorlax fell onto his face… and began to cry. He was at least a fourth of his original size… and he kept bawling.

The magnitude of his tears could have people mistaking him for a tortured prisoner being executed by stuffing Beedrills down his throat…

" _MY FAT! MY PRECIOUSSS FAT!_ "

Ash's face twitched… and kept twitching.

That looked like a move HIS Pokémon would do…

A boomerang made of Aura was thrown out, which carried back the gem before Ash melt it back to energy.

He held it up against Dexter, who swallowed it with his screen.

Leaf held her head. "So… yeah…"

Snorlax kept crying and laid on the ground of the stadium.

A feeling of both humor and disturbance flooded away the disappointment at the defeat.

Leaf extracted the reduced Snorlax, leaving Ash to ponder by himself what the hell had just happened.

* * *

Mr. Goodshow coughed twice as he waved a flag in Leaf's direction. "Okay… give it up for such an… interesting battle!"

The stadium roared in cheers and laughter, and he continued. "This would be the last battle before our short break!"

"May the trainers send out their third Pokémon!"

"I'll go first." Ash flicked his Pokéball out. It flew through the air in a perfect parabolic curve, opening at the apex to show Primeape, who stomped onto the ground like a keystone that governed an environment.

Leaf contemplated her choices. Snorlax had bent back the disadvantage only slightly. He was only one hit away from passing out, while Ash's Pidgeot was still on nearly full juice.

She had to make this one good to be completely equal again.

"Gengar!"

The said Shadow Pokémon merged into the field from nowhere mysteriously. There was no Pokéball throws. He just appeared like a trickster, eyes squinting at Primeape as if planning out exactly how to haunt his next victim.

Primeape's mouth formed a satirical tilt. Type advantage?

Let's show the world how a Fighting Type can take down a Ghost Type.

Primeape burst into motion in the blink of an eye. He rushed at Gengar at the speed of sound, stirring up a sonic boom behind him toward the his purple opponent.

The faint sound of thunder and the crash of wind behind him mimicked a thunderstorm perfectly, Primeape himself being the first flash of lightning that would shake the land.

Gengar, even as a Ghost Type, was doubtful about taking the attack unscathed. He tried to merge away with an Ominous Wind, but was blasted right back into existence with the pressure of the sonic boom.

He was forced to face Primeape's Focus Punch with his own Sucker Punch.

A great force traveled through his arm and spread through his body as Primeape pumped strength into his opponent's form.

Gengar was a Pokémon of deceit, not direct combat.

The Fighting Type energy reached the limit of Gengar's endurance, and exceeded it.

No sooner said than done. Before anyone knew it, the Ghost Type exploded into puffs of purple Energy, bursted by the force of the punch after barely a second of contact.

Then, the remainder of Gengar was bricked straight on by the trailing sonic boom, splashing him across the arena against an invisible wall in a puddle of Ghost.

Leaf inhaled sharply. The general audience imploded in disbelief.

That Primeape had just broken the long-standing record of the Ghost-Fighting rule that the latter couldn't touch the former.

Even Goodshow's jaw dropped in surprise. He had never seen such a thing before…

"Destiny Bond!" Leaf shouted. "If you're going down, take him with you!"

" _TOO late!_ " The Fighting Type shouted and zapped forward, Anger Point activating on command.

Before his opponent could do anything, Primeape reached him, in less than a tenth of a second.

A aura in dark crimson zoomed out of him from his powerful muscles. It was the Fighting Type Aura, which wasn't pure Aura like Ash's, but it was exponentially more potent than just Fighting Energy in powering Fighting Type moves.

The other ability… was that it could strike Gengar, pulling him into a competition of Aura.

But, Primeape didn't pull him into an Aura competition. He simply struck his already distorted with a punch, and the pool of Fighting Energy rushed into the Ghost's remaining figure.

Purple and red flashed at the same time at the point of contact, before the purple disappeared and retracted like the beach under the threat of a tidal wave.

The sound of a loud explosion, but with no actual physical burst, sounded through the arena.

It was almost like there was a sound that was blared by the world itself under some sort of reaction, mixing the Aura of Fighting and Ghost.

Whatever the reaction was, the remaining energy tore Gengar's remaining form apart, and he floated to the ground, in eight pieces, unconscious.

His energy evaporated into the air quickly, and Leaf immediately pulled out her Pokéball and extracted him without a comment.

If the Ghost Type appeared in the world too long without his shell, he would just completely vaporize, because a Ghost could not appear in reality.

Leaf rubbed her Pokéball in sympathy and care, and she glared at Ash. "Did you have to strike that hard!? Gengar was in severe danger there. You could've killed him!"

Ash held up his hands apologetically. Even he didn't expect and finishing move. The battle, in reality, only really took ten seconds to finish.

The speed at which Primeape traveled was even faster than Pidgeot in a short interval of time, and also much faster than Gengar's reflex time. The exchange was over before Ash or Leaf could spit out even one command, even though he didn't need to anyways, and her brain wasn't processing the battle appropriately.

Result? Gengar got beaten up without even the chance to retaliate.

Goodshow held up the flag on Ash's side sharply. "And Ash Ketchum takes the third round! We shall be back right after a short fifteen minute break!"

* * *

 **A/N: Finally! The finals. I bet you guys thought I would pin Ash and Gary together Round 1. Haha, saving the Oak boy for later!**

 **And yes, Leaf. If the other two are this strong, she had to at least be able to see their backs, if she didn't catch up.**


	66. Cha 65: Kanto 55

**Cha. 65**

 **A/N:Part Dos y Final por la batalla between Ash y Leaf! Dios mio, no me gusta la mix de ingles y espanol.**

* * *

After fifteen minutes, Mr. Goodshow took to the referee stage. "And now, I declare the second part of the battle in command!"

"As a recap, Ash has one Pokémon down, and Leaf has two down from the previous three!"

"Will Ash carry his advantage through to the end, or will Leaf turn the tide!?"

"Let's find out!" Goodshow waved the two white flags down at the same time. "Let the battling commence!"

Leaf took out her next ball. "Sylveon!"

Ash groaned as he saw the choice… Arceus damn it! Of course the Fairy Type had to come in.

It was his least favorite type, mostly because it interrupted his Kalos trip and acted as a giant boulder that was flung into a tranquil lake… causing massive turbulence in his journey that messed up so much of the previous experience.

Which totally explained his second place in the region that he should have won.

Fairy Type. What was it weak to? For the first time, type advantages actually ran through Ash's brain, before he settled for a sure choice.

Poison and Steel…

Muk got knocked out, and he didn't need to use Lucario for this.

He only had one other potential choice…

"Dexter!" Ash shouted and threw his Pokédex into the stadium.

The arena gasp in amazement as the Porygon materialized on the large flat screen display as the camera zoomed in to the new species.

Goodshow took the liberty to explain the concept of Porygon, even though he was a little fuzzy himself on the new species Professor Oak just introduced four months ago.

However, the battle itself didn't not wait for him to finish. Both Pokémon dove into motion as their glances met.

Sylveon and Dexter ran toward each other, Sylveon being surprisingly faster than the Pokédex's hover.

Her attractive scarf flew in the air charmingly, and she jumped. A graceful arc of pink trailed across the arena as she descended by transforming the entire arena into her Misty Terrain that boosts Fairy moves.

Dexter spun as a white and silver energy transformed him into a Steel Type, giving him the type advantage toward Sylveon.

He then coated his surroundings in a blast of Toxic, melting away her Fairy Energy in his immediate distances.

Sylveon didn't stop there though. From the west of the Fairy terrain, a blaring, pink sun rose. It was similar to Sunny Day, but the glare seemed so much more passionate, so much more… comfortable.

Comforatble to the point of discouraging, weakening, reduction in vigilance.

Dexter was clearly affected, even as a machine. He sensatively felt his systems and programming stop operating at full rotation, being reduced constantly as long as the pink, warm sun shone on him.

"Trace!" His ability to download other Pokémon's ability activated, and in a flash, he copied over both of her Cute Charm and Pixilate.

Right after, he dove into offense by opening with a standard Tri-Attack, but his form shuffled back away from Sylveon.

The attack, which was changed into Fairy Type, was powered by Sylveon's own field, zoomed towards her. The Intertwining Pokémon blew a Draining Kiss toward it, and the lips-shaped construct merged through the Tri-Attack, swallowing it as a whole, and continued to travel toward Dexter.

The Pokédex charged toward the lips. Mostly everyone watching that tilted their heads in confusion. Why was he voluntarily jumping in front of an attack?

Dexter leapt as he approached and flipped on top of the move. Stepping on it and using it as a platform that allowed him to jump further, he propelled himself in a line, with its end target being Sylveon merely a few feet from him now.

Ash's mouth curled upwards. Porygon were such fascinating Pokémon. They were made directly by Arceus… they had to account for _something_.

Dexter himself was a projection of energy. Normal substances, like Pokémon flesh, of course, could not step on energy like so. But he was literally energy itself, so it was obvious why he could parkour over.

Sylveon didn't expect that either, and the slight hesitation allowed Dexter to travel the last short piece of distance to crash into her with Iron Head.

Sylveon didn't want to take an effective attack with force, so she tried to dodge away. The attack glanced her nevertheless.

She made a face twisted by the sharp pain. Furrowing her brow together on the cute face, her current expression was deathly attractive to all of the female trainers across the stadium and male Pokémon.

Silently, she was pulsing out a Fairy Wind around herself, making her extensions flap wildly in the air, creating a sense of both weakness and beauty, making her opponent willingly wanting to protect her. It was heartbreaking seeing her like this.

Ash wiped his forehead. He silently thanked Lizzy for coming to him, because he felt the exact same way with her, even though she wasn't even actively charming him. After the occasion, he began to think a lot about what to do in these kinds of situations.

He had a plan.

Even a machine-based Pokémon like Porygon felt a tug at his heartstrings… or database… Good thing his firewall could recognize the feeling as virus and exterminate it…

Another reason why Ash chose him.

Lucario could probably as well… he was a millennium old… could **** his even work anymore.

Within Ash's mind, a loud growl of Aura exploded. " _OF COURSE MINE WORKS!_ "

Coughing, the Ketchum boy cut off the Aura connection and paid his attention back to the field.

Dexter didn't pause for even a second after Sylveon began her attraction scheme. Swirling with a torrent of colored energy, he went in again.

Sylveon yelped and hopped away, glad that the Fairy Terrain was boosting her moves. Dexter detected that as well. Now that he had the clear advantage, he used the time to force a Rain Dance up, while vaporizing his Pixelate ability.

Sylveon tried to stop him by separating into Double Teams and coming at him from all directions with Giga Impact.

Dexter switched on his Laser Eye and saw furries of pink from everywhere. It was rare to see a Double Team who can't be seen through by his method.

In the box, Ash felt the same way. Aura Sight had already failed multiple times against Double Teams of the other trainers. He needed to find a way to improve his technique, and quickly too.

Good thing I evolved to Porygon2, Dexter mused to himself. Then, his Eye glowed with gamma rays that penetrated through the Fairy Energy easily. Seeing the real one, he danced out of the normally inaccurate move easily, while successfully delivering a dark cloud up in the air.

The cloud covered the sun completely and started downpouring. The large raindrop fell onto the Sylveon's terrain, bringing along a piece of Fairy with each drip.

In a few blinks, the rain had wiped off the entire battlefield of the easily soluble energy, and, at the same time, Sylveon's boost and her confidence.

Pelted by the rain, her coat was completely soaked, and a wave of discouragement overwhelmed her.

He was so strong, and he was immune to her most deadly weapon: her pure charm. It was an almost impossible battle.

She knew she was powerful, but that was just in relative to normal Pokémon. In the pre-Finals of League, she was only an average Pokémon. Her opponent was insanely strong even in the curve of he second part of League.

Dexter spun to face her, locking on while silently treading toward her.

She pounced backwards and dove straight for the wall.

Dexter didn't follow. Instead, he looked at her racing form and prepared a few Hyper Beams in his figure.

A hologram zoomed out from him. Since her terrain was eradicated, it was his turn to manipulate the battlefield.

Sylveon pouted as she saw him deciding not to chase after her. She was going to prepare a roll off the wall with a Dazzling Gleam as a surprise strike.

She sighed, knowing her opponent was too smart. When she turned around, her jaws dropped.

In front of her was complete darkness… well, no, it wasn't. Streams of glowing lines flew at lightspeed to elsewhere, and pure blackness swirled in other places. The background was actually dark grey, now that she focused.

Ash brought his hand down on the windowsill harshly. Ignoring the pain, he muttered to himself. "The Continuum!"

But the problem was, Ash never allowed Dexter, or any of his Pokémon, in the Continuum… besides Lizzy taking Pikachu in.

But Dexter? He wasn't out at the time he met with Lizzy, and her energy had shut off all consciousness… actually did that even work with Dexter?

Was he deceitful enough to trick a Goddess? Or was this something else?

Mentally making a note to inquire Dexter later, his brain re-focused.

Now that his mind sharpened, a bit of difference between Dexter's version and the real version came into recognition. The real one was completely dark, and the black holes moved. There were constant interaction between the lights that got sucked in and the distortion of space.

Dexter's was much simpler, or calmer… Ash didn't know if that was from a wrong interpretation, or just lack of power to replicate the details.

Nevertheless, his Field radiated with a wondrous and complicated power that surged through his figure.

Sylveon shook with a slight chill. This was not good. This was not good at all.

Dexter looked at her calmly, like a lord looking at a captured intruder to his land.

"Believe it or not, I don't agree with Pikachu on a lot of things." He sniffed and raised a wing. "However, there is one thing that we both are firm on."  
"There is no need for a super move when every move is just as superb! The concept of super moves doesn't correlate with my database!"

A rare emotion that wasn't sarcasm or criticism flowed onto his face. A tone of passion escaped his voice and surged around the Field.

The tone, as if acting as a signal for some sort of power, a wave of energy exploded out, followed by more and more waves until they distorted space enough on top of his head that a black hole formed.

Sylveon couldn't move herself, as if she was pinned against the Continuum by a magical force.

She could only watch as the hole moved toward her, slowly, but actually faster than the speed of sound.

She felt herself being pulled into darkness. Then her mind went blank. The next time she would open her eyes would be days after this battle.

Her body was spat out on the other side, but Ash, along with all of the experienced trainers watching this, knew it passed through a distance much, much longer.

Goodshow raised the flag to the east, on Ash's side. "And Ash Ketchum takes the fourth battle!"

* * *

"Salamence!" Leaf was really getting upset and panicked right now. She was down three, and Ash only one. The odds were not at all in her favor.

Ash could see the girl's desperation too. Salamence was a Pseudo. This was probably her trump card, but she released him in only the fifth battle.

She wasn't thinking quite right. Losing her tranquility in the middle of a battle was deadly, and she was showing this weakness to her opponent.

Wait! Never let down your guard! Ash cautioned himself. She might just be tricking you. Never underestimate!

Taking a deep breath to push down any miscalculation he could have taken with underrating Leaf, Ash picked out a Pokéball carefully.

"Wartortle!"

When in doubt, Pikachu. When wishing for impossibility, Lucario. When taking care of ridiculousness, Wartortle. No matter how absurd the opponent was, Wartortle could always top it.

Ash's Water Type didn't fall into the arena. Instead, a beam of energy materialized below his feet, sticking straight down into the ground so that he was standing on a giant ice pillar that soared straight into the sky.

He made a posture mimicking a kong-fu master, with one leg bent and stuck to the other that stood stabbed straight into the pillar. His right arm struck out front of him, and his left sticking right above his head.

Ash sighed, even though he was expecting this.

" _I am the animation of passion and desire, of power and dreams! I am the Leader…_ "

Before he could finish, a purple Dragon Rage came straight at the pillar and smashed it to pieces.

Ash's eyes flashed wildly, showing both fear and sympathy. No one dared to interrupt Wartortle's speech…

Not even Pikachu wanted to go down that route. Ash had once challenged him to do so, and Pikachu responded with:

" _My cheeks would hurt too much if I have to pour out enough electricity to zap out an angry Wartortle._ "

He goaded Lucario to do the same, and the Aura Pokémon simply stuck up his middle finger.

" _Don't feel like getting my Aura drained yet._ "

Wartortle yelled and turned into twelve Double Teams…

Then twenty-four, forty-eight, ninety-six…

He didn't stop until a quarter of the arena was filled was Squirtles, Wartortles, and Blastoises.

Ash sweatdropped at the excessive move. He silently counted three thousand of them, which was the max any of the deceiving experts, Zorua, Sableye…, could go to, for some reason.

Three thousand, and done.

He didn't even pause to think how ridiculous it was to have three thousand images…

Salamence watched the performance in shock as well, and he couldn't react from his shock until all three thousand were in place.

Taking a deep breath, he called down a shower of Draco Meteors.

All three thousand Turtles raised their heads and poured out some form of Water Attack, be it Water Gun, Hydro Cannon, Bubblebeam, or Brine.

Salamence blinked again. He didn't understand why they were all attacking his move. Weren't they only illusions?

The three thousand beams or bubbles struck the Dragon Energy directly, and the heat from the impulse traveled straight down to them, and they all bursted into a giant fog that instantly blinded both Salamence and the camera, clogging even the most high tech draining system in Kanto.

In fact, the fog was so great that it instantly removed all of the oxygen from the inside of the arena, pushing it up, since the water vapor was heavier than than the gas.

It was a good move that the League gave trainers their own boxes that connected to rooms with individual air-filtration processes…

Referees too. For a second, the head security Alakazam even wanted to teleport Goodshow out of there in fear of an assassination, courtesy of Lance's warnings…

The fog also created a low pressure setting outside than inside Salamence's lungs because of the density difference.

The Dragon just felt air pouring out of his chest. He brought his paws to his throat and extracted his diaphragm muscles to provide a counter-pull, which were still not enough to hold back the dear oxygen.

Within seconds, all of the breathable air was removed, and a wave of pain worse than drowning and suffocation surged up his mind, which was starting to go numb.

He saw stars and shadows, and his skin felt unsensitive and thick. A desperate sting coming from every cell of his body, as if his DNA was being ripped apart, formed a barrage of agony that crushed his mind.

Even a Pokémon as powerful as him could not resist the desire for air, and the absolute torment made him pass out only a few seconds after the Double Team bursted.

Salamence could hold his breath for a long, long time. Even normal Pokémon, like Rhydon, could hold their breath for forty-five minutes.

But no. Wartortle removed all of the existing air from his lungs and reservoir, which caused the collapse.

The fog cleared within a second of Salamence passing out. Wartortle stood triumphantly on a second ice column he built.

" _Let that be a lesson to you! Never interrupt my greatness!_ "

Every being who could understand Pokémon in the arena shook with chills… including other Pokémon.

Leaf stood up dramatically. "I don't believe this!"

Ash's eyes met hers, and her tone softened a little bit. "I don't think Ash is cheating, since he already has an advantage, but I want to see what made Salamence get defeated so quickly! I'm calling a time-out!"

The crowd cheered with her words. They didn't get to see anything either.

The entire battle was just Wartortle materializing, built an ice tower, which got smashed.

Then, a bunch of images of Turtles popped out, which then evaporated into a fog that the League cameras couldn't penetrate. Only a few seconds later, Salamence passed out.

Some of the viewers were already crying out that this was a magic show trickery or other profanity along its lines.

Only the top trainers and Elite Four frowned deeply. They knew that it was definitely possible to beat out a Pokémon this quickly, even a Salamence… but only under special conditions and perfect manipulation.

In other words, there was no way they could do it this easily.

As a result, they started humming about what they would do if they were the ones encountering the situation. Cold sweat began to drift down their backs when they discovered, well, that they couldn't, especially not in that short of a time frame.

"Time-out approved!" Goodshow announced, with his hands pushing down on the air to gesture the crowd to silence.

"We will break out some psychics to piece together the battle and upload it onto the screen." He motioned to the said device. "Since it was only fifteen seconds, it would be quick!"

Ash shrugged. His gaze met Leaf's. Her eyes were filled with astonishment, disbelief, horror, and even hurt. He sighed internally.

He felt the same way as he kept losing in the first timeline around the regions…

For the first time since he got back, he felt a little ashamed at what he was doing: Using Pokémon that had trained across a timeline to compete with normal trainers…

Pikachu felt his concern as poked his chest with his tail. " _Ash, it's not your fault._ "

Ash looked down at his starter and sighed a little. "I know, Pika."

" _Remember, we are the ones who need to save the world! And this one wasn't like the jokes last time when the deities were guiding us. This one is completely on us!_ "

Pikachu sounded in a serious tone. " _It is our destiny to be strong, because we need to stand in front of them_ …"

The mouse's eyes flowed across the crowd and back to his trainer. " _We need to stand in front of this world._ "

Ash's eyes hardened again and met Leaf's gaze with confidence. This time, she turned away.

"Thanks, Pikachu."

" _Anyday, Ash._ " Pikachu rubbed himself against the Ketchum boy. " _Just give me more ketchup tonight!_ "

* * *

"The results are out!" Mr. Goodshow turned himself toward the TV, which also simultaneously attracted the stares of the other thousands of people.

The fifteen seconds went by rapidly, showing the fog, Salamence choking and falling, and Wartortle clearing the mist in the time of a snap.

When the TV stopped, the audience looked to Squirtle in amazement and praise. The top trainers, on the other hand, gave the Water Type a look of terror and fright.

They knew exactly how hard it was to manipulate the elements this pristinely, and to be powerful enough to bring in the compatibility of a fog this severe to fill up the arena.

Goodshow swiped the flag down on Ash's side as he Returned Wartortle.

"And Ash Ketchum wins the fifth round!"

* * *

"This will be the sixth and final round!" Goodshow shouted with excitement. "Currently, Ash is ahead with five Pokémon still able, while Leaf has two."

"May the last battle be just as epic and exciting as the previous five!"

The crowd casted pitiful looks at Leaf. She bit her lip. She could hear it in Goodshow's voice. There was no way she could win…

In fact, she might even be lucky to have taken down one of his Pokémon…

She thought back to the days of school, and back to look at him. Only a year has passed, but he seemed so… different, especially the mood he was radiating off, and the glint in his eyes.

She sighed. Salamence was truly her strongest Pokémon… she had no chance for the next…

Suddenly, a voice rang in her mind.

" _Child, do you acquire assistance?_ "

She did a double take and stared at a transparent form floating above her and a few feet away. " _Don't be shocked. They can't see me… I've blocked all psychic and Aura detection for a minute, but this can't go on for too long…_ "

" _Make your decision, child. What do you want?_ "

"Wait! Your're… you're… But… but why do you… want to help ME?"

" _Because, the Voice of the Forest lies in you, Leaf._ "

"What!?" Her lips curled in both confusion and surprise. "I mean…"

" _Cool! I'll battle for you!_ " A green slurred broke out of Time, and landed.

The figure materialized in the field facing Ash, who stared slightly dumbfoundedly at the Psychic Grass-Type. "Celebi?"

In the Professor's box, Oak's eyes twitched at seeing the Time Traveler in the field. He reached into his pocket and pulled out one of the few Pokéball he carried with him.

Doubtlessly, its light was off, signaling an exit.

The Kanto Professor sighed, not understanding how a Pokémon who had seen the brightening and dimming of numerous timelines could still be as playful as a human child.

The legendary breathed in the complete silence that was followed by a collective gasp that devolved into chattering and screaming.

Goodshow and the Elites were much calmer, but they all saw the smudge of shock under each others' eyes.

" _Chosen, how nice to see you in person again! I hadn't thanked you for saving me yet!_ " She bowed slightly.

Ash rubbed his head. "That was a test, wasn't it?"

Celebi smirked. " _It's an honor fighting you, and I expect something good to come out._ "

Pikachu prepared to jump as she mentioned the word 'good,' but Ash held him back.

His eyes searched for Professor Oak's. He found the old scientists' staring at him already. In an instant, they communicated the situation to each other fully, based purely on the familiarity in each other's gazes.

A smile twerked up on Ash's lips. "Nice to see you again too, Miss Celebi!"

The Time Traveler was taken aback, then she shouted excitedly. " _You're finally getting used to this insanity and our pointless formality!_ "

"Meet Raikou!"

A Pokéball with a sticker in the shape of a lightningrod fell into the field. It was in reference to Pikachu's lightning-dotted Pokéball, which Raikou specially emphasized.

Another sharp intake of breath was heard, and ignored by the two Legends.

Their heads spun to examine the other.

Raikou broke the silence. " _How long has it been?_ "

" _A few decades? A century?_ " Celebi sighed. " _It's insane how fast time passes when you travel in it all the time._ "

The two fell in one last moment of silence, before their heads rose up in anticipation of what was about to come.

" _Counting Stars!_ " Celebi spun off in a torrent of pink and green.

At her level, there was no need for moves anymore.

Moves were just a way to manipulate energy. She had Aura, and something even greater. She could use the moves that best suited herself!

Counting Stars? Raikou looked up. The perfectly sunny sky had been replaced by a darkness that dimmed everything.

The sun was still there, but it looked like a slurred ball of red whose light penetrated slowly and difficultly.

Silver stars hung above them, each shooting down a glow of magnificence at Raikou.

Instantly, his senses revealed to him that the beam, though grand and attractive, are more dangerous than any of the attacks previously fired in the last five battles.

" _Mixture of Grass and Psychic Energy?_ " Raikou barked out. " _You're already using one of your strongest moves!?_ "

" _Of course! I can't give Ash time to figure out how to deal with me._ " The Time Traveler gave a devious smirk. " _Two thousand years ago, this tactic is called guerrilla warfare._ "

" _It still is!_ " Raikou exclaimed. " _Electrolytes!_ "

The air became still. A sudden yellow glow formed out of space as particles became negatively charged.

It didn't sound nearly as epic as Celebi's move, but what Raikou had done was charging up a column of electrons from him all the way up to the _stratosphere_.

The beam striking down pummeled into the electric field, and it was slowed dramatically. Pieces and bits broke off as it penetrated the barrier downward.

By the time the lights got to a hundred feet above the Beast's head, it had been disintegrated completely.

Raikou charged toward Celebi. A dark thundercloud formed a few feet above his head, roaring with lightning pulsing from different direction.

From within the cloud, an orb rose. It was transparent and filled with liquid.

Celebi, upon seeing the orb, flashed backwards in rare fear. " _You've liquified Thunder!?_ "

" _Indeed! Liquid Thunder is the strongest kind of lightning!_ "

Thunder took no shape, which was how it was able to zap from one place to another instantly.

However, if someone was able to restrict that power into a form as stagnant as liquid trapped in such an intolerably restrictive area, the immense power couldn't be imagined.

The orb flew slowly in the direction of Celebi.

No, that was an illusion.

The orb traveled almost instantly. It wasn't even moving. It moved through space.

One moment it was here. Next moment, it was right on top of Celebi, crashing down.

A stream of green surged from the legendary up and became a swirl of Grass.

Though, it was only Grass on first sight.

Raikou's ball tore through the floating, hollow field of grass easily, but then it fell into…

A pool of Time.

Celebi panted heavily. Sealing a ball of space-penetrating liquid lightning took a massive toll on her.

Her hands were on her knees, and she bent down in exhaution.

Similarly, across the field, Raikou favored one side as he stood.

The pool of Time, which the cameras was not able to pick up, shook furiously.

Raikou pumped lightning through space into the orb fiercely, trying to have it explode in Time.

Celebi's temporal strings wrapped on tighter and tighter, stopping the ball only a strand away from bursting.

If it bursted in her Time Energy, she would definitely pass out. No questions asked.

The two's gazes met, and they held each other's eyes as fire met fire.

To the audience, the two legendaries were merely staring at each other, but the swirls of energy beneath the invisible surface was colossal.

Finally, after what was five minutes, which started as silence and transformed into muttering and discussion, Raikou moved.

Downward.

And crashed onto the ground.

Celebi's body turned pink, then blue, to purple. She shook violently and collapsed a few feet, before a Levitate struggled to maintain her up from the floor.

Celebi won that power struggle.

After all, she was created by Dialga to do exactly that. Manipulate Time. Raikou was in charge of Thunder. It was way harder for him to manipulate space through electricity than she operating with her congenital energy of Time.

Ash had seen the entire thing with Aura Sight, and he lowered his head. Pausing for a few minutes, he Returned Raikou, who had passed out, and bowed.

"Your Time manipulation is magnificent, Miss Celebi."  
Celebi chuckled weakly before turning back to a pale green. Her psychic bubble calmed down slightly as she caught back her breath.

Under the seemingly stable bubble, a torrent of energy crashed and fumbled against her reservoir, and there was no way she could tranquilize it for use before at least a few hours. Maybe days…

Ash knew that as well. He was waiting for a signal for her surrender. Seeing none, he sighed.

"Are all of you guys this strong-willed?"

" _More like bull-headed._ " The Time Traveler winked. " _Just knock me out Chosen. Or else, it doesn't seem official._ "

"Pidgeot?"

Ash's great bird from the first round soared out and landed on the field.

" _It is a pleasure to fight you, Celebi._ " She smiled at the Grass Psychic, who returned the expression.

" _It is an honor for me too, to knock out two Pokémon of the Chosen's in one match._ "  
Pidgeot blinked. A torrent of weakness streamed from her, and she plunged down, along with Celebi at the same time, to the ground.

Ash's jaws dropped. He wasn't expecting that… such a simple, chilling, yet effective strategy.

" _Perish Song?_ " Pikachu chirped from Ash's shoulder.

"Yes and no. A version of Perish Song, but she mutated it with time, and she implanted it in her field that she laid as she was fighting Raikou." He slapped his forehead.

"And I, foolishly, just displaced Pidgeot into her field without warning her, so the Perish Song triggered as soon as Celebi ran out of energy, bringing down Pidgeot as well."

Pikachu winced. Sneaky and brutal. Finding ways to take down the enemy even if she herself was near passing out.

The Legends had truly been through a lot, in the millennium that had passed. The brutality only came from experience, experiences of deadly fights, trading blood for life.

It was what his trainer had to experience too… hopefully that would get him ready to match wits and power with the Legends.

They were running out of time. Legends were formed over thousands of years, not eight.

* * *

 **A/N: I refuse to succumb to Nintendo's rules. This is my book, so I can write it however I want. I have a heart of rebellion and a soul to seek the ultimate.**

 **To do so, I will first break the chains that the anime so cruelly deposited on me, on us, limiting our imagination to focus solely on what they are feeding us.**

 **I declare Nintendo's realm to end NOW!**


	67. Cha 66: Kanto 56

**Cha. 66**

 **A/N: Today's battle is… unconventional. Also, introduce important character.**

* * *

Unlike Ash, Domino had to wait past lunch to do her battle, meaning that she was placed in the room for six hours longer than she had to be.

The other battles were wayyyyy slower than Ash's. Not every Pokémon specialized in speed, which was his overall style among the team.

Not to say speed was superior, which according to Ash, if you were fast enough to avoid being hit, you are invulnerable.

For her, it was deceit and trickery that trumped all. For the two trainers onstage currently, it was defense…

Which meant Harden, then Rock Polish, then Dragon Dance… before either would fire even one attack, then the routine began all over again.

The fight dragged on for an hour already…

Also unlike Ash's room, her room contained everyone she knew would be here: basically the Rocket Trios and Gary.

So she wasn't too bored… until the last hour those four left after their battle, so she was stuck here with another girl looking at the repetitive fight that was ongoing.

When the camera panned to the audience, they were not satisfied either. After Ash and Leaf's amazing beginning, with Gary's epic twists, not much was enlightening.

The rest was still fine, like the trios' battle, and some others. Most were kind of calm, and nothing too dramatic, or at least as dramatic as the first matchup…

The battle finally ended, with the trainer on the other side getting knocked out of the lineup.

The crowd cheered losely. Domino wondered whether they were cheering because he won, or because they were tired of seeing Iron Defense…

She silently prayed that she was next. Looking at the trainer sitting next to her, she was doing the same thing with a similarly bored expression.

Please be me, Domino thought. Then I could leave after I won…

Losing? Pffff, please…

"The next battle would be between Domino of Viridian and Juliet of RaLousse!"

"FINALLY!"

* * *

When she saw her opponent, Domino's eyes finally squinted in seriousness. She wore a signature hairstyle tied to shape like Articuno's wings, her hair dyed a cyan color.

Juliet was in a matching royal blue dress that looked insanely similar to the style of her customized Rocket uniform, which, Domino had to admit, looked really nice on her… it was rare to meet a girl with a fashion sense so similar to hers as well…

LaRousse… that was Sinnoh, which meant she was the second place on the League Rankings…

While Domino was staring at her, Juliet was checking her out as well. She felt the same sense of attraction. Cute hairstyle, graceful outfit, hands clutching her Pokéball like a determined wrestler stepping into the ring.

Juliet licked her lips and a psychic pulse reached Domino… and found a similar psychic barrier.

The Sinnoh girl blinked. Her opponent was… a psychic as well?

Domino felt the knocking, and her senses finished the linkage, slightly surprised as well.

"Hello?"

"Hi!"

This battle was going to be interesting.

* * *

The girls telepathically communicated for a while, beginning to like the other more and more, even after Goodshow swiped down the flag.

The President coughed. What the heck was going on?

The audience also stared in confusion. Ash reached out with Aura and found nothing… Aura couldn't interfere with Psychic. One was real, one was surreal.

He suddenly realized that there was no psychic Pokémon on his team… a bunch of them had psychic moves and could use them, but no actual psychics…

His mind was snapped back to the field when the two finally moved.

"That was really fun, manipulating the entire audience." Domino smirked mischieviously.

"Yeah, it was!" The other girl giggled. "But we better get on with it."

"Good luck!"

"You too!"

Juliet went first and pulled out an Ultra Ball. Domino's eyebrows raised in surprise.

"Elite in the family?"

"Yep. My cousin."

Domino traced her memory through the list of Sinnoh Elites. A Garchomp landed in the battlefield.

A familiar figure who liked to dress in black with streaming blonde hair popped into her mind. Could it be HER?

A friendly psychic message from the other side reminded her to deposit her choice, and she chuckled.

Dragon's worst enemy… she thought she got one. Domino didn't understand why Ash disliked Fairy that much. She though they were great.

Kirlia! Psychic AND Fairy now!

When the Emotion Pokémon landed, the Elite could hear Juliet let out a groan.

Smirking to herself, she gave out an order.

Kirlia spun into pink as she neared the Ground Dragon with Psycho Cut.

Garchomp countered with an Earthquake which Kirlia levitated out of the way, and he blocked with Dragon Scales.

A torrent of Fairy Wind following her attack dissolved the added defense, and Kirlia teleported.

Locating the psychic a second later, Garchomp fired a Dragon Rage. Kirlia teleported again, not wanting to let the Dragon energy hit.

Both she and Domino knew Juliet knew about the immunity Fairy had for Dragon, being such an elite trainer. Kirlia didn't trust how Garchomp still fired a Dragon attack at her… or was he bluffing?

She decided to go the less risky route, since this was Leagues. She dodged again as the next Dragon Breath came.

Mind tracing back to what Leaf did against Ash, she decided to try out something.

Fairy energy extended outwards, and a layer of pink wiped the entire floor.

" _Misty Terrain!_ "

Garchomp looked at her with a mocking expression, followed by a small sigh from Juliet.

"You're smart, Dom, you really are, especially since you didn't let Kirlia take Garchomp's hits… That's because…"

The Mach Pokémon roared and jumped on the pink ground. The glow shattered into pieces, and Garchomp's feet lit yellow.

"Garchomp is a mutated Pokémon."

"Damn!" Domino muttered. A mutated Pokémon was very hard to deal with. VERY hard. As hard as knocking out the Time Dragonite Ash fought in the preliminaries, as hard as beating Pikachu.

Then another psychic voice entered her mind and temporarily blocked out Juliet's. It was from Kirlia.

After comprehending the message in full, a mysterious smile lit up on her face, and her posture relaxed, expression returning to the usual calmness, as if she had the tool in the bag already.

Juliet frowned at that… or was the chirpy blonde playing mind games? She decided with the latter and ordered a Stone Edge.

Five giant stones hurtled in Kirlia's way, and she stood unmoving. The energy dissipated as it reached the air in front of her.

What!?

Garchomp thought he made a mistake in his move, so he repeated. The same thing happened.

A bad feeling rose from Juliet's stomach. This wasn't right. She saw Domino's battle of illusion as well, and she already checked with psychic that this wasn't a fake field.

" _Everyone who was mutated has a story… a story of fear… because mutation is doomed to be terrible. Pokémon don't mutate when everything's nice and calm._ " Kirlia spoke up.

" _Mutation only happens in dangerous and agonizing situations._ " She shot a look at Pikachu on Ash's shoulder in the front seat to her end.

" _Let's look at_ YOUR _story!_ "

The field changed. The entire arena disappeared. From Garchomp's point of view, the entire world disappeared, and his surroundings began to reshape and twirl into blurring lights and sounds.

After what seemed like forever, which somehow was not enough time for him to react, the world materialized back to reality… or 'reality.'

It was… the Twinleaf Mountains… the biggest range in southern Sinnoh…, and his… home.

Wait! How was he here!? This had to be an illusion.

Garchomp stomped the ground. Only then did he realize that he wasn't Garchomp anymore…

He was a newborn Gible.

This was the past?… and from the feeling in his feet, the world was definitely solid.

This was no illusion.

He remembered what happened… it was a memory that he did not ever want to re-live, even though it did give him a power with exponential magnitude.

He… couldn't control his feet!

He felt himself step forward involuntarily, into the forest, disregarding his mother's warnings. He screamed internally to stop, but his feet keep moving.

As the river of time flowed past.

This was what happened. This was carved into his memory. It couldn't be changed.

He entered the forest.

He got lost, and he saw a cave. The sun was going down.

Garchomp decided to retire there for the night. Only when he entered did he find that there wasn't a dead end.

It continued down into the abyss.

Garchomp roared to stop going, but Gible kept going, just like years ago.

It was like the start of a horror movie, coming true.

The shadow loomed above him, a shape of a deformed darkness. He didn't identify the being, but he could feel the blackness draining out.

His intuition told him that this wasn't a Pokémon. It actually looked more like a… human?

Gible knew he had gotten into something he shouldn't have gotten into, so he ran.

The shadow chased after him… entered his body… followed by insane pain…

Young Gible passed out.

On the field, the colossal figure of Garchomp collapsed onto the arena, Kirlia hovering above him with a pink light glowing from the Mach Pokémon's head.

She silently retreated to her side of the field and bowed to her opponent, even though he was completely out.

Juliet rubbed her eyes, and kept rubbing…

It wasn't that Garchomp got defeated that surprised her. It wasn't even that he got destroyed just with Kirlia hovering over him for five minutes that shocked her.

It was that his mental activity was soaring to the point of near-implosion that made her stomach flip.

* * *

 **COMMERCIAL BREAK ***IMPORTANT!**

 **LAUGH MORE THAN NORMAL!**

* * *

Juliet shot a helpless look at Domino.

"What did your insane Pokémon do!?"

Domino placed a strand of beautiful blonde hair behind her ear. "Kirlia replayed Garchomp's memory. There was a part in there that contained immense pain, because mutation involves a pain that was deep enough to make a Pokémon, even a tough Gible… or Garchomp, pass out… 75 percent severity at least."

Juliet leaned forward. "What? Memory? I've never detected any memory of sharp pain in him…"

" _Then he's definitely hiding something from you._ " Kirlia fell to silence, then spoke up. " _And from what I've seen, I don't blame him either._ "

" _You might want to talk with him after this, or give a therapeutic session…_ "

"Can I see you after the battle, Dom?" Juliet gave a concern look at Garchomp and extracted him.

Kirlia flashed the strip of memory into her trainer's brain. The blonde raised her head up in shock and said in a solemn tone. "Yes! I need to talk to you too."

Juliet was slightly taken aback, but she recovered quickly. "Then let's get the next battle out of the way!"

"Empoleon!"

The Emperor Pokémon jumped out and landed with the sound of metal crashing with metal.

Hmmm, it would be like fighting Lucario…

"You think your Pokémon has a lot of type advantages?" Domino smirked.

Juliet retorted slyly. "Yep! Nine Type disadvantage against him."

"Well, first, it doesn't mean anything." The Elite grinned. "And second, if you want to play this game…"

"Shedinja!"

The Shed Pokémon merged into the field, and Empoleon immediately darted into action before his opponent could react to the event of being switched from Pokéball into arena, slicing at him with Steel Wing.

Shedinja could dodge easily, but he stood there. The Steel Type move knocked him back, but failed to do anything.

"DAMN!" Juliet facepalmed. Picking up her head, she sighed discouragingly. "Of COURSE you have to bring in a Shedinja."

"And the best part is that normal Empoleon doesn't have moves against him." Domino chuckled with degrees of devious cleverness. "Maybe three or four that I came up with ways to counter already watching him battle from pre-game."

Empoleon tried harder, blowing Shedinja away with a Hydro Pump, then sneaking up with Quick Attack followed by Brick Break.

The Shed Pokémon rose from the ground and shook the water off, looking at his opponent innocently.

" _Thanks for the massage!_ " He smirked. " _Now my turn!_ "

" _Why am I not surprised!?_ " Empoleon growled and stepped back, painting himself in Iron Defense. " _With my luck, of course I'll bounce into someone with even more immunities than me._ "

" _Don't even begin to complain about_ your _luck._ " Shedinja shook his head and looked at him outrageously. " _I was tormented by a Dead Spirit and had to deal with time-space shit on a daily basis._ "

" _That does sound pretty bad…_ " The Penguin sighed… and was hit by a Thunder.

" _How do you know that move!?_ " He scrambled back in surprise. " _I thought you only know Ghost and Dark!?_ "

" _If you're around the strongest Electric Pokémon in this world all the time, you'll pick up a few too…_ "

Empoleon dove onto the water he created from his previous Water move and froze it to ice before Shedinja could shoot out another electric beam.

" _If I can't attack you, I'll just squash you to unconsciousness!_ " He declared and poured a block of water down and froze it.

" _That's pathetic._ " Shedinja deadpanned and evaded a block of ice flying at him. " _If you just want to build up the ice around me, than let me just show you something._ "

He used Shadow Sneak, merging through the solid water easily, and stood and looked at Empoleon with a blatantly impassive expression.

" _Then I shall chop you to unconsciousness!_ " Empoleon dove down with Aerial Ace and began repetitively hitting him with a sword of ice…

The Aerial Ace had more effect than the following dozens of hits.

Empoleon sighed and threw the ice sword to the side. Holding his wings up, he bowed. " _You know what, I concede._ "

" _No you don't._ " Shedinja laughed and reached into… some sort of space pocket behind him, … and pulled out a pool of… lava with a burst of Ghost Energy. " _I see you sneaking around already._ "

The invisible space pocket had traveled from Empoleon's back to his head, and it was about to empty its molten contents on him.

The Ghost Hand dumped it onto the ice block under their feet, and it began created a steam explosion around them.

" _Just letting you know._ " Shedinja cleared it and gave Empoleon an obvious judgemental look. " _I basically have at least a dozen people or Pokémon around dealing with the powers of space… I saw your spatial pocket as soon as you pulled it out and merged it with the space above my head._ "

Empoleon's jaws sunk further.

" _I'm just surprised that your trainer has two mutated Pokémon in a row. Even my trainer only has one!_ "

Shedinja began to glow in purple and crimson.

" _Now, I was just letting you waste time by going through all this nonsense so that the Immunodeficiency I hit you from earlier will take effect…_ "

WHAT!? Empoleon jumped back… and crashed onto the floor.

" _What did you do to me!?_ "

" _Well, you see, the move from earlier wasn't a Thunder… or at least not just a Thunder._ " Shedinja smirked slyly. " _I hid it with Immunodeficiency, which, by the way, is my super move._ "

Domino listening to this, stared in surprise. "That was your super move!?"

" _Yes!_ " Her Pokémon replied proudly. " _Super moves don't have to be magnificent, or have glowing effects that allowed the whole region to see, or suck up so much energy you yourself is half burnt out!_ "

Juliet joined in on the conversation. "What's a super move?"

" _It's an ultimate move that will have a dictating effect on the battle and will significantly damage the opponent._ " Shedinja stated. " _Some of my friends have super move that could blow up a hill with ease, but that's not my style._ "

" _I'm small and have a tiny storage._ " He twirled in place. " _My style is sneaky and devious, which I perfected with the training books on Ninjutsu that Koga gave us._ "

"How does Immunodeficiency work then?"

" _I insert a virus into Empoleon, which was mixed with the Thunder, which disguises it. I know he's going to let me hit with at least a move, because only then could he keep talking while he stores up his lava, which I detected, which I am guessing is his mutation._ "

" _Unbeknownest to Empoleon._ " He gestured at the Water Type, " _Is that I needed time for the virus to take effect as well._ "

" _I've engineered the virus to spread in an insane rate, with a vampiric capability…_ " Shedinja muttered. " _It took a lot of studying with Noah. I basically had to learn what was worth six years of medical schooling compressed into a few months._ "

" _The hardest part in that experiment was having my lab cells dying every three days…_ "

" _Immunodeficiency only takes a minute to activate and completely make a Pokémon pass out by invading the brain._ " Shedinja turned back to the Empoleon sitting on the floor, who had now fainted.

" _Anyways! Nice to meet you, Juliet!_ "

Domino extracted him and opened her hands in a helpless way. "See, even I don't know about the crazy things my Pokémon come up with."

"Hhhhh" Juliet sighed. "I thought my mutations are already bad enough…"

Goodshow swiped the flag down on Domino's side. He didn't understand what just happened. From his perspective, Shedinja got pummeled without damage, Empoleon got hit with Thunder, a pool of lava fell, and the Penguin passed out.

From the years of experience, he guessed a large part, but the details confused him. But recalling that she was a Rocket Elite, he concluded that she was using special strategies that was developed through the years.

Making a note to himself to chat with this year's trainers with untraceable moves, he began the next round.

* * *

Juliet considered her situation. She had two Pokémon down, and her opponent had no loss, and both of Pokémon who had fought were at pretty much full health…

Great.

"Infernape!"

The other evolved Sinnoh starter jumped into the field, purple fire burning on his body.

Domino licked her lips. "ANOTHER mutation?"

"It's not like they're doing much to you…" Juliet flashed her a smile. "Your Kirlia literally used mutations TO HER ADVANTAGE."

"Okay, we really need to share our experiences." Domino took a breath. "I'm getting a feeling that yours could possibly be just as weird as mine."

"Doubtlessly."

"Well, Kangaskhan!"

The Normal Type landed with a _Thud_. He clapped his hands together and bowed… not in the traditional way of politeness, but like carrying out a Buddhist ritual.

Infernape twitched… what the heck was he fighting? This guy messed up at least half of the Buddhist movements…

As if detecting his opponent's… ummm… doubt, Kangaskhan raised his head and exclaimed. " _How may I serve you? May I invite you to come within the wondrous door of Buddhism?_ "

Infernape stood back… he was very scared. " _I HAVE FREEDOM OF RELIGION!_ "

" _Too bad then._ " He sighed in disappointment. He said dejectedly. " _Let's get to the battle then._ "

Both trainers' eyes twitched…

Kangaskhan jumped back and threw his hands into the air. " _All that does not bow down to Buddhism shall return themselves to Nirvana!_ "

Domino squirted a short and fiery message to Ash. "I will make you pay for letting your Wartortle interfere with my Pokémon!"

Ash held up his hands innocently. Juliet peeked his way as well, having intercepted a resonance of the message.

She recognized him to be the first trainer… the other insane one… She winked at him before turning back to the battle.

Ash sat back, mind spinning about the absurdity of women.

Infernape dived forward… and fell into a hole… which was previously the spot Kangaskhan was standing on.

" _You son of a…_ "

A giant pile of dirt fell onto his head as Kangaskhan followed up his previous silent Dig with Mud Slap.

He jumped on the hole a few times, compacting the dirt under him, and pulsed out a burst of Normal Energy, locking the ground in place… and sat down cross-legged on top… like a devoted monk.

Domino's face twitched. Juliet's face twitched. Ash twitched. Pikachu twitched. Even Wartortle, who was watching all of this through the mini-screen in his ball, decided to come out to the scene.

He turned to Ash and stated flatly. " _When Dom wants to accuse you of my bewitching her Pokémon, just tell her that even I can't invent something this… unique._ "

Pikachu collapsed into Ash's hands. He shuddered. " _Did Wartortle just admit defeat?_ "

" _Yes, I did._ " The Water Type admitted, depressed. " _I don't think I can overpower Kangaskhan's savage… at least not today, or tomorrow, or the day after._ "

" _HOWEVER!_ " His eyes lit back on fire though. " _I shall work on my magic this week! Next Monday, I shall triumph!_ "

Pikachu interrupted and flashed. " _That's when the battle with Dom is… at finals._ "

" _Then I shall show the world at that time who the real champion of Passion and Grit is!_ "

Juliet kept pulsing psychic messages into the field, poking at the ground underneath the Normal Pokémon.

What she found was… beyond astonishing. The act seemed very simple and comical, but only she, Domino, Infernape, and himself knew how much work Kangaskhan was actually doing right now just by sitting there.

Her psychic senses couldn't even penetrate the Energy barrier of soil that was literally trapping, freezing Infernape in place. Domino's couldn't either. She only knew this from her Pokémon's mind, and she opened the link up for Juliet to see.

Why she was letting her opponent see? Well, there was a sudden, mysterious trust that both scared her and warmed her.

No matter how hard Infernape tried to move, there was something that locked him in place… as if he was being overpowered.

Well, that something is soil being compressed by Normal Energy.

Also known as freaking gravity… which was magnified at least…

"Forty six times." Domino estimated. "Your Infernape is trapped under 46 g right now."

The Flame Pokémon's mutation had no use. Why? Because his fire was smothered by the ground.

Usually, he could just burn his way through, but it was nearly impossible to burn the mineral at such a pressure, since melting temperature increased as pressure increased.

PLUS! He couldn't even get his mouth open!

AND! Even if he tried to get fire out of his nostrils, it was immediately forced back by the pressure gradient.

His bones began to rattle, making dangerous sounds that only he could hear internally. His heart beated wildly. There may be some serious injuries today…

He had no way of communicating.

Then he felt the pressure on top of him release. FINALLY!

He bursted out from the soil, and then his entire body jiggled and fell to the floor. His knees felt extremely weak.

And his arms, his chest, his legs, his shoulder, his head…

His entire body felt weak and powerless. Infernape thanked Arceus that he wasn't a Wailord.

Or else the pressure would probably had popped…

"Infernape! Stop!"

He heard his trainer's call. He moved his head around difficultly and saw her taking out his Pokéball.

"I surrendered already!"

* * *

"Well…" Mr. Goodshow held his forehead. In his decades of chairing Leagues, this was the first time he even saw something remotely close to this.

"Ummm…" He literally had no words, which was very surprising. The last time he had no words was when he challenged Arceus's substitute for his Champion qualification and the Alpha One defeated all of his Pokémon by blowing out a breath that turned into a million Air Cutters.

Maybe not that many… a hundred thousand?

"So we're going to take a short break before we commence…" He breathed out. The crowd roared in ambivalent feelings.

Juliet teleported straight over to Domino's box and pulled her into the resting room.

* * *

 **A/N: As you can tell, this battle was not serious. I'm tired of writing serious battles, so there's a change.**

 **The name 'Juliet' is such a pleasing name. I love saying it. My top three favorite female names are: Claire, Juliet, and Lizzy, which are what I'm going to name all the important characters…**

 **Two had already appeared… wonder when the third is coming in?**


	68. Cha 67: Kanto 57

**Cha. 67**

 **A/N: Part Two.  
**

* * *

"Your Pokémon are insane." Juliet stated directly. "Just… insane."

"Yours too!" Domino giggled. "If you were fighting Ash, he would struggle with you, because all he does is raw strength."

"Is he the guy who was messaging you with Aura?" The Sinnoh girl questioned. "He's kind of cute."

"Yep." Domino chirped, and gave her a semi-serious look. "He's taken by the way."

"Aww… what a shame." Juliet noticed the defensive look between Domino's eyebrows, and a realization dawned. "Ohhh! I'm making someone jealous here?"

"Yes you are!" Domino smirked. "And you will pay on the field for saying that!"

Juliet humphed. "Sure… my next three are even more powerful than the first three."

"Strength doesn't mean anything." The blonde retorted. "Come on, you should know this as a psychic!"

"Trueeee…" The cyan-haired girl's voice trailed off. "What are you using for the next battle?"

Domino stuck her tongue out. "Yeah right! You think I would tell you?"

"I'll tell you mine." Juliet shrugged. "Tyranitar, Articuno, and Darkrai."

"Hmmm… two Legends? Not bad." Domino winked. "I'm tell you a secret too."

"I'm telling the truth!" Juliet exclaimed, smiling a little.

"I believe you." The Elite said calmly. "They probably are your strongest, because I don't think you've captured freaking Groudon."

"What's the secret then?" Juliet demanded while poking her friend. "Don't tell me you have Legends too!"

"I do." Domino met Juliet's eyes, rolling backwards not in surprise but as a bemoaning of her terrible luck. "But that's not the secret."

"Welp, great… even more things to deal with." The girl deadpanned in a pout. "What is it!?"

Chuckling, Domino pulled out a Mega Stone. "This is called a Mega Stone. You know how Kangaskhan doesn't have an evolution?"

Seeing her nod, she continue. "Well, this stone has so much elemental energy within that is specifically dedicated to the Parent Pokémon that it allows another tier of temporary evolution, until he decides the spit the stone back out and devolve."

"We call that form Mega Evolution."

"I can't wait to hear your story." Juliet's jaw dropped slightly. "Also, you need to show me that evolution."

"I will after the battles." Domino smirked. "You weren't as surprised as I was anticipating."

Sighing, Juliet replied. "Trust me, I want to be surprised. But I've seen too much."

The warning bell rang, signalling that the break was almost over. Domino poked her opponent. "Lucky for you, I wouldn't be using Mega Stones against you."

"Hmmm, should I take that offensively?" The Sinnoh girl teased.

Domino raised both of her hands in mock surrender. "You got me!"

The girls laughed, and Juliet teleported to her box for the beginning of the next battle.

* * *

"Tyranitar!"

Domino looked at the field containing the Hoenn Pseudo, not surprised at all. She was sure Juliet wasn't lying. She would have no intention to.

She took out her Pokédex. "You want to give this a try."

"No problem."

Noah's projector dissipated into the form of Porygon 2 as he landed across from Tyranitar.

The two were both motionless.

Noah raised his voice. "Are we going to fight or what?"

" _No, we are not._ " Tyranitar stopped glowing and sat down. " _I'm tired._ "

"Me too." The Pokédex cancelled out his hovering and followed suit.

Domino and Juliet stared into the field without blinking, both of their faces displaying an extremely serious expression.

Their pupils had no focus, showing that neither was actually looking at the field directly.

They sat for a minute.

Two minutes.

Five minutes.

The crowd bursted into protest and noise. What the hell were the two doing!?

"We want to see a fight!"

Ash stood up abruptly as he finally caught onto what they were doing as Aura Sight locked onto a point in space.

Goodshow's face melted into shock as well. His decades of experience also allowed to see something beyond the surface.

Oak looked down at his Transceiver, which glowed with an abnormal light. He raised his head back up, a profound expression condensed.

To the others, even the Elites and Lance, Tyranitar and Noah were just staring at each other, without any action or movement in Energy.

But, beyond the surface…

" _So we're here._ " Tyranitar stood on a mountain, looking skyward. Beneath his feet were layers and layers of darkened corpses, which piled down the peak, leaving barely any surface exposing.

There was no blood. That had dried long before his arrival…

It was a mass of black and brown streaks that painted the sides, as it was scrubbed on with the filth of human darkness…

If one stared into the sides closely for a long time, the corpses seemed to ultimately connect into a large shadow that would consume everything…

Across from him was another Field. It was a… sphere… or to be more exact, a planet shrunken to the size of a sphere that was the same magnitude of his peak.

" _So this is your heart? This planet?_ " Tyranitar spoke up after examining his opponent's… " _This is what you are in search of? The understanding of this world?_ "

Noah shook his head as he hovered above the planet. "No, not just Earth, but much, much beyond."

"It just won't fit in here."

Tyranitar fell into silence. He raised his paw. A body from his pile rose up.

"And this is yours?" The Porygon2 sighed. "Extinction?"

" _If there was no other way to prevent Pandora's Box from opening, then I'll just slay all of the spirits that flow out._ " Tyranitar exclaimed with a misty, determined look. A red glow shot out.

Noah hummed. He didn't reply for a whole minute. "Out of all of her Pokémon, your must be the most excruciated."

" _No._ " He shook his head. " _I was just the most poisoned one, and the one with the strongest memory. They all tried to forget about the past._ "

" _I need to stick with it. The darkness is here, and closing your eyes to pretend it doesn't exist doesn't actually mean it isn't real._ " More corpses levitated. " _So why not just flip the lever?_ "

" _Start the world over again. Put them back into their box._ " Tyranitar sighed. " _If Arceus won't do it, I WILL!_ "

Noah's eyes flowed with lights and power. "You're not Arceus! All you will do is just destroying the world."

" _If I don't try at least, I will never succeed. Only when I try will I be able to cleanse the world._ "

" _Plus, even if I fail, there will be others after me that will come and do the same thing._ "

Noah wanted to retort, but Tyranitar raised his arm up. " _It's useless trying to explain. The planet's your heart, this mountain's my mine._ "

" _One of us today is going to lose. Admit defeat to his ways._ " Tyranitar said silently. " _Bring it, Porygon._ "

" _And it's not going to be me._ "

A white light extremely similar to the matrix of evolution lights flashed over Noah's body.

"It's not going to be me either."

"This world is precious, and you will never know the true meaning of it if you can't inspect it from a completely neutral memory, like me."

" _You're not neutral. You're contaminated as soon as you landed in this world._ "

"What if this world is only a residue of my creation?"

" _What?_ "

The planet rose and smashed down onto the mountain.

The entire image disappeared.

Outside in the arena, Tyranitar leaned backwards and fell onto his back, completely out.

Noah's hologram broke, and he turned back into a Pokédex, dropping onto the floor.

* * *

Goodshow held his head. Great, another mysterious battle that he didn't get.

Unbeknownest to him, even the trainers didn't know what just happen. Between the two fallen Pokémon, Domino and Juliet traded thoughts crazily.

"What did you insane Pokémon do this time!?" Juliet pulsed a blaring message over.

Domino retaliated with the same confusion and ferocity. "ME? I think it's you this time."

"NO it's not!" Juliet whined a little. "Usually Tyranitar battles by shadow moves."

"Well, Noah tried to pull him into a field using his holographic matrix, and then he told me he fell into some sort of fake, unreal, box-like place."

"Tyranitar said that your Porygon challenged him to some sort of battle of paths…" Juliet paused, not knowing how to explain. "He said it felt like Porygon was trying to directly attack his heart, his passion, his will for living…"

"Ummm… I think that might have something to do with Arceus's memory lift…" Domino stumbled. Seeing Juliet's look of disbelief and astonishment, she elaborated. "You see, Noah was kind of awakened because of Arceus's… have you heard of Concept?"

"YOU KNOW ABOUT CONCEPT!?" Juliet's mouth fell wider.

The Elite nodded. "Good. My job is easier now. Arceus's Concept is memory, and he basically infused a tiny piece into me. A fraction of that piece, I guess, got into Noah."

Juliet's face twitched even more. "… So your crazy Pokémon was directly attacking mine's thoughts?"

Domino nodded. "I know this sounds weird…"

"Can't wait to hear your story, girl!" She cut her off and waved another Pokéball. "Let's get another fight over with! We'll save the chatting for later."

* * *

Articuno!

Spiritomb!

Both Pokémonlanded onto the field at the same time.

Yep, Juliet kept her promise.

The Articuno wasn't blue, but instead a royal purple. Another mutation.

By this point Domino wasn't even surprised anymore.

Spiritomb twisted into motion, unlike the stagnant beginning of the last few battles, and zoomed at the Ice Bird, with Shadow Balls coming in from all directions.

Articuno pulsed out with the same frequency of Ice Beam and neutralized them.

Using the attack as a temporary blindfold, he tried to sneak up on Articuno with Phantom Force.

However, unlike the previous Pokémon he fought, Articuno's reaction time was too quick. A swipe of her tail produced a Blizzard that knocked Spiritomb out of midair.

Articuno smirked and followed with a barrage of Ice Shards, which pierced through him without effect.

Then, the Pokémon were back to their starting position.

Articuno moved first in the second exchange. Breathing out a long breath of translucent mist, she exclaimed. " _Ice Age!_ "

Spiritomb prepared himself for something ridiculous, for the Ice energy surfed off around him, disappearing.

Articuno twitched. " _I said Ice Age!_ "

Nothing happened.

Spiritomb didn't trust her act. He merged into space away from his previous spot and rushed at her from another direction.

Suddenly, he felt himself like… going through a long tunnel.

" _Since it's Ice Age, everything freezes._ " Articuno sighed. " _So stop moving._ "

Spiritomb froze, trapped in the long tunnel.

Domino frowned at the sight. "Manipulation of Time?"

"Nope. Something even less common." Juliet smirked at her.

"From Articuno's explanation, it is the stopping of everything, all life, all space and time, all thoughts… all existence."

"It's… of course, not finished yet…" Juliet chuckled. "But let's say she had something going around her that could temporarily pause everything, including but not limiting to time, but more specifically, life."

"We call it the force of the End."

It was the end of life.

Spiritomb sighed. He didn't want to use his second super-move this quick, but he couldn't release Shadow Storm right now… he was frozen.

Yep, thoughts were frozen if he was a normal Pokémon, but he was a Ghost. Nothing could freeze the Ghost Energy, because it was partially dead.

The dead was gone. If it was gone, it couldn't be frozen.

Nor could his attack, because it was just a remnant of a Shadow.

From the Shadow Realm.

A hole opened without warning on top of Spiritomb's head. Inside, a eerie energy flowed out, and streaks of dark red were painted in strings in space within the massive black.

From within the Realm, a giant hand of black with the same decorations of tiny red strings that twirled around it reached out.

It completely neglected the so-called End Force and slapped down on Articuno.

The Ice Legendaries's face turned to horror. She tightened her hold on the End Force… which didn't do anything.

The hand smacked on her head, and she felt a breeze of energy entering her mind and messing with her consciousness.

In short, Articuno felt like she was going insane.

From outside, her head lit in scarlet, and she shook violently. After what was merely three seconds from outside, Articuno collapsed.

The End Field fell with her, and Spiritomb Returned himself without a second word. That was still way too exhausting.

Juliet sighed and extracted her legendary Pokémon. Another double out…

* * *

"Beware, Domino, this is my most powerful Pokémon." Juliet held up a ball… a Master Ball.

Domino's eyes twitched. When a Pokémon was captured in a Master Ball, the representative item of Champions, then you knew it was insane.

She considered throwing out Zorua, but she decided to wait to confirm who the opponent was.

A stream of smoke rose from under the figure, turning into a black and white Pokémon.

It was indeed Darkrai.

The choice she had in mind was perfect for this situation… almost too perfect.

"Sableye!"

The similar Darkness Pokémon materialized with a purple glow.

As soon as he landed, he shot a sharp look at Darkrai. He said cleanly. " _I heard you're the lord of nightmares?_ "

" _That is an affirmative._ " Darkrai's nose moved as he sniffed. " _So that's why you're asking me. I'm detecting the same sense on YOU._ "

" _Then let's have a competition._ " Sableye grinned.

A purple gleam shot out from him, and Darkrai mirrored the move with a black ray.

The moves hit, and the two stopped moving, just like previous.

Domino sighed. Her battle with Julia was just one abstract competition after another. She shot a look at Goodshow. Doubtlessly, the man had a blank expression on his face.

* * *

Sableye materialized in a pit of burning embers. He was… powerless.

He tried to reach inside himself to dig up some Energy, but he found none.

A sharp sear on his skin brought his attention back to the firepit. The feeling of getting burnt was so… new, and PAINFUL!

He hadn't felt getting the full effect of burnt for nearly two hundred years… that was when he died.

And now that he had, he yelped and jumped out. He feet landed on… steel.

Scorching steel, like hot plates with the temperature setting turned to ten thousand centigrade.

He jumped up and down, feet feeling like they were going to fall off.

His mind began to go cloudy as he realized… this was hell.

A bucket of lava was dumped directly above his head, and Sableye only managed to dodge half of that.

The rest collapsed on his right shoulder. Flesh was dissolved in a second, and an insane pain surged up that reminded him that he was both vulnerable, and that he had flesh again.

Tendons hung down from the burnt arm… 'arm.'

It was merely bones with cooked pieces of meat. The part that connected arm to shoulder was completely melted, so there was no bleeding.

The lava hit like an iron hammer deep into Sableye's mind.

He bent down in severe anguish. A voice kept yelling at him to stand back up, and that he couldn't back down.

When he first decided to traverse into the field of Nightmares, he already knew what he was getting himself into, and had swore that he would trudge through all of the pain.

With that belief in mind, the Darkness Pokémon stood back up. A purple glowed in his egem-like eyes.

" _Darkrai, I know you can hear me_ "

" _This is an illusion, isn't it!?_ " He then chuckled, as if the pain on his shoulder and feet was nonexistent.

It took a discipline that no one had, not even the toughest Pokémon or human. He thought to himself, deep down. Probably only the most tormented souls could withstand this… because a will to live and struggle on was the only thing they had left.

" _Of course this is an illusion. They are not real, at least not if my mind is saying that they are fake."_ "

His hands flew into the air and roared. " _My power shall return to me,_ "

" _To be or not to be? I say, be all that I can be. I exist because I think, my power is mine because it is._ "

" _It is that SIMPLE!_ "

It is that simple…

He was surrounded with a purple energy, which darted out from different corners of the world, making the illsion of hell collapse.

His shoulders began to heal… No, it was never there, so there WAS NO healing needed.

Darkrai appeared in front of her. " _I must say, your motivation, discipline, and tolerance to pain is remarkable._ "

Sableye looked at him seriously. " _I know. It's all I have. They're probably even better than YOURS."_

 _Darkrai frowned. "Don't get too ahead of yourself kid._ "

Sableye glowed. " _Then let me show you what it is like to be me… also, the hell of burning shouldn't be like this._ "

" _It should be like this…_ "

* * *

When Darkrai felt the world stopped shaking, he opened his eyes. Sableye had casted a nightmare spell on him, and he was very familiar with he beginning steps.

What surprised him was that the Pokémon actually had enough energy, dedication, and brain power to bring him to this world, even after being tormented in Darkrai's hell.

He checked himself out, just like every time he entered a nightmare.

He was a girl.

A godly voice sounded in his head. " _Welcome to… the Revolution._ "

Darkrai shook Sableye's message out of his head. Nothing could scare him anymore. He was the Lord of Nightmares. He had seen all kinds of fear through his years of infusing bad dreams.

The Dark legendary didn't know he just set up a flag.

He began to walk around the world as a girl… then he found out why this was a horror movie.

He was in a dark forest, alone… and then the danger came.

Men. Men and more men. In criminal uniforms, looking at her short skirt hungrily.

Darkrai immediately identified it it as a rape nightmare.

He wasn't to scared. He had done that a lot of times as well… He just had to close his sensations…

The men rushed up on him and sliced off his clothes.

Darkrai watched his body get abused without feeling. He knew that the rape dream was effective, but the torment was only so long. If he had enough of a heart, the pain was endurable… plus the climax of the fear was only the hour of the process, and then he could get out of this world.

He was right. It was the submission that was the fear for most people. But for him, it wasn't much use. After all, he WAS the lord of Nightmares.

He felt the world become dark again. He smirked, knowing that it was over.

He waited for the world to break apart… it didn't.

Instead, he found himself standing on a roller coaster, but with thousands of seats. He was back to his Darkrai self, and he hung on a chain that extended onto what seemed like infinity.

He was hanging directly over the seat with a picture of the girl in the short skirt… the girl from the dream.

The giant wheel moved, and another seat showed up.

It was stickered with the image of an obese man, and Darkrai felt his soul being sucked into this cart…

* * *

"I'm sorry to inform you." The doctor said. "But your family ran out of money to let you stay in the hospital anymore. Therefore, we have to… ask you to leave."

Darkrai checked out his body. He was fatter than the combination of two pigs."

" _Why am I in the hospital._ " He asked calmly.

The doctor sucked in a deep breath. "Has your heart attack also mess with your memory too?"

Darkrai's eyes rolled. " _I think so. Can you explain what is happening to me Then I'll leave._ "

The doctor sighed. "You are overweight by four hundred pounds, and you're sent in here for your most recent heartattack, sir."

Darkrai fell into silence. The obesity dream Usually, it was just making girls look fatter slightly just to mess with their confidence. He had never actually made someone this excessively obese. He never thought of that idea before.

Musing to himself that he could probably use it later, he tried to get up. Thinking to himself curiously, he wondered about what this new dream will be like. Even he had never experience something like this.

The interest soon turned into worry, then nervousness as Darkrai's human figure fell onto the floor The doctor frowned. "Sit in your wheelchair!"

Darkrai carried himself up in a struggle, and the doctor stared at him with a pair of cold eyes.

The Darkness Pokémon frowned further. "Aren't you going to help me?"

"If you first pay me." He said chillingly, switching back from the previously kind expression. "Your payment for yesterday ended just thirty seconds ago."

Darkrai shook his head as he sat on the wheelchair, which creaked dangerously. Muttering to himself, he cursed. " _Humans… I knew they were cold-blooded and disgusting._ "

" _They deserve all the nightmares I give them."_

He wheeled himself out into the first floor corridor and through the door. In front of it, he saw a and came toward him. Assuming the guy to be one of his family members, he wheeled himself towards him.

However, he was greeted by two sla[s on the face

The man pulled on the handle of his wheelchair and wheeled him straight into a min-van, which contained a bunch of people.

Then, Darkrai noticed how they had wild tattoos, and every one of them had the word 'Hell' carved over their foreheads.

The initial man shut the door and pulled out a knife and pointed it at his throat. A deadly smile floated onto his face.

"Do you know why the hospital cut you off today?"

"Because your daughter and her family decided to stop paying for you anymore and loaning from us." The man's eyes had a bloody glint. "They took their stuff and moved just yesterday."

"So whether you want it or not, you are paying us back your hospitable loans…"  
Hold on, what!?

Torture for obesity, betrayal of family members, kidnapped by gang members…

An hour passed of him getting beaten up and stabbed, over and over…

* * *

This time, Darkrai woke back up with a small sweat. That was a terrifying situation, not enough to haunt him completely loose, but pretty horrible."  
The wheel moved again, and he found himself staring into another picture.

Her corpse laid in sixteen different pieces… A man held a ring in one hand, and a saw in another…

A light emerged around him.

* * *

This time he woke up, Darkrai had more of a panic than before. This was the fourth dream already. Everytime he focused enough to wake up, he was sucked back here.

Then, he was zapped into another another world and tortured for more time.

The wheel moved again. Now, he was staring at a deformed baby crawling out of a dead woman's womb…

The same purple light glowed.

* * *

Man with his eyes dug out and replaced by other men's genitalia.

Her body sewn together and cooked alive.

Man born with two heads, and one head bit the other to death…

The lights shone.

Again and again.

* * *

The tenth time Darkrai awakened, he was no more of his calm self. His hands flew violently in the air, and the hanging pain on his neck seemed like nothing compared to the previous experiences.

The wheel moved. It wasn't a picture anymore. It was a 3-D object… of another… wheel.

The legendary roared in fear. " _STOP! STOP THIS MADNESS! I CONCEDE._ "

Merely words could not describe the horror that stripped through his body. Only if someone was put in the lives of ten different tragedies in a couple of condensed hours could sympathize.

Living through ten horror movies… and not as the main character either, but the first guy to be killed… gruesomely.

The wheeled seemed to continue without end, and there appeared another wheel. Maybe this was all a decoil. Maybe Sableye could only afford ten different dreams. Maybe…

Darkrai didn't want to take the chance anymore. He was tortured for ten times. It was enough.

ENOUGH!

"I SURRENDER!"

Sableye's form appeared in front of him and smiled. " _Good game._ "

Darkrai panted. A wave of relief streamed through him… which was not appropriate of a so-called fearless Nightmare Legendary.

" _HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE!?_ "

" _My teacher is Giratina…_ " Sableye shrugged. " _Also, next time I see you, Darkrai, I wish to fight to real you, the you of Nightmare Realm at Formation level._ "

" _I know you can hear me through this Substitute. He's too weak!_ "

* * *

The League conference arena, which was stagnant for nearly half an hour, finally moved.

The audience had become quiet,not because they were satisfied about the situation, but because their complaints had already been voice in the last few unmoving battles and the first fifteen minutes.

Now, it was just covered with a soft muttering. Everyone still stayed in their seats though, waiting to find out who won whatever they were doing.

Even Domino and Juliet were bored. In contrary to before, this time, they couldn't see what was going on any more than the audience was.

IN fact, their conversation had tangented to the best flavor of pies to use for a Halloween prank.

All of a sudden, someone in the stadium shouted. "Darkrai MOVED!"

Heads snapped to the arena as quickly as the sound spread through the arena. The heads were turned like domino pieces falling.

It was quite a sight.

Darkrai indeed moved… or evaporated, to be exact.

The legendary turned into black smoke and flew back to his Pokéball on Juliet's belt. Sableye bowed across the arena and jumped back to his trainer.

Goodshow nodded. For some reason, the ending was not surprising at all.

Juliet bowed to Domino, who returned the gesture.

The President raised his mike to his mouth and announced the result everyone was waiting for.

"Darkrai is unable to battle. Sableye won the last battle."

"With that, Domino has five Pokémon remaining, and Juliet has none. I proclaim Domino of Viridian to the the winner of the pre-final match!"

The crowd cheered. For most of them, it was oddly satisfying enough just to hear the results without seeing the actual process.

For others, on the other hand… no could do, sir.

Goodshow didn't care about their opinions though. If he cared, he surely didn't show it. He continued.

"And, with that, I declare the seventh pre-final battles of League 807 ajourned!"

* * *

 **A/N: Writing into more fantasy battles, I realized how limited Pokémon moves truly are…**


	69. Cha 68: Kanto 58

**Cha. 68**

 **A/N: Enjoy… a week until the ultimate.**

* * *

Ash smirked as he looked across the field to his opponent. He was glad that they were matched together so soon.

It was probably more nostalgic than the desire for a great battle. But seeing his face, Ash kept smiling.

He wanted to savor the moment where he could temporarily fool his mind, making himself think he had returned to the last timeline, when things were much simpler.

On the other hand, he could not wait to beat Ritchie.

The clone of him that had almost the same Pokémon by some weird twist of the universe.

The one who knocked him out of the Top Eight.

Ash rubbed his hands together. Seriously, he could NOT wait.

His intensive glint most certain drew attention from his opponent, and he raised his head and looked with a unsure look.

Ash didn't let go of the stare. What goes around comes around. Karma.

Goodshow swiped down the flag.

Ash and Ritchie's battle was the fourth of the day, so they didn't need to listen to Goodshow ramble about ceremonious literature and etiquettes.

Instead, their battle started right after the flag was pulled down.

Ash pointed. "Kingler!"

"Venusaur!"

Type advantage huh?

Kingler landed with a splash, while Venusaur crashed down.

Ash had a plan set in mind in an instant.

Venusaur was slow and heavy, so Kingler needed to use his immense speed to catch up slam her to unconsciousness.

Kingler knew that as well, and he spun into motion, Aqua Jet shooting off his back.

Venusaur stomped the ground, and a bowl of green energy covered him inside.

" _Gotta do a little bit better than that!_ " A Crabhammer smashed through the side as evidence for his words.

Venusaur's tail flickered, and a large tree spawned in and filled the hole with Growth.

By the time the Seed Pokémon turned to the direction of her tree, Kingler had already disappeared and rolled back to the front, now becoming Venusaur's rear.

A few Hydro Cannons fell from the sky, inadvertantly turning into Waterfall.

The water blocked the Venusaur's sight for a second, and she quickly used Giga Drain to clear the liquid.

Just as the Grass Energy pulled the Water into a ball into her mouth, suddenly, the Water turned superheated rolled down her throat.

A bellow of pain rang through the arena as her four legs collapsed.

Kingler materialized from nowhere and crashed into the defenseless Pokémon with a Crabhammer.

Immediately following, he shot out a pool of water around Venusaur, who was still too busy stirring up Grass Energy to neutralize the burning pain.

The water froze, trapping her in a small cube twice her size.

Venusaur's torment made her approach the climax of her tolerance, and she couldn't even scream to let out this pain.

Inside her, she was burning up in steak. Outside she was being frozen into a turkey.

The combination of the two extremes sandwiching her poor body made her want to pass out right there.

In the stands, the group sighed.

"There's really nothing to see if Ash is only facing a normal trainer." Misty popped her bubble gum and leaned back.

"Now that I think about it." Brock raised a hand. "What is the actual definition of 'abnormal' in our case?"

"I think… just boosted with insane infusions that involve some kind of Cosmic power?" Domino casted a stray glance at the nearly identical clone of her boyfriend. "This one… I don't think so."

The Venusaur cube began to break gradually, as Venusaur was finally able to overpower the Scald within her insides and break open the outside barrier.

Kingler clapped his claws together. The block began to ascend on a delicate, ice pillar into the sky.

When it reached nearly three hundred feet, the ice broke apart, revealing a very weary Venusaur.

The Crab hobbled over to the tall pillar and slammed it with his signature hammer move, and the entire structure collapsed, bring Venusaur down with it.

Having just freed herself from the previous torture and barely vigilant yet, Venusaur fell down like a malfunction plane heading straight for the ground.

There was nothing she could do to save herself. Kingler timed the release perfectly.

As soon as she broke out, it dropped. There was no time for Vine Whip, or a counter-move to push herself back to a less scary velocity.

Venusaur hit the floor. A cloud of particles rose up.

Ash's posture relaxed. His Aura Sight couldn't be tricked this time.

The Grass-Type is down.

* * *

Ritchie took back Venusaur, twisting in nervousness.

Of course he should be nervous.

Last time, his skill was only as good as Ash. This time, nothing changed, so he was at most a Veteran.

Ash… he didn't stay stagnant. He could probably beat up ten of himself from the exact time period the Indigo League was taking place.

And that was with both physically and in Pokémon.

Richie pulled out his second ball. Ash waved, and Kingler Returned himself.

For the second battle, a Pidgeot soared into the air.

Ash looked in wonder. The guy was really a clone, wasn't he.

" _What if you're the clone?_ " Pikachu chirped. " _Have you ever thought of that?_ "

"No. Philosophy confuses me. I'll rather deal with something more tangible, like science, or fighting Arceus."

Pikachu rolled his eyes. " _You could've just replied with the fact that you're the Chosen._ "

"See, you can answer your questions! Why are you asking me?" Ash smirked and threw in his choice.

Not Pidgeot.

Charizard.

The Fire Starter of Kanto burst out with a fiery glow and soared straight for Pidgeot.

"Use your speed! Don't let him get next to you!" Ritchie called. Ash admitted that it was a good strategy… but Charizard had been sparring with Pidgeot and… Zorua pretending to be Pidgeot.

Charizard sneered at the attempt to get away from him. He wasn't mega-ultra-fast like his Flying teammate, but he was fast enough in the air to catch his opponent.

He soared even higher than Pidgeot and hovered on top of him. A Blast Burn spewed out of his mouth downwards, and Pidgeot was forced down.

Charizard flew in circles on top of him, making him drop more and more in altitude as his flame continued.

"Whirlwind!"

Pidgeot followed the command and send a blast of air up, trying to disturb the fire.

The two energy crashed, and fire erupted in Pidgeot's eyes. He didn't have to move down though, only to endure the heat cursing at her.

As a result, He never saw the drop of red that dripped from the eruption.

Yes, drop.

It pierced through the wind, as if the turbulent had no effect on it, or it was too heavy to be moved.

The drop curved around Pidgeot's sight, having been tossed with a Boomerang-like motion, and dropped onto the Flying Type.

Nearly instantaneously, his entire body was covered with a flame glowing bright yellow.

Thoughts were wiped from his mind as the burning heat turned him into a miniature sun, and he fell to the floor, unconscious.

The crowd gasped in astonishment. Ritchie stared at Charizard, and then turned his head to stare at Ash.

Ash raised his eyebrow. "Wow… Charizard used half of his super move."

" _It's not. His super move would've created a bowl of liquid fire._ " Pikachu countered on his shoulder.

"Exactly why I said half." Ash shrugged and Returned Charizard. "This is going a lot better than I thought."

" _What did you think it was going to be!?_ " Pikachu snorted. " _You two stuck in a tug-of-war, and then you winning by a small increment?_ "

"No… of course not." Ash gave his starter a pat and took him down from his shoulder. "I thought Charizard would give him four-degree burns…"

" _That's death._ "

"I know."

" _Oh._ "

* * *

Ritchie looked at his two Pokéballs with their lights shut off. He was down two Pokémon in ten minutes… his opponent was just wiping the floor with him, all while being nonchalant while doing it.

He looked at his Sparky. He had to turn the tide around.

He saw the guy across the arena taking down his Pikachu, so he must be using him next.

No ONE could meet Sparky in a power struggle, Ritchie thought proudly.

He pointed at the field, and Sparky leapt out.

Ash gave Pikachu a final rub. "I knew I could coax him out like that."

" _You're learning a lot from Domino._ " Pikachu gave him a peace-sign and a appreciative look. " _Thanks Ash… this is probably even better than beating the Vermillion Raichu._ "

Pikachu zoomed right in front of Sparky with Extremespeed and stopped in his tracks, as if the velocity and rules of inertia didn't exist.

Ritchie's eyes shrunk. This was a strong Pikachu.

 **(NO SHIT, SHERLOCK!)**

" _So…_ " Pikachu looked condescendingly at Sparky. " _How do you want to go out?_ "

" _What do you mean?_ " The other Electric Type looked at him with a confused expression.

" _I mean how do you want to pass out._ " Pikachu held his head high. " _I'll give you three options._ "

" _Scratch, Shockwave, or Aura Bubble._ "

Sparky's anger burned wildly. He was being shamed! How dare this opposing Pikachu undermine his power! Scratch!? Shockwave!? And what the hell is an Aura Bubble?

" _Aura Bubble is not even a move, you retard!_ " Sparky retaliated furiously.

Pikachu looked at him with a plain expression. There was no need to be annoyed at a Pokémon who was going to be knocked out.

What did you have to be mad about an insult of a loser?

" _This, is Aura Bubble._ "

Pikachu licked his lips. A bubble formed in his mouth.

It wasn't even covered in blue… just a simple bubble.

It moved toward Sparky in an extremely slow speed… but Sparky couldn't move. He felt himself trapped, and for no reason.

Only a blink later, the bubble arrived, as if it just curved the distance between them.

The ordinary bubble hit Sparky on the nose.

The Electric type soared backwards and was trucked into the invisible Alakazam shield, which broke on contact.

The shield of eighteen Alakazams.

Domino stood up abruptly and linked power immediately with all of her Pokémon and forced a psychic pulse out at the flying Sparky… coming directly at her face.

"HEY!" She telepathized. "You didn't have to go this tryhard!"

" _I did that on purpose, and you know you could handle it._ "

Domino pouted. She whined. "I could've been seriously hurt!"'

" _From an Aura Bubble?_ " The Mouse deadpanned.

"Yeah!" The blonde said solidly. "What if it messed up my hair!? That could have been a serious injury!"

A cough interrupted her musing, and she found Ritchie staring at her… or to be more specific, Sparky.

Domino rolled her eyes and threw him right back… she didn't care.

* * *

Ritchie shook with terror when Sparky landed in his arms…

His strongest Pokémon… got one-shotted… in one hit?

He didn't even hear Goodshow announce that it was time for the fifteen minute break. He just stood there, staring.

Ash shrugged and went back to his room and meditated. He didn't even ask his Pokémon to go hard in the preliminaries… he did with Ritchie.

When fifteen minutes were up, Ash went back to the field and found a less depressed opponent, but the previous glint of confidence has long evaporated.

Ash gestured for him to start, and Ritchie complied by releasing…

Butterfree.

Well… Ash could try the Butterfree vs Butterfree route… but he decided that it would be a waste of his Butterfly's energy.

Plus, it'll be more fun with…

Wartortle!

The Turtle Pokémon landed in the field. Without a second word, he spun into motion directly at Butterfree.

Ritchie's Pokémon yelped and tried to dodge out of the way with a Silver Wind.

Wartortle, like a tracking missile, followed her accurately. He split into twelve Double Teams and rushed at her at the exact same time.

Butterfree didn't have the time to release an attack to pop the Doubles, or else she would be hit by Wartortle.

She remembered what her trainer said.

Never be hit by the insane Pokémon.

She didn't have too much time to think, because Wartortle was gaining on her.

For a second, she pondered who the real Flying Type was here, before flying straight down at the ground and tried to zoom out of the way with a U-Turn. If she could tricked Wartortle for even a second, Butterfree could use an attack to pop the Doubles.

Wartortle was obviously very experienced with this trickery. It was one of Zorua's favorite… before Wartortle found a way to counter it… which wasn't even too difficult.

Then, he just hit her every time she tried the U-Turn method, which stopped being her favorite pretty soon for obvious reasons.

Wartortle looked at her attempt to execute U-Turn, and projected a Gravity field on her.

He wasn't able to do that before because they were both in rapid velocity. But the U-Turn parabolic motion made her travel less horizontal distance because most of the energy was spent in vertical height manipulation.

The Gravity field was casted over Butterfree successfully, which made her sink to the ground.

Instead of rising back up like predicted, she collapsed onto her tiny feet.

Being a significantly vulnerable target now, Wartortle just casted Hydro Cannons after Hydro Cannons now, eventually knocking the immobilized Pokémon unconscious.

Ritchie's eyes twitched, and kept twitching.

Every one of his Pokémon was knocked out within three minutes of release… this wasn't what it was supposed to be like.

Even in his previous battles, he wasn't this strong!

He made a very hard decision and stared Ash in the eye.

"I concede."

* * *

 **A/N: Enjoy!**

 **A/N: Well, the floor of the Indigo Arena got Ritchie's assprints wiped all over it…**

 **For those who hadn't realized yet, I hate every character who knocked Ash out… besides Tobias, bc that was actually 0 chance… and it's Sinnoh, the land of overpowerness.**

 **So most characters who beat Ash in a League would be destroyed damn badly, one way or another down the timeline.**


	70. Cha 69: Kanto 59

**Cha. 69**

 **A/N: This is the last battle with an OC. Next chapter is when crap hits the fan and gets bounced into Mew's ice cream, which will make her flip shit…**

 **That was the worst pun ever…**

* * *

"Good luck." Ash leaned over and kissed his girl on the cheek.

Domino rolled her eyes and pulled him in for a full kiss. "Mama doesn't need luck!"

"Of course you don't, princess." Ash made an attempt to fix her hair, which only made it messier. "Alolan Pokémon are extremely weird though. I've rarely interacted with them, and that was all this timeline."

"Type advantages mean crap." Domino slapped his hand away. Zorua transformed into a comb and her trainer took it to tame her hair down. "That is our model!"

"Indeed it is." Ash gave her a slight push and turned to exit.

"Ash?"

"Yeah?"

"Remember to buy me a sundae."

"Two cherries?"

"Of course."

Ash smirked and walked out. The blonde walked the other direction, past the healing machine, through the unnecessarily big door, and into the arena.

She blew out a breath. Quarter-finals. Here she went.

* * *

Domino had long followed the movements of her Alolan opponent, and she was sure the girl was secretly analyzing her style as well.

Today, the brunette showed up in a flowery dress of a yellow and orange mix. Her hair sat naturally on her shoulders.

She was pretty.

A mental voice linked into her mind, and Juliet's giggling voice sounded. "Ready, blondie?"

"Get your damn voice out of my head before I rip those blue corn strands that you call hair out of your scalp."

"Dang girl! Someone's got an attitude today!" The soprano voice poked one more time before pulling back. "Good luck!"

"Don't need it!" Domino waved towards Juliet, and turned to the battle.

By then, Goodshow had gotten through all of the pre-battle statements, and he raised his flag.

"I declare this quarter-final to start!" The flag swiped down.

* * *

In the field, Domino's Spiritomb puffed out smoke at a drizzling rate. He did that only when he was thinking.

He was indeed thinking very swiftly right now, because the Pokémon in front of him was Xerneas.

Domino bit the inside of her lip.

For the longest time, she thought that Ash was supposed to be the trouble magnet in the group. He was responsible for tanking all of the bad luck, such as fighting a Genesect just because he stepped on an ant farm.

Domino looked past the Life Legendary to the Alolan girl. I guess the roles had switched, she mused. She would take Ritchie over this any time of the week.

Finally, she understood why Ash hated Fairies so much. This is literally the only counter to Spiritomb. Fairy-Type energy was just so… blessing!

She hated it with all the darkness within her… and her Pokémon.

Xerneas knew she had an advantage as well, and she moved first.

Rainbow lights flashed out as a Geomancy was pulsed out, which increased her speed twofold. At the same time, a colorful halo formed on top of her head and flew straight to Spiritomb.

Even though he didn't know what it was, the Dark Ghost had an bad intuition. Spinning out a few Shadow Balls, he launched them at it with a Night Slash.

The Dark Type energy dissipated when it got within a few inches, like the snow in the warming spring sun.

Spiritomb knew that would happen. He just needed to confirm that this was indeed a very rough situation.

This was a very rough situation.

A Rock Tomb burst out from under the halo and trapped it. Spiriomb floated back in alert as Xerneas tried to get him with a Dazzling Gleam.

It still nailed him slightly, and it still felt like a son of a female Arcanine…

Domino licked her sundae at a speedy pace. She pulsed a message to Juliet, demanding more, before turning back to the battle.

Ice cream sundaes always gave her ideas, whether it was with planning out a world-known amusement park, or assassinating certain, well, mentally unstable troublemakers.

Her lips moved slightly as a message was echoed.

Spiritomb's eyes lit up. A Moonblast came his way, and he… shrunk.

To be specific, his purple, intangible mass was absorbed back into his core, the Odd Keystone.

The Odd Keystone levitated into the air. Xerneas blinked. That was not what she had expected.

The rock came flying at her with the force of a Rock Throw, She bent her neck to let it pass above her head.

Once it had gotten slightly past her, a Dark Energy pulsed out to bite deep into her neck. Fairy Aura streamed out as she shivered in the pain, which melted down the Dark Energy easily.

However, there was already an unprotected spot on her neck that was very vulnerable. The rainbow dots on the flesh seemed so unprotected, so exposed to a potential…

"Trick or Treat!" The Forbidden Pokémon shouted, and a torrent of Ghost Type Energy flushed in.

Normally, the energy could convert any Pokémon's type to Ghost type. But when it was released on a Fairy Type, it instead acted as a chain that would lock the opponent's Fairy reservoir.

Since Ghost and Fairy energy are polar opposites, just like Aura and Death Force, the two could never be combined in a million years.

The Ghost Energy struck deep into Xerneas's pool of Aura, which had no way of being incorporated into an effective attack.

It just lied there, like a fat cow on a conveyor belt connected to the slaughterhouse, waiting to turn the animal into delicious steak.

Even though the Ghost Energy was very little compared to the massive reservoir of Xerneas, it had little effect.

It was the difference between a barrack of elite swordsmen and a town of citizens. So what if they were more in numbers? The town was still going to be sieged!

That was exactly what happened in Xerneas's body. The Ghost Energy formed a resilient chain that wrapped around the reservoir, completely locking it from usage… or at least for the next ten minutes.

It was plenty of time, Spiritomb concluded, for him to defeat a powerless, Normal type… even though it WAS a legendary.

Xerneas felt the same strain and looked at her opponent in horror. She had never felt the loss of her powers before, ever! A wave of panick overwhelmed her usual training and tranquility.

Her heart beated faster, partially due to the nervousness and fright, and partially to break the damned chain apart.

It was destiny that she never got the chance.

A wave of Shadow Balls, Dark Pulse, Shadow Aura came flying at the legendary.

The Alolan girl's eyes bulged in shock. She had no idea what was happening, even though she was a elite trainer. Everything happened way too fast.

One second, her Pokémon was glowing with rainbow protection, and the next, she was being pummelled by endless Ghost and Dark attacks that proved her Fairy shield malfunctioning.

Xerneas shouted in pain from the hits. She tried to dart forward and swipe with a Giga Impact.

Spiritomb watched her attempt without moving. Normal Energy couldn't hurt Ghosts.

Of course, Xerneas had no understanding of that, since this was the first time she was stripped of her powers.

On the other had, Spiritomb had significantly more experienced with how to hurt a Normal Type. In fact, that was what half of his training was about in the past few months…

It was only a few minutes before even Xerneas passed out to the constant attacks.

It was also then that Spiritomb discovered that she was just a Substitute… a substitute of the real Cosmic,

* * *

Domino frowned at the message sent by her Pokémon. She didn't like this at all. Too many Cosmics were sending over Substitutes to the real world.

The most insane part is that, the trainer who caught them didn't deserve the legendaries… it was as

Sure, was the Alolan girl good? Yes. Was she a Pokémon Master?

Hell no. Legends were supposed to be the apex of the world. They shouldn't be showing up at this frequency at a League, especially if they were Comsics.

Why the hell would they concentrate on a small planet when they had an entire dimension all to themselves?

A thousand thoughts raced through her mind. She didn't know what was happening, but a bad feeling was stirring.

Her opponent had already sent out her second Pokémon to the field: An Alolan Ninetales.

With a wave, Spiritomb retreated. In his place, a gigantic Alakazam landed, hovering only a foot above the ground.

The jaws of the entire audience dropped. Ash held his head. "Didn't expect that to come out until she got to me…"

Juliet, who was sitting next to Misty now, stared at the Pokémon in amazement. "That is by far the most glorious psychic Pokémon I've seen."

Misty sighed. "Well, there are a few more giants…"

"Be prepared."

The Alolan girl's face mirrored the rest of the crowd's. Alakazam turned and shrugged. " _I didn't think you'll use me this early._ "

"Whatever…" Domino waved. She had a few boxes of sundae around her. She thought she required more thinking to defeat that Xerneas… obviously she overestimated the opposing trainer. "Just do what you see fit."

"This League is a joke anyways…"

" _I'm sorry for what you are about to endure._ " Alakazam faced the poor Ninetales. " _You may surrender whenever you want._ "

* * *

 _ **Ninetales used Charm.**_

 _ **Alakazam used Hyper Beam.**_

 _ **It was a critical hit!**_

 _ **Ninetales passed out.**_

 _ **The opposing trainer sent in Alolan Sandslash.**_

 _ **Alakazam used Psychic.**_

 _ **It was a critical hit! The Sandslash passed out.**_

 _ **The opposing trainer…**_

 _ **And the winner is Domino. You are awarded $9001 pokedollars.**_

 **…**

* * *

 **A/N: If I could just skip to the more fun battles, I would. But I can't, because of OCD and that rules are rules…**

 **I need to make the both of them powerful as shit, because they would be dealing with Formation and Cosmic starting the next arc… but how am I supposed to write out good battles against ordinary trainers when they could just one-shot literally everything…**

 **I can't just let the opponents have legendaries as every freaking Pokémon!**

 **Grrr… Well, some more plot scenes to follow this!**

* * *

As it neared midnight, the group retired to each of their quarters individually.

Domino was combing Zorua's fur when a knock sounded from… her window?

She pulled back the curtains, and a wave of blue hair was crashing against the glass. The wind made a _swoosh_ sound as it went by.

She gave the image a second look. A pale ray of moonlight showed the face to be a familiar psychic's, and she waved her hand.

A burst of pink later, Juliet appeared in her room. Domino flopped back onto her bed. "You couldn't just go to the door?"

"Nay!" The negatory came, as the speaker dropped down on the couch and placed her legs comfortably up on the TV table. "I need to be more weird like you guys."

The blonde rolled her eyes and flicked a stubborn stray of purple strand standing on Zorua's back down to lay beside neatly beside the rest.

"You know… I can call the police for you intruding."

"Go ahead!" Juliet challenged and pulled out a stick. Her hand clicked a secret button, and it extended into a small katana. "I shall rob you!"

Domino didn't even give the sword a look and placed her comb back down. Zorua flipped on her stomach and motioned Domino to tickle her. She allowed a sigh of relief.

" _I don't get you humans… you talk too much._ "

"I don't either." Domino pushed the sword out of her eyes. "What's up?"

Juliet sighed and retracted her weapon. "I want to hear your story."

"What?"

"I want to hear your story." She repeated. Juliet looked at her with a pair of clear, shining eyes that seemed to dissipate all the darkness of the night. "Then, I'll tell you mine."

Domino lowered her head. She realized that she had found the second person in this world who could soften her. "Why don't you start?"

"Okay."

* * *

 _Mossdeep City was a place of bustling action, mostly because of the population who had gathered there to work. After all, it had the biggest industry in Hoenn: Spacecraft._

 _Juliet was born in Mossdeep Hospital, but it wasn't until a year later that she could sound that out._

 _Her childhood, like the other kids of the time, included constant play time, school, and ice cream, adding up to a bluff of translucency._

 _She didn't recall much of the story back then. Memories didn't start forming until at least four or five._

 _She was five when she saw the storm._

 _Others didn't._

* * *

 _The day was a Saturday, or was it a Sunday? Either way, school was off, and she was allowed outside._

 _Her friends and she went to a park at the end of the City, one of the few places that were not filled with buildings and construction._

 _She didn't remember what they talked about, or what they played. She remember eating a strawberry when the thunderstorm rolled in._

 _Juliet wasn't the first to notice. A friends of hers, a second-grader, a year ahead, pointed at the cloud first._

 _At the time, they all thought playing in the rain was fun…_

 _But they also knew how their parents would ground them if they found them getting poured on…_

 _Parents love rambling about potential risks, like getting a cold._

 _The friends packed up their stuff and decided to leave while the cloud was still in the distance. Juliet gave the storm a last look._

 _She complained internally about it. She still remember not finding out about her sister's crush because it interrupted their conversation._

 _It rolled in faster, so the friends began to run._

 _A lightning blasted down, and it was twisted into shapes. Juliet stared at it in astonishment. She had never seen lightning behave like that…_

 _She pointed, yelling for her friends to look. They only stared back in confusion._

 _An eye opened in the storm._

* * *

"Hold on!" Domino interrupted. "An eye?"

"What do you mean by _shapes_?"

Juliet shook. "They were just… distorted shapes… almost like… a human."

"That's… I would say absurd." Domino's eyes blinked at a rapid pace. "But I believe you."

"I don't know why I use human to describe it. It just seemed… appropriate."

"And the eye?"

Juliet closed her own eyes. "Yeah."

* * *

 _The iris of the eye was the blaring lightning, and the pupil deep black, like the storm clouds, or something beyond._

 _Juliet could sense something pulsing from within. She wasn't sure what it was… but only one thing._

 _It had feelings. It was alive._

 _A stream of pain ran through her mind._

 _Being a kid, she didn't know what it was, but the curiosity was wiped out by the sharp headache, and she screamed and ran toward home._

 _Her friends were still looking at her in confusion._

" _Juliet? Are you okay?" Her sister asked._

 _She turned around, eyes filled with horror and pointed at the eye, which had switched its vision from her to something else…_

 _They followed her stare. to the raincloud._

" _That's just the storm."_

 _Nothing._

 _Juliet backed away in fear and ran toward home, screaming. The eye traced its glance back to her._

 _Her mind was clouded. She didn't remember the rest._

 _She just remembered lying in the hospital for nearly a week. Even though she wasn't rained on, she still caught some bug._

 _In the same week, thirty-six people died. All scientists. All prestigious elites._

* * *

Domino's head snapped up.

She remembered the situation seven years ago. She was just taken in by the Team. She remembered reading about the news.

When she asked Giovanni about it, his reply was ambiguous.

"It's the start of something else."

The start.

The start of what? A guess floated onto her mind, but she didn't want to voice it.

At least, not like this.

* * *

 _Rumors of a serial killer, of scandals, of countless conspiracy theories flooded Mossdeep._

 _The deaths were mysterious. Their brain waves just stopped. There were no injuries. It was as if their life force was sucked up._

 _It was the same night that Juliet awoken when she gained her psychic powers._

* * *

"Hold on!" Domino stopped her. "You're saying that you got your psychic powers after you witnessed a weird storm and got a flu?"

Juliet looked down. "Yeah… I don't know what that was about either."

Domino narrowed her eyes. That was too coincidental… too miraculous.

She tried to stare into her eyes, but found that their rays were gliding off. She wasn't staring back.

Domino sat back. "Continue."

"That's it." Juliet paused. "The jobs were shut down because of the deaths. Programs were closed, and employment rates pummelled. The space program stopped for almost four years until they opened again a few years back. My family moved to Sinnoh because of that."

Domino knew the rest, and the 'official' report of the story. The Hoenn League announced that it was an assassin of Team Aqua.

Giovanni didn't believe it. Why? Because he had the underground reports.

One of the scientist was an Aqua spy… the lieutenant leader, in fact.

Rocket had hacked into the Aqua website and intercepted a message from him… or two pictures, to be exact.

Domino had seen the picture before. A distorted humanoid shadow.

In the first picture, it was on a computer screen. It had one eye, much like a Cyclops. It eyes were pure black, except with a ring of bright lightning that could light up even the darkest space.

In the second picture… it wasn't on a screen anymore. It was floating in front of them. Its shape was dripping with blood, the blood of the scientists around him. The background was a blood-stained lab, with limbs smearing the ground.

The figure's shadow was a lot less dense than the first picture… but the most significant feature…

His eye was gone… as if it was scooped out violently with a spoon.

* * *

Domino looked at the girl. She was shaking in emotion. Pain, fright, sadness. Relief?

She thought about what Ash would have done. Then Domino got up and pulled the girl into a hug.

She decided to postpone the interrogation for the specifics to later.

For now, Juliet was just a fellow psychic in need of some assurance, of some sympathy from someone who had experienced just as much.

For the first time, the blonde found herself fine with not knowing the entirety.

* * *

 **A/N: Enjoy.**

 **Poll Result: Orange Island would be written… but, of course, not conventionally.**


	71. Cha 70: Kanto 60

**Cha. 70**

 **A/N: Finally… Semi-Finals!**

* * *

Ash smirked at Domino, who was sitting right beside him in the resting room. That meant that they weren't paired together for the next battle.

Good.

His girl smiled back. Gary was in the other room, along with…

This was going to be very interesting.

Ash pressed her to him. She stared back with those big, purple eyes, her face trailing with a cute expression, and rubbed herself against him.

Feeling the warmth in his arms and the smell of strawberry in his nose, Ash gently touched her cheeks.

"Destroy 'em." He whispered.

The blonde responded by pulling him into a kiss.

League Semi-Finals. Here they came.

* * *

When Ash walked out, he half expected a speech to occur. The infuriating, though nonetheless catchy, Rocket speech.

He was quite surprised, actually, that the trio made it this far… After all, from their performance last timeline, it wasn't quite hopeful for the three.

Times changed, and so do the people…

However, he did not hear the repetitive Rocket speech echoing in his ears. Instead, he was greeted by an even more familiar cry of "Ashy boy!", a phrase that had stuck with him since he was…

Well, before pre-school.

A pulse of Aura into his eyes allowed him to clearly look across the field. He could even count the freckles on his opponent's face, with his neat hair pushed back by the substantial amount of gel he placed on.

Nope, Gary had not changed a single bit.

Ash smirked. "What's up, Gar-bear!"

The Oak boy winced at the comment. Good Arceus, Ash had become more and more feisty…

His face turned to a slight pink, before he pushed it down by raising his voice and holding up a Pokéball. "Ready to lose?"

Pikachu jumped down onto a table next to Ash and allowed a loud streams of _pika_ 's into the arena.

Gary looked down at his Pokédex for a translation.

" _I can take out your entire team in six moves._ "

He looked back up with a smile. "I'll like to see you try."

His calm tone, aiming to cover up his nervousness, was betrayed by his slightly shaking hands.

Gary didn't know how strong Pikachu was in this timeline. He had set up plans after plans to counter all of Ash's known Pokémon.

He even found one for Lucario, if Ash decided to use him.

But Pikachu… there was no solution.

The Electric mouse was the only Pokémon on Ash's team to not have lost a single battle throughout this timeline.

Not in Gym Battles. Not with random challenges. Not with their sparring in the ranch. Not in Dexter's simulations.

Not even in his battle with Giratina. The two separated after a few dozens of exchanges, neither passing out.

No one truly knew how powerful Pikachu. Hell, Gary didn't think even Ash knew.

He gripped his Pokéball harder and signalled Goodshow. Across the field, Ash lied a packet of ketchup next to his starter and did the same.

Pikachu's eyes flashed and tored the packet open.

Seeing the signs from both ends, Goodshow nodded and raised his flags.

"To the east is Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town." He motioned to the said trainer. "Mr. Ketchum is definitely one of this year's biggest twists, tearing through the rankings and battles with the grace not evident on usual first-year trainers!"

The crowd applauded loudly. Ash turned and waved to them. During the entire process though, he was staring at his childhood friend across the field.

"To the west is Gary Oak of Pallet!" Goodshow turned the other direction. "He is the grandson of the ex-Champion and current Professor Samuel Oak! And most of all, he is another powerful twists that quaked the rankings!"

"How will these two first year elites match up!?" Goodshow raised the flag high into the air. The white of them shone brightly against the beaming sun.

"We shall find out!" He swiped them down furiously. "BEGIN!"

* * *

Ash and Gary, staring at each other during the entire battle, eyes glowing brighter and brighter, moved at the same time.

Both chucked their Pokéball into the field with extreme might as if they were the pitchers for a national baseball championship.

Ash's cracked opened to show Butterfree, who zoomed into the air in a pattern of delightful flashes.

He only took a look downward after he gained dozens of feet skyward.

Blastoise.

Butterfree whistled. Water Type.

His best move was a Solarbeam… Grass variant of Hyper Beam…

This shall be fun.

Gary raised an eyebrow. "Wow! Ash Ketchum playing by Type advantages?"

"No. This is just a coincidence." Ash denied the accusation. "You know how often that happens around me."

"True, true!" Gary nodded.

"Blastoise! Hydro…"

Without Ash's command, a giant bolt of Solarbeam zoomed downward. Its sizzling sound crackled in the air. Its bright yellow almost covered Blastoise's entire vision.

Before his trainer had to say anything, Blastoise's cannons pointed forward and released a torrent of ionized water.

The water spread out into layers of mirrors that had air in between each layer.

As the beam struck, something magical occured.

It separated into many strands as it hit the water, instead of burning through. As it traveled, it became less and less concentrated.

" _Refraction of water?_ " Butterfree echoed.

The refraction of water is a natural phenomenon of water that curved light rays as it broke into the water surface. Blastoise's multiple layers refracts the beam into strands, which kept refracting into weaker strands everytime it passed another layer, which eventually made the attack useless.

" _Yep!_ " Blastoise smirked. " _Didn't see that one coming, did you?_ "

" _Actually, I did._ " Butterfree vibrated into a large cloud of purple and white that hovered above Blastoise's head.

" _We had a battle along the way, and a Turtle actually used this move against Domino._ "

The diffracted beams of rays suddenly expanded, turning the entire pool of water into layers of shining crystal that blinded Blastoise for just a second.

A precious second.

In the short moment, dozens of swear words ran through Blastoise's mind. This was not good. He immediately extracted his limbs into his shell with Withdraw and tried to Aqua Jet off to elsewhere.

A blink before the attack hit, he could feel the scorching heat on his shell. Even though this was a Grass Attack, it was still just as searing as a Blast Burn.

Blastoise knew his shell was tough… but was it tough enough on the scale of a boosted Solarbeam?

In the eyes of the crowd, a giant Solarbeam the diameter of a pine tree smashed against the exterior of the Turtle Pokémon and blasted him across the arena to the other side.

Butterfree didn't waste any time though. He darted through the air, following the parabolic motion of the airbound shell.

Normal Air Cutters won't work. He needed something more impactful to finish the job.

The shell finally slammed into the ground, bringing up a curtain of dust. Butterfree didn't hesitate to release his charged Bug Buzz into the mist.

The crowd gasped. The floor of the arena was constructed with a layer of steel plate. To reach the dirt level, the flying Blastoise had to first break through the metal…

Butterfree felt that his attack hit something solid, and its texture wasn't as smooth as the steel, or as dispersible as the dirt.

He smirked, knowing that his opponent was probably stunned, even for a second, by the series of blasts. He hovered in the air, preparing his ultimate weapon.

Just then, his insectile compound eyes caught the figure of Blastoise dashing out behind him, and he wasn't coming out of the mist.

A list of possibilities ran through the Butterfly's mind as he tried to frantically dodge. He was only glanced by the heavy opponent, fortunately.

Unfortunately, he had no momentum left to evade the following point-blank Hydro Pump that blasted his weightless body across the field.

Just like what he had done to Blastoise before.

He smashed against the wall. During that short period of travel, he understood what tactic his seemingly thick opponent utilized.

When he struck the ground, Blastoise had the discipline to keep his mind running and not be stunned. Instead, he replaced his figure with a Substitute and used dig on the soft ground he created to get to right below him.

When Butterfree detected striking the solid matter, it was only the Substitute that popped, and the Bug made the mistake of stopping to charge an attack.

That resulted in Blastoise bursting out of the ground, and the rest followed.

That Turtle was not thick at all.

* * *

The two Pokémon stood on each side of the field, panting. Neither actually received a clear lead from the previous exchange… and they were both already down half health.

The battles between strong Pokémon were extremely deadly. One attack that came from a beast like them could take down a majority of their strength. Unlike weaker Pokémon.

In the latter case, the Pokémon could hit each other dozens of times with Tackle, and they were still a mile from ending the conflict.

Powerful Pokémon were different. They were dangerous.

Butterfree flew into motion first, again. This time, he flew at a supersonic speed, merging straight into the air, flying so fast Blastoise couldn't even see with his naked eye.

He didn't have to.

The Turtle summoned a pool of condensed fog above his head that reached halfway to the ceiling. Then, a deep layer of water was deposited on top of his head.

It was silence for a whole minute.

Ash sat back and smirked at Gary. The Oak boy frowned.

He couldn't see anything wrong with Blastoise's tactic. The fog was to detect Butterfree's movements, and the water was to slow him down significantly if the Bug decided to soar down.

Ash saw with Aura Sight the light-green energy charging to a full glowing ball. It began to charge downwards from the ceiling. He chuckled.

Blastoise's expression instantly changed to a look of shock and horror. His fog of mist was torn apart in a snap, the water around the incoming projectile vaporized as it arrived. Nothing provided friction at all.

At the last second though, a powerful glow surged out from within Blastoise. It pushed apart even Butterfree's incoming form.

As Butterfree was forced aside, he instantly identified the potent energy.

" _Mega Evolution!?_ "

"Of course!" Gary smirked. "It's my field of study."

Butterfree made a circle and decided to ascend. A stream of powerful Hydro Cannon followed his shape. Around him, seven more pillars pulsed up.

Skillfully dodging all of them, getting glanced by only one, he looked down to find the Mega Form.

His shell bulged out, a mean looking cannon stuck into the sky and was firing Water Attacks at him repeatedly.

Butterfree chirped a bit.

" _I didn't think I had to use my super move against you…_ " He sighed. " _Too bad water creates immense friction._ "

Before Butterfree, a blinding glow formed. Without having to look down at his Pokédex, Gary could predict the message.

"Blastoise! PASSION! NOW!"

Mega Blastoise growled and slammed his chest with his arms. " _THE FIRE, THE ENVY, THE DICTATING ARISTOCRACY!_ "

" _TODAY, I SHALL PROPOSE TO THE WORLD THE FINAL UNITY OF US, AND LEAD THE AGE TO THE NEW AGE OF PASSION!_ "

" _SUNPLOSION!_ " Butterfree's dazzling sphere, as if a million beams of sunrays were condensed in one, shot down at Mega Blastoise. As the ball trailed through the air, it sizzled and was pushed away like a race boat in the high seas.

" _PASSION NOW!_ " The cannons on Mega Blastoise's back spun faster than jet turbines, and gallons after gallons were poured out like they were just cups. All of the water materialized to form… a missile.

Within the turbulent, roaring water, a spirit of undying will and determination filled the inside. It zoomed straight toward the incoming ray of deadly flare, and the two contacted.

A massive steam explosion instantly filled the arena. Even with the newly installed machines, the steam were being released faster than it could be redirected.

Dozens of League Psychic Pokémon teleported on top of the arena, energy streaming every to remove the steam, which was being generated at a surreal speed by the second.

After minutes of such work, the water vapor finally cleared. In the air, all of the psychics brushed off a forehead of sweat and disappeared.

On the ground of the field lied a Butterfree.

Next to him was a regular Blastoise, with a Mega Stone on top of his stomach.

Both unconscious.

* * *

Gary took in a deep breath.

Blastoise was his starter… Butterfree… was only in the Top Ten on Ash's team.

The marsh was deeper than he had predicted.

Much deeper.

He held up the second Pokéball. "I'll go first?"

"If you want." Ash gestured. "After you."

A Scizor materialized in the field, glowing in shining red armor. The Ketchum boy gave it some thought, and he clicked his fingers. "I'm assuming she is a fighting expert?"

Gary crossed his arms. "I don't know, Ashy-boy. Are you right?"

Across from Scizor, Lucario materialized. Gary shook slightly.

The second in command on Ash's team…

A Iron Defense flashed over the Steel Type, and he took on an ancient combat stance carefully.

Scizor dashed forward and aimed for the first strike. With her glowing claws, she fired a Crabhammer at Lucario.

The Aura Pokémon crossed his arms to block out the attack, which splashed across his defense without damage.

It was a decoil, however. The Pincer Pokémon's follow-up arrived as she sliced a Sacred Sword with her right and a Night Slash with her left, aiming for Lucario's upper and lower body.

Lucario had long expected this. A High Jump Kick pierced through the Night Slash and forced his opponent back, breaking the flow of the Sacred Sword.

As Scizor struggled to land, Lucario placed his feet down, treading a large step to arrive in front of her.

A Force Palm was sent down, which Scizor managed to block out by striking a Swords Dance to the inside of Lucario's elbow, forcing the strike to bend before it came in reach of Scizor.

Lucario's other hand followed with a Sky Uppercut, which made Scizor step back to counter by firing Pin Missiles at his chest.

By then, the other hand cycled around with a Protect, blocking the stream of tiny weapons. The hand previously executing Sky Uppercut slammed back down.

This time, instead of a single attack, the blue glow broke into five globes, covering all of Scizor's potential escape path.

The Bug Type was being pulled near Lucario's body with an Aura manipulation of air, creating a torrent that was trapping him.

The five globes were about to strike him when Scizor lit up with a bright light that made the Aura Spheres pop and the mini-whirlwind disappear.

Lucario was forced back a step. The glow was super familiar. In fact, he could recognized the light in any situation.

The light of Mega-Evolution.

"You have another Mega Stone!?" Ash cried.

"Of course I do!" Gary said proudly. "Why else would I arrive two months late to the ranch?"

"Does every one of your Pokémon have a Mega Stone?" Ash deadpanned.

"Is every one of yours insane?" Gary struck back.

"Good comeback."

"Anyday."

Though they were talking in seeming relaxation, Gary's mind was spinning. Lucario was a Pokémon from ancient warfare. His combat experience could not be topped… or at least not by his own Pokémon.

Like Ash had correctly guessed, Scizor was a fighting Pokémon specialized in near-ranged attacks. By taking away close combat, she lost nearly all ways of attacking.

But she couldn't stay in and keep fighting, because Lucario could easily overpower her.

Gary sighed. He silently hoped that the power boost would allow Scizor to take some great advantage… or at least balance out the lack of experience for an increase in power.

Lucario watched the Mega Evolution with indifference. Trying to overpower him in terms of energy?

How naive.

Not exaggeratedly speaking, probably the only Pokémon who could battle him in close-range and match him for both power, wits, and experience is Regigigas.

Actually, the leader of the Titans was a Formation, so Lucario, in his current form, might even back down in the race of power.

But a Scizor? Even Mega Evolved, she was…

A pair of scissor-like constructs slashed into his face at nearly twice the speed as before.

Lucario didn't blink. Instead, he put up a Protect shield that shook violently under the Double Edge, but it failed to make even a crack in the defense.

Mega Scizor used the recoil to bounce into the sky to prepare an even greater X-Scissor.

Using the time for the ascent and free fall, Lucario finished his own planning as well.

" _You're not Genesect yet!_ " Lucario shouted and raised his paw.

In his palm, there was a super-condensed ball of Aura the size of a ping pong ball. " _I'm not Butterfree. I don't need to take an hour to charge an attack and pass out from the kickback._ "

The ball flew into the air toward the falling Mega Scizor.

Gary yelled. "Dodge! Dodge! Dodge!"

However, it was easier said than done. There was no place in the air to provide a solid land for her to change direction. Abandoning the charged up moved, she barely managed to slide a feet to the left with Quick Attack in midair, with the Aura ball slicing past her.

Gary wiped off a bead of sweat. Sometimes, watching his Pokémon battle was more stressful than him giving a speech in front of the Kanto Scientist Board…

A gigantic boom sounded just as his attention wavered slightly.

A mushroom cloud rose out of space Scizor was in, and the red Pokémon was blasted straight into the root of the fungi.

In a flash, Gary understood what happened. The Aura Sphere could be controlled by Lucario himself, meaning that the explosion was from… Explosion!

A blue hue shone from the clouded area, dust and pieces of ground flying everywhere.

He could hear the ringing of metal, the sound of a Steel fist hitting a tough scale… In only twenty seconds, Gary's keystone stopped glowing, signalling that his Pokémon had passed out.

Out from the cloud, Lucario walked with an unconscious Scizor in one hand and a red-dotted Mega Stone in the other.

He bowed slightly and walked back.

Gary looked at Lucario for longer than necessary. The Aura Pokémon didn't even have a bruise… he didn't even look tired!

* * *

Lucario…

Gary traced the Pokémon as he Returned himself, while Ash got out another ball. The action didn't provide a sense of relief, but just further anxiousness.

He had to battle, and defeat, the beast somehow…

He was down one Pokémon. Ash still had five, one of them Lucario, the other… Pikachu.

He closed his eyes. Last timeline, he was his best friend, next to Blastoise. Gary had leaned on him a lot… more than he would like to admit… maybe even more than he leaned on Blastoise.

The Pokéball was thrown. A swarm of lights later, the Dark Eeveelution landed in the field.

"Umbreon." Dexter stated.

Ash gave the Pokédex a glance and turned back. "Knew that was coming."

Should he do it? It wasn't the safest choice, but…

When did Ash Ketchum ever care about security?

"Dratini!"

The old saying goes: When in doubt, Pikachu.

…

Dratini was his closest sidekick. He could trump this, couldn't he?

The cute Dragon Pokémon landed on the field and stuck his tongue out.

Umbreon was on full alert. He looked past the adoring exterior in a second. Within, he detected waves after waves of power and… something else.

The something else became a invisible vine that dug deep into his mind and pulled. Hard.

Umbreon wasn't a psychic, so he couldn't see the images, but he could still… feel it, somehow. It was as if the image was being inserted into his mind on his own, but Dratini wasn't Psychic Type…

Then, he saw red. A burning flash of anger overwhelmed his mind.

The Dark Type suddenly dashed forward, against Gary's commands, and launch out a Dark Pulse.

Dratini easily dodged it and placed on a sly smile.

Ash smiled as well. The choice wasn't risky at all. He was Mespirit's grandson, the great Emotion Bender.

Umbreon's frustration seemed only to increase with the attack, and he roared. A Night Slash fired out at Dratini, which passed by without harm.

Gary stared at the mess in confusion. This scene… how familiar.

His mind trailed back to the last timeline. Ash's battle with Ritchie. Charizard not cooperating…

Now, it was his turn? He looked at Umbreon helplessly.

But… Umbreon was his most dedicated Pokémon… his most loyal… it was he and Blastoise, his left and right hands.

He reached a quick conclusion. It was the Dratini that was doing this. Gary strained his mind to find a psychic attack that could result in a similar consequence… nothing.

Psychic attacks couldn't even affect Umbreon, a Dark Type! His thoughts expanded into all different kinds of moves.

Nothing.

Umbreon was getting out of control. Gary had a slight drop of tear in his eyes.

"Please! Umbreon! Listen to me!"

In the field, the Dark Type slowed in his movements. A warm sound wormed its way into his mind, begging for him to stop, to be logical.

A look at Dratini's sly expression made him go bonkers again. He roared and tried for a tackle, which only made him land in the hole that Blastoise had previously made from falling down, to which Dratini strategically lured him.

Gary, seeing his dearest Pokémon becoming so… non-himself, a surge of pain shot through his heart. He kind of understood now what Ash had to deal with all the time with…

"Umbreon! Please, I'm begging you!" He screamed out. "Break out of the spell. I know you can."

"You're my dearest Pokémon! You're like, you're like…"

Umbreon poked his head out of the hole, shaking in the cloudiness of his mind, ambivalence of his thoughts, and the lack of control over his actions.

The voice… it was so emotional, so desperate, so… paternal.

"You're like a son to me, Umbreon."

The voice shot a loud bang through his head. His wandering thoughts gathered at once. His attention zoomed back, as if Arceus had just spoken "There shall be light."

 _I'm like a son to him._

A burst of sharp will pushed the mysterious energy out of his mind. The invisible vine that had inserted its roots into his brain was pushed out violently, straight back into Dratini.

From the outside, his eyes, which had turned crimson, began to switch back to their natural silky cherry, with pupils of blackness that resembled the depth of his determination.

In Ash's box, Pikachu stood up for the first time.

It wasn't surprising to him that Mega Blastoise and Butterfree had a double-out, or Lucario beat up the Mega Scizor.

But this… breaking out of Dratini's emotional link required a powerful will that most Pokémon never had with their trainer, even those who had been together for decades.

It wasn't expected. It was the power of emotions, or thoughts, or will.

And it wasn't a emotion that was fueled into a move through a long time of training or practice. This was on the spot. This was a true miracle.

Pikachu liked miracles. In fact, he even saw on Umbreon a shadow of himself, his empowered self.

Ash noticed the same thing and sighed. Pikachu rubbed his side against Ash's arm.

" _Depressed?_ "

"Kind of. The advantage is gone."

In the field, Umbreon locked onto Dratini, his eyes drilling a hole into the blue Dragon.

" _You've angered me…_ "

Dratini gulped slightly and stepped back. This had never happened before… What should he do!?

He never dealt with this dangerous situations! Usually, he casted the emotion manipulation, and everything was set! Dratini never bothered the Pokémon whom he knew would break out, and no one else whom he was sure of without the capability to break out never did.

Until today.

He watched powerlessly as a wave of Dark Energy condensed into a cloud of blackness that surrounded him. Black strands crackled, and Dratini felt a powerful presence enter his mind.

Not his emotion powers, but the powers of…

Dratini fell to the ground, laying motionlessly. Umbreon walked toward him. When he reached his destination, he placed a paw onto the Dragon's forehead.

A few seconds later, he removed it. In its place, a dark pawprint emerged. When Umbreon peeled open the Dragon's eyelids, there were swirls.

* * *

 **A/N: 2 Pokémon down for both sides. Ash obviously not casting in his most powerful… that would be saved for an even more important battle.**

 **This is actually pretty balanced. Gary is just as good of a trainer if you discount the insanities known as the Big Three:**

 **Pikachu, Lucario, Dexter.**

 **Wait, Dexter?**

 **Yes, the Arceus-created Pokémon… usually, a God-created Pokémon would be called… hmmm… let me think back to Kanto 18… Cosmics? Formation?**

 **Hmmm…**


	72. Cha 71: Kanto 61

**Cha. 71**

 **A/N: Part 2… who shall win? *Chuckles. The journey is worth more than the destination.**

* * *

Ash strolled into the arena, Pikachu on his shoulders, Lucario half a step behind him. Gary was already calmly sitting in his box. In his hands, four Pokéballs twirled.

Seeing the both of them had head back from the break, Goodshow picked the microphone up again.

"The break is now over, and let us switch to the second part of the battle."

"Currently, Mr. Ketchum on the east field is down two Pokémon, and so is Mr. Oak on the west. This is a very tight battle with no clear advantage."  
"Let us… begin!"

"I'll go first." Ash said lightly. A Pokéball was tossed into the air, and Bulbasaur landed.

When in doubt, Pikachu. When aiming for adaptability, Bulbasaur.

Bulbasaur sat on the fourth seat in Ash's team, especially after the Living Forest he had shown in the last battle.

Are there legendaries more powerful than him? Yes. Are there Pokémon more insane than him? Of course.

Power was not insanity.

However, outside of the Top Three, Bulbasaur could be thrown into the most dangerous environment with another team member.

The last to remain standing, in any situation, would be Bulbasaur… because he was the master of strategy and counters.

Out of Gary's hands, a Pokéball flew into the air. A burst of flame dashed down from above straight for Bulbasaur.

A giant hand carved out of rocks, with a size of a mobile home, slammed into the shape. Even though the hand seemed burdensome, it moved at a speed even faster than the Arcanine who was charged with Flare Blitz.

Before the Fire Type can react, he was thrown back across the field, pressed against the stone construct.

He roared. A Flame Burst exploded from his mouth, shattering the construct, and making him land quite harshly in the corner of the arena.

A wave of tranquility and wondrousness swept over Bulbasaur. His eyes suddenly lost its focus. From it, a power far greater than average elite Pokémon soared out…

Because it was the power of a strand beyond reality… the aura of life.

An air of peace and vivaciousness projected like a wispy fog on the arena. From the ground, small saplings began to pop out.

Pop out so did Gary's eyes.

"ARCANINE! He is using the Forest move. Get to him RIGHT NOW before he's done!"

Arcanine complied. Zooming at full speed with a brand new Flare Blitz, he raced at Bulbasaur, easily burning through the undeveloped, small trees that filled the arena.

A hundred feet. Fifty feet. Thirty. Ten. Bulbasaur was still sitting in his trance-like state.

Arcanine leapt for his opponent. The last few feet soared past him in a blink. In his mouth, a Flamethrower was lighting up brighter and brighter.

The Fire Pokémon was about to unleash its potency. The Fire Type Attack was ready to burn through the Grass.

Just then, Bulbasaur opened his eyes. He didn't move or dive back like a frantic freak. Instead, he just sat in his spot, unmoving.

What was also unmoving, as if stopped in time, was Arcanine. His posture was kept in the pouncing position, full of grace and energy. The light in his mouth was still burning with the powerful glory it possesses.

He was like the flies of the Mesozoic Era, trapped in amber while still flapping their wings, or the running civilians engulfed by the great Pompey.

In Bulbasaur's eyes, a flash of pink waved.

Pikachu allowed himself some shock. " _I thought psychic attacks were the few things Bulbasaur didn't know!_ "

Ash chuckled. "They certainly do hide a lot of things from us…"

" _You're probably the only trainer who doesn't know the powerfulmoves of his Pokémon._ " Pikachu coughed.

"That is NOT true!" Ash replied pointedly and his sight found a familiar blonde easily. "There's another one right there."

In the field, Bulbasaur closed his eyes again. The midair Arcanine shook, first slightly, then turning into a large vibration.

Even though he didn't seem to be moving, he was forcing all of the Fire Energy he had around his body in a circulation.

The more he opposed the state of complete silence that Bulbasaur casted on him, the faster he could escape.

Therefore, it only took him ten seconds to break out of it. Around him, the saplings sprouted rapidly, and a small forest appeared.

It wasn't as insane as the giant jungle that formed in the last use of Living Forest, since Arcanine didn't give him nearly as much time as the idiots back in preliminaries did.

It was a race against time. If Bulbasaur could finish the construction before Arcanine could touch him, he would have a clear advantage.

On the other hand, Arcanine needed to reach him and knock him out before the forest could expand into a monstrosity that could choke him in a swift stroke.

Using his last grasp on Arcanine, Bulbasaur flung the Fire Type back to his corner, at the outskirts of the forest.

In midair, the Fire Type twisted his body, finally breaking out of the trap. He forced himself down with Heavy Slam and landed in the middle of the forest, wiping out a bush and a few small trees from the impact.

Vines immediately went after him. A mist descended, trying to mess with his sight. Using his last view of the direction from which he was tossed, Arcanine Flame Wheeled in that direction.

The vines burned to a crisp as they near him, unable to screw with his path. The mist offered no obstruction.

In front of him, a log dropped from nowhere. Instead of hopping over, Arcanine allowed a breath of Fire Blast that blew the wood into pieces.

A Magical Wind came form within the foliage. The splinters formed a rough storm that was blown toward the advancing Pokémon.

The wind also suppressed the fire energy on his body, forcing him to stop the charge.

" _HEAT WAVE!_ "

A similar Fire Type wind neutralized the Grass Wind, and his Fire Energy swept past the splinters, burning them to ash.

He dashed a dozen feet forward again. When he landed, he was eighty feet away from the Grass Type.

Calculations ran through his mind. Now, he was only forty feet away.

This was good, and not good.

It was good because he was distracting Bulbasaur from finishing the forest. The Grass Type had to deal with his advancements, so he couldn't concentrate on the growth.

It was not good because he was approaching the heart of the forest. The attacks were growing stronger by the second. Instead of dealing with vines that he could burn off easily, he was facing Razor Leaves that had a waxy covering that required immense temperature to incinerate.

He had to get to Bulbasaur fast. If the Seed Pokémon progressed his forest to the point of Frenzy Plant, he was screwed.

Burning on maximum efficiency, Arcanine poured flames from his mouth. The trees were only double his size at halfway, but it was more than triple here. Further, he could see trees four times, five times his height.

The powerful flame seared through the mist and the wood, burning through a semi-circle clearing that had a ten-feet diameter.

Arcanine leapt onto the tree-less space. However, before he could land, a sharp, wooden nail the size of a normal tree stuck out directly under him.

" _Heat Crash!_ "

The Fire Type roared and smashed down. The Grass Energy did not feel good against his pelt, but he nonetheless disintegrated the wood into dust.

He stumbled a bit before he landed and allowed two precious seconds to pant.

He was burning through his fire reservoir very quickly here. His eyes traced their way into the forest. The mist was disturbing him slightly, but he could still see the silhouette of a small figure carrying the bulb of a plant in the distance.

Thirty feet.

As he entered into the checkpoint, a relaxing smell filled his nostrils that made him want to lay down. A quick series of lullaby, sung by the parents to their children in bed, echoed through the forest.

Spore. Grass Knot.

Inferno!

Arcanine didn't use the Fire move on anything, but himself. The fire energy shot into his mind, waking him up instantly and releasing a giant dosage of adrenaline that made him zoomed rapidly through the hole of the still-closing array of Petal Blizzard.

Twenty feet.

His vision was now lined with tall pine trees soaring up to twenty-five feet. The six in front of him collapsed, transferring into six powerful Wood Hammers that slammed down.

Before they could trap him in a single spot, Arcanine soared up in an elegant performance of Aerial Ace, flying straight toward the three powerful attacks on the right.

The frightening sound of heavy objects traveling through the air filled his eardrums, and the intense wind that cut across his face didn't affect his heart at all.

His eyes lit up, and so did his mouth.

In the box looking at the combat with Aura Sight, Ash let out a sound of praise and approval.

Normal Pokémon would undoubtedly step back if they had to face six immensely powerful attacks head on. However, if they stepped back in this situation, Bulbasaur could get a moment of rest, allowing even more cycles of attacks after attacks that would eventually trap them to defeat.

For the extremely tough or resolute Pokémon, they could choose to defend, but that would also give Bulbasaur a second of immobility that would develop into an exponentially growing disadvantage.

Arcanine made the right decision. He continued his journey and soared straight toward the attacks.

When pressed for time or matched with an equally skilled Pokémon, the winner would always be the more ruthless one… or in other words, the more courageous one.

Arcanine couldn't stop. So he didn't. He had a relentless heart, and so he pursued.

The Fire Type met the three Wood Hammers behind him with an extremely charged Incinerate. The fire flowed through his body perfectly. He placed his soul and spirit into this attack.

Looking back, he didn't think he had ever fired an Incinerate this beautifully.

This had to be beautiful. It must charge through the wood without any recoil, if he didn't want to be knocked back into the other three Hammers.

And the flame, powered by his undying fury, indeed swept through the Wood Hammers. They turned into dust and disappeared into the wind, just like the darkness being chased away by the first light of sunrise.

Arcanine landed. His front legs almost gave out as he landed. He shook violently, and goosebumps ran through his body.

His energy was tight, and the devotion he put in for the last Fire Attack almost ripped through his mind.

The tightening and release on his brain created a tension that pierced his concentration.

The three Wood Hammers fell behind him, the closest being only a feet away from where he was standing.

Arcanine allowed himself five seconds to push down the feeling of vomiting. Then, his head raised.

Ten feet.

One pounce.

He was so close he could see the details on Bulbasaur's body. The flashing green energy coating him, the shining spots, his pulsing bulb, and a pair of hard, cavernous eyes.

In front of the Grass Type, a torrent of crazy wood formation and giant roots burst out, forming a rigorous abomination that twists and turned cruelly, protesting against the limits of the ground.

Frenzy Plant. Grass Type variant of Hyper Beam. The ultimate attack smashed against Arcanine.

A flash of determination and ruthlessness shone from Arcanine's eyes. He was ruthless in fights. He was ruthless to opponents, but even more so to himself.

He charged straight against the Grass energy. It was a regular, Normal charge, not even a Flare Blitz.

He needed all his energy for the following move… the counter of Frenzy Plant…

BLAST BURN!

A crazy, wild, concentrated pool of light flooded out of his mouth. It melted into the roots, which dissolved instead of burning.

A mix of chemicals created a smell of charring that spread through the forest, covering up the Aromatherapy Bulbasaur set for himself.

Ash's acknowledgement of type advantages was that they didn't mean jack. This cognition was fully passed onto his Pokémon…

And today, this lack came to bite him in the ass.

The Fire Energy burned through the Frenzy Plant after ten seconds of immobility, the Blast Burn pushed the wall of wood and roots back further and further, before it finally gave out and burned up.

A hole appeared out of it, and Arcanine dived into the hole.

He could see Bulbasaur across the hole. He looked so weak, so vulnerable after the stress of setting up the forest, after the recoil of that Frenzy Plant.

He was weak too, but he still had one strike inside him, and he shall turn that strike into a resilient Fusion Flare that shall…

The thoughts flashed across his mind rapidly in less than the blink of an eye.

What was faster was Bulbasaur Solarbeam that crashed out of the hole and into Arcanine.

The Fire Type saw the intense yellow coming, but he had no time to react. They were too close…

It hit him, and the beam already carried him outward ten feet before he could barely adjust his body. The flash hurt his eyes, his body… but most of all, his heart.

They were SO close!

Bulbasaur had beated him to the last strike. The Grass Type knew he was on his last strand, just like Arcanine knew the same about him.

A deep disappointment and sorrow flowed through him as Arcanine was carried outward, past the Wood Hammer hole, past the burnt vine, past the outskirts, to slam onto the invisible psychic shield at the corner… where he started.

When the dust cleared… he was unconscious.

Goodshow swiped the white flag down on Ash's side. The forest dropped and converted back to precious Grass Energy that flowed into Bulbasaur, supporting him from the stress of the last attack without passing out.

Ash gave his Pokémon a delightful smile, and the Grass Type Returned himself.

* * *

Gary sighed. He wasn't disappointed in his Pokémon, by no means. He was disappointed at the twist of fate.

Ash…

He shook the thoughts from his head and held up another ball. It flashed open, and Electivire materialized in the field.

The Electric Type took on a defensive stance and looked cautiously at Ash's side.

Pikachu picked up Dexter and placed in Ash's hands.

Ash gave his starter a surprised look. "I thought you were about to fetch your own Pokéball."

" _Nah._ " Pikachu responded proudly. " _I already beated him before. It's not fun double tagging._ "

The Pokédex was chucked into the field. A flash later, Porygon2 appeared.

Dexter shot a look at Electivire and smirked. A light shone over him. A second later, he was covered in a brown hue.

The brown hue of an Earthquake.

Right over, Dexter used will-o-wisp on himself, turning him into a Ghost Subtype as well.

Gary's eyes twitched… and kept twitching.

Electivire's entire moveset was built literally around Electric and Fighting moves…

"Even though we don't care about type advantage, that's only saying that Ash and I are strong enough to beat through any type effectiveness." Dexter gave Electivire a not-very-humble look. "Unfortunately, you're not Pikachu."

Electivire growled in response. He was angry… very angry, but he knew Dexter was right.

He had sparred with Pikachu…'s Substitute.

He lost.

The Thunderbolt Pokémon looked deeply at the Ground Typing. He didn't have any moves against that…

His trainer knew that as well. Gary raised his head at Ash in frustration. "You're literally cheating!"

"What?" Ash responded innocently. "I didn't even complain when you used the Mega Stones."

"That's different!" Gary shouted. "Those were actually for your legendaries… and you didn't even bother!"

"All of my team are legendaries." Ash responded calmly. A deep sense of pride and confidence leaked out and pulsed through the arena. "Some just stepping further on the Path than others."

Gary winced. His childhood friend wasn't wrong… but Dexter wasn't just the level of a Medieval Legend… which was the PROBLEM!

Electivire had to do something… so something he did.

He rushed forward to deliver an Ice Punch… and a black hole materialized in front of him.

"To at least show you some respect, I'll put up a show of the Continuum."

The Ice Type Energy fell into the sucking black hole… and then Electivire fell in as well.

The sound of explosions sounded. A while later, Electivire was spat out, unconscious.

Dexter dusted his hands and turned back to Pokédex form. It levitated back to Ash.

"That was a good way to relieve some stress." Dexter sounded. "Thanks Pikachu."

"Are you sure you don't need to brush off some extra electricity?"

" _Nope. Lucario asked me already when he went out to brush off steam._ " Pikachu shrugged. " _But I do have too much energy. I also solidified, like, twenty Thunderstones in my stomach already._ "

"Isn't that called kidney stones?" Ash rubbed his forehead. His Pokémon are so weird…

Well, to be specific, those three are so weird… even Ash got amazed at the insanity that popped out of them sometimes…

He even got used to WARTORTLE! All the Water Type ever did was just blending passion with attacks… that was hard, but not tooooooo elite.

Pikachu… well…

* * *

Gary sunk further into his elbows… he knew there was a gap between Ash and himself, but he had always thought the gap to be tiny.

The first three battles confirmed that… and then the trump cards were thrown.

Ash was just trading his common cards for his elite cards… and if that was only a tie… he could only imagine what the final showdown was like.

He took a deep breath. This was the last battle. He still had his most powerful Pokémon, his ultimate card…

He looked over at Ash. If Pikachu came out, it was going to be a definite loss.

If an average card came… that would be a different story.

Wrong tone. That would be a different story?

Gary opened his eyes and pulled out a Pokéball specially marked with a streak of dark purple. In his other hand was a giant, purple Mega Stone.

He threw the ball. The light of materialization flooded out and created a giant formation in the field. When it died down, a giant Gengar showed.

The same Gengar from the Pokéatlantis.

Ash took in a deep breath. He felt a bit shaken…

So THIS is what happened to the third giant…

Then… the Giant Gengar shone with a beam of intense purple light, and he grew even larger. Ash had to raise his head at a painful angle to look at him.

"You have a MEGA STONE for Gengar? And it WORKS!?"

The Giant Mega Gengar had two magnified arms that grew out from beside him. His size soared up to forty feet, and the dark streaks that marked his existence as an Ancient Pokémon became even darker.

Wave after wave of energy pulsed out unconsciously. Being in the field, Ash had the most sensative feel for that. However, as the energy tried to seep in his box, his eyes lit with a blue gleam.

At the same time, Pikachu's tail flashed with a bright yellow, brighter than the sun's rays, brighter than natural electricity, threatening to replace nature with his will.

Dexter, too, had a pure white around him. It was whiter than Absol's fur, purer than the Arctic Ice. It was as white as Santa's beard and as pure as Arceus's mane.

Lucario's paws lit with a deep blue similar to Ash's. His was even more solid, and images of countless scenes, of creation, appeared and disappeared, like the vernal fireflies, in the orb.

The four energy shredded the invading Ghost energy into nothing instantly.

Pikachu let out a slight chirp and stood up. NOW his interest was peaked. Before he could open his mouth for the predictable request, Lucario pressed the yellow mouse down.

" _I should go! I went already for the Mega Scizor battle._ " Lucario gave a fierce look masked by pretended concern for Pikachu. " _Pikachu needs to rest his body for your battle with Dom._ "

" _He always says he is the trump card!_ "

Pikachu growled under his paw and swiped it away with Iron Tail. Lucario continued. " _Therefore, Pikachu MUST NOT be exposed._ "

" _Next round would be against DOMINO! There's literally nothing to hide._ " The starter rolled his eyes. " _Fine. Take it. I don't care._ "

"I DO!" Dexter had a pole hologramize on his Pokédex. "I want this one!"

" _You ran off the field yourself voluntarily!_ "

Dexter was about to protest, before Ash intercepted. "Lucario has a point. You can't go back straight away. It's against the League rules."

"Why, Arceus, why!?" Dexter's pole waved around in dejection and suffering. "I get one Electivire that I sucked into a black hole, and he gets a Giant Mega Gengar the level of a TOP ANCIENT that none of us besides Pikachu had gotten to fight!"

Lucario stepped out onto the field. His body began to glow in a piercing light as the purple gem on Ash's staff and his own Mega Stone flooded with power.

His body began to expand, spikes formed, his Aura zoomed into the sky. He was still only a quarter the size of the giant Gengar, but the Aura behind his back solidified as the Mega transformation completed.

Its radiance became an enlarged figure of Lucario that soared up to Mega Gengar's height, even topping it by a little, with its face masked. A potent brilliance streamed through Mega Lucario's body. He felt that he could destroy a mountain if he had to.

Hell, he could even destroy this planet… too bad the illusion won't become true until he Realized the last step.

Realization is so hard, Mega Lucario muttered, and then he pulled his focus back to the giant figure in front.

Immense energy pulsed out both both ends, and their Aura clashed in the space between, distorting it in the process.

Neither was doing it on purpose. It was the sheer overflow of force that created whirlpools of energy that swirled around them.

If a regular Pokémon even stepped into the field, they would lose control of their body and be tossed around the arena until they're unconscious.

THAT is the true power of Top Ancients.

* * *

 **A/N: Sorry guys. The epic battle of Giant Mega Gengar vs Mega Lucario shall be postponed to tomorrow. I'm not going to just fit it into a few pages. It is historic enough to have its own page.**


	73. Cha 72: Kanto 62

**Cha. 72**

 **A/N:**

* * *

Night had arrived.

Not night. No, it was still bright noon.

But the dark cloud that hovered above the arena could make anyone mistaken it to be the end of twilight and the beginning of the next phase.

The opposite blue hue wasn't much more radiant. Its translucent navy was like the opaque red lining the setting sun that merged into the waters in the distance.

But it was still noon.

Mysterious and unwilling.

Mega Lucario and Mega Gengar didn't move rapidly like the previous Pokémon. Their battle was going to be long, so getting the first hit didn't even matter as much.

It was much more important to not lose control of their peace and discipline.

From the cloud of blue, giant spheres of Aura rained down toward the purple Giant. Torrents of Shadow Balls smashed right into them, puncturing every attack.

A swirl of energy whirled around the arena and crashed against the force field. Dozens of psychic Pokémon materialized outside of the field and began to pump energy into it.

The field shook, and their face looked like sheets of paper.

Their face began to whiten, and they stared uncontrollably in shock at the two Megas inside.

The crowd, if they weren't impressed before by the invisible competition of energy, surely allowed their jaws to drop at the current demonstration of magnificence.

Mega Lucario's gaze turned more solid. The face of his tall Aura Construct became clearer.

Mega Gengar was most certainly the most powerful opponent he had faced since being broken out of the seal of the staff.

The staff.

To show his respect, Mega Lucario pulled it out, and it extended to match his size. A similar staff appeared in the hands of the Construct.

This Giant demanded his full attention… and full attention he shall receive.

A powerful disposition of strength rose from him and pushed toward Mega Gengar, as if trying to crush his opponent's will to battle.

Mega Gengar shone with purple light, and his gigantic stature seemed to expand even larger. The same will for competition, for a true fight surged out and clashed with Mega Lucario's Aura, creating another torrent of energy.

It smashed against the field again, and all thirty psychics spat out a mouthful of blood.

The two in the field didn't care. All of their mind was on the other. They didn't meet someone that matched their strength this perfectly everyday.

The League quickly switched psychics, but no one gave them even a look.

The two in the field moved again. With each stroke, it was as if the tsunamis moved with them.

Dark Pulse crashed against Force Palm, Swords Dance met Shadow Sneak.

Their giant size didn't seem to affect their speed at all. In a mere second, the giants switched from completely stationary to completely in motion.

The sharp contrast was as graceful as the moon's path, but also as suppressing as constipation, as if something was stuck in the audience's throat, not moving up, not moving down.

Wave after waves of power streamed down and crashed in the field. The metal plates below their feet had long been crushed like tinfoil.

Dust spewed up like a sandstorm.

There was no trickery in their attacks, just straight, raw power attacks. It was a show of respect, but also a show of determination.

It was a show of respect.

They fought because they respected each other. Neither thought dishonorable deceits were appropriate.

Because then, even if they won, what was the real point? A victory due to deception? That didn't prove anything.

It was a show of determination.

Each attack smashed against each other harder and harder. There was nothing to soften the blow.

The recoil of each punch, of each slash, of each headbutt, sent pain down the bodies of the two Megas. But neither backed off.

They each silently raised their fists again after the last exchange.

Mega Lucario's face was holy, even sacred. It was the endless desire for power that made even staring at him too long sacrilegious. A pure glow of Aura shone again, his expression unmoving, his jaws tight.

Mega Gengar was nothing different. His sleep-filled eyes from being unconscious the past two thousand years were wide open. Beams of purple zapped out from within.

This was the most powerful he had ever been. More powerful than two thousand years ago, because he now had a power-up. A power-up known as Mega Evolution.

Purple matched blue, and lights flew. The sand rose higher.

More than that, it was a show of the ultimate spirit of Pokémon battling.

The attacks clashed like the ancient battle of Groudon and Kyogre, filled with the beauty of strength and the magnificence of a longing to become…

The Ultimate.

Waves of power smashed quicker and quicker. Gary didn't give any commands. He couldn't.

His own Alakazam had teleported him out of the arena already, and his face was pale as he stared into the arena.

He couldn't stay in the trainer's box. Why? It had long collapsed under the waves of after-effects.

He couldn't see anything. The dust had risen up past the heads of both Pokémon. The League psychics are being switched out quicker and quicker, and the battlefield shook.

Domino furrowed her brow. She wasn't in the resting room anymore. Instead, she was outside, next to the group.

She shot a concerned look at the psychics in the sky. This was a battle of Top Ancients… they were both only half a step from becoming Formation.

Not even a full step. A half.

Even the residue could wipe away the entire League. The battles of Groudon and Kyogre reshaped ancient Earth…

She panned a look through the crowd, and her eyes turned cold again. That wasn't her problem. It was the League's.

Goodshow wasn't in the referee stand anymore. Instead, he was up in Professor Oak's box, along with the Kanto Elite Four.

He had never seen anything like this…

Of course he hadn't. No one had since a thousand years ago.

But he knew one thing. They had to stop. In the past minutes, half of the League psychics already fell.

They were trying to stop the wave of power of two Ancients. Falling into severe injury seemed to be the most straightforward cost of trying to stop the after effects of them.

This was the distance between normal Pokémon and Ancients. They were Ancients. A mysterious and potent power.

Oak's forehead was twisted into a knot. The Elite Four were all staring at him, waiting for a solution.

Celebi was out of the game, courtesy of Raikou, so…

He looked up at the experienced old man, one of the few elders older than him. "What do you think?"

A Pokéball was in Goodshow's hands. No one knew when it appeared. It just appeared, like most powerful and unexplained things in the world.

The President rested a weighty glance in the battlefield. "This world is about to change."

"And it's only the semi-finals." Dr. Fuji sounded.

The Elite Four looked at each other, not knowing what to say. They were elite trainers, hence their title.

But this… this was out of their hands.

Oak's hand holding his Pokédex trembled slightly, a rare tremble that hadn't been due to a nervous fluster for twenty years. Goodshow gripped the Pokéball tighter.

Within the battlefield, the dust cloud had already blocked the audience's sight. The only thing they could see was flashes of purple and blue, with loud booms that crashed against their eardrums, and the visible ripples of the slim wall between them and the direct pressure of the attacks.

By now, more and more people were noticing the falling psychics, and the dangers of the battle. Less and less was their attraction for the battle, and more and more were standing up in an uncontrolled panic.

Humanity was a species of incredulity. For example, their emotions could spread faster than the fastest psychic links.

Sometimes, it was good, just like the time of new years. Sometimes, it led to stampedes.

A pink bubble encovered Domino and the group, including Juliet.

"Do you have any way to stop this?" A weak voice sounded.

Domino didn't bother turning back her head. If she did, they would see that her face was shining with the special seriousness that was only present when she was a Rocket Elite.

"No."

The response was short and clear. It didn't just express self-doubt. It was a direct negatory that killed any chance of a progression in the communication.

"Why not?" The voice, however, was unwilling for accept such a simple answer.

"Because…" Domino turned around and looked tiringly at Misty. She usually wasn't this weak, or blabbing. But sometimes, for the flowers in the greenhouse, dangerous situations tend to crush the exterior of pride into useless fear.

Domino wasn't a protected flower. She was the pine that stood on the snowy peak. She had lasted through blizzards and avalanches, so she could cast a glance down into the world, into the arena without fear. "They can't stop."

" _The fights between Top Ancients can't be stopped this easily. Groudon and Kyogre didn't stop until Rayquazza knocked both of them out. Dialga and Palkia didn't stop until Arceus punched the lights out of them. Even Moltres and Articuno… they didn't stop until Lugia Aeroblasted them to unconsciousness._ "

No one knew when Mew popped out. She floated in the circle calmly. " _Even if Ash and Gary told them to stop, they couldn't. They're locked in a battle of power. They one who backed down would be punished by having his heart, his soul broken… it is a sign of weakness._ "

" _They could never step into ranks of Formation if they're weak… because Formations aren't weak._ " Mew fell into silence. Brock opened his mouth, and the pink psychic stopped him. She knew what he was going to say.

" _No, I can't be the one who knock them out. That would require my use of Formation power… and it would most likely destroy Indigo Plateau._ " She casted her eyes onto the shield. " _I can maintain the field for longer, but they had to stop on their own._ "

" _And the audience…_ " Her eyes traveled to the panicking people. " _That's for the League to handle._ "

Officer Jennys finally arrived. Their speed was usually very fast, but compared to the advancement of the battle, they weren't fast enough.

The crowd was beginning to be ushered off the arena, but getting thousands of people out was no easy deal.

Domino caught a familiar figure in the distance and pulled him into her bubble.

Gary.

His face was deathly pale. He never knew his Gengar could be this powerful… all he wanted now was for the battle to stop.

This was the cost of not knowing his Pokémon. Sometimes, the consequence could be bored, like the teen currently still standing in his box in the field, because he had already bored so much.

Sometimes, it couldn't, like the tiny bird that had been shadowed under the great tree known as Oak.

Domino gave him a look. Maybe it was the coldness seeping out unknowingly, or the determination in her eyes, the glance made Gary shut up.

A new coat of pink energy covered the field, and it stabilized immediately. Next to Domino, Mew shook ever so slightly.

The Elite stroke the pink cat lovingly.

She didn't think she had to put on her Elite face, even if she was at League. Afterall, she was with Ash.

Another bubble teleported next to her. She turned her head in slight surprise. She didn't think anyone else had strong enough of a heart to remain seated…

Domino looked at the exit and shook her head. Then she turned to the other side.

The sight of the three trios surprised her, but it was kind of expected, in a weird way. A purple cat stood next to them.

She stared at them for a little while.

Domino then gave a light smile. "If you guys don't mind, have Mewtwo help a little too."

The trios nodded. Mewtwo pulsed out a dark pink, a little different from Mew's, and lit up on the force field.

Mew opened her eyes and looked at the familiar sense. The same genetics between the two beams of energy made the connection of the two perfectly natural.

" _Congrats._ "

" _Thank you._ "

"Congrats." Domino said to the three.

The trios looked at each other in shock and delight. Was that… an acknowledgement?

"Thank you."

Two different congratulations. Two different thank you's.

The first was for Mewtwo successfully being cloned, and then for thanking Mew for teaching him with her written manuels.

The second was for commending the trios for finally sprouting on the high cliffs, a little behind the tall pine in the distance. The gratitude was for… not calling them idiots.

She turned back to the battlefield.

She thought it was partially because of Ash she had to dig her strength up again.

Ash. Her sight penetrated the thick covering of the dusts and onto the box in the field.

He was sitting cross-legged on the chair. Pikachu was beside him, a coat of yellow on the walls of the box. Next to the mouse, a Porygon2 had a pure white to swirled, erasing away any residue that landed.

Ash was quite comfortable… until a mental voice broke into his mind.

Domino.

He smirked and was about to voice his new joke, before she sent a mental image into his mind.

The mental image of the outside. Ash's eyebrows raised.

He couldn't see out of his box, because of the swirling dust. He only had Pikachu and Dexter do enough to stabilize the walls, but he didn't interfere.

It was against League rules.

He saw the shaking of the walls, and he realized that maybe the battle had gone too far.

Dexter suddenly spoke up next to him. "Professor Oak just texted. He said he needed you to stop."

It was a short summary, but sufficient enough when combined with Domino's mental image.

Ash sighed. He knew why she didn't stop him. He needed to stop his own conflict.

He turned to Pikachu.

The Electric mouse nodded. He darted out like a lightning, shooting straight for Mega Gengar.

His starter wasn't a Formation… so he couldn't collapse the world… because he didn't have his Field yet. So what?

Pikachu crashed into Giant Mega Gengar. He was pulsing out a Shadow Ball.

Pikachu spat out his ketchup-flavored gum, which popped the Ghost Energy.

The mouse continued to smash deeper into the Ghost form with his Volt Tackle.

An immense yellow light shot out of the dust and overwhelmed all of the purple and blue.

Mew and Mewtwo's face both paled for a second.

When the yellow light disappeared, the purple did too. Gary's Mega Stone stopped glowing.

A second later, the yellow shone again. When it disappeared for the second time, the blue was gone as well.

Ash's staff stopped shining.

It flashed for the third time, and the dust cleared. On the ground was two Pokéballs, sitting behind a nonchalant Pikachu.

Gary stared at his belt in surprise, not knowing when Gengar's Pokéball was taken. Domino waved her hand and said one word.

"Thief."

The ground looked as if a giant hand had taken a shovel and stabbed it with it.

Levels after levels of dirt were sliced off, and the battlefield sunk down ten feet. Ash's box was the only thing that stood at the normal level, which made it look like an awkward pillar, lonely and special.

And prideful.

Just like a tall, snowy pine tree.

The two Pokéball flew into two directions, one to Ash and one to Gary.

In the Professor box, Oak's hands relaxed. Goodshow didn't seem to be gripping his Pokéball as hard. They didn't show any expression, unlike the shocked Elite Four.

Goodshow turned to Oak. "You're a good teacher."

Professor Oak shook his head. "It's not me."

* * *

 **A/N: It wasn't a battle. It was a symbol.**


	74. Cha 73: Kanto 63

**Cha. 73**

It was the third day since the battle.

For the past numerous hours, the entire League was in constant meeting, trying to figure out a way to deal with the situation.

Destruction of arena. Wildspread panic. Limit on strength of Pokemon battling. Additional rules. Terroristic intentions. Lance's proposal to have certain people jailed. Professor Oak breaking the table…

The results had just come out. It was really the last thing on the immediate agenda, which did not include Lorelei's bill on obtaining an official ice cream maker for 'tranquilizing and soothing minds for more productive activity.'

It still got passed though.

The League counted Mega Lucario and Gengar's battle to be a tie. Ash still won, because Gary reported in on the second day to have surrendered the battle.

* * *

These were unknown to the group of trainers who had been gathered at the League Building for the last dozen of hours.

Rocket Trio, Domino, Ash.

They weren't jailed, by no means, because each one of them had the ability to break out in one form or the other.

They would've still broken out if they didn't know who the owner of the office they were sitting was.

* * *

Domino, sitting on the recliner directly facing the TV popped her gum. She didn't know when she became in love with gum. Either way, she was addicted to it now. She couldn't last a day without a least a strip.

She casted a look at the Rocket Trios, who were sitting in a couch far enough from her to show respect, but close enough, to, well… because she didn't mind.

Her look wasn't of mocking or even carelessness. It was a look of examination that she rarely used, because no one deserved it.

The Trio's gaze met with each other and communicated rapidly, almost as rapid as her and Ash's sacred connection.

Domino took in their entire posture, eyes boring into their minds. The wind outside blew slightly, relieving the room of some of the warm heat that was on the border of being annoying.

The typical early heat wave signalling summer. The TV was playing a silent film, chosen for the exact reason as its adjective.

Talking wasn't required. The show was an excuse for the minds to not recognize the atmosphere as awkward.

Domino didn't tried to touch into their brains anymore. She tried that when she was first impriso… invited. A soft purple energy blocked her back. Soft but firm, much like Zorua's tuft of hair on her head.

It had its own pride, its own will. She could guess who that was.

She detected two similar energy as powerful as the previous on the three, but she didn't bother to dig them up. Everyone had secrets… plus she didn't think their could trump hers.

Those three had grown up… eight years late, but she'll take it.

* * *

When Domino was seven and had just finished her Elite training, Giovanni told her a story.

She was the youngest ever to become a Rocket Elite. The record was eight, until she broke it.

Even for her, that was a big achievement. It filled her heart with pride.

Pride. It was the one emotion she couldn't wipe out. Sadness, happiness, excitement… those could all be controlled.

Pride was too precious. It was what fueled her.

When she got her qualifications, she felt like she was standing on the clouds, able to touch even the highest stars. She was the one who would watch the people beneath her feet pass through the streets, while the night wind blow on her face three thousand feet up.

Because, she, is Domino.

Giovanni told her a story.

Many years ago, there was a mountain. The mountain was high.

The mountain was very high. At the foot of the peak was a village. The people of the village dedicated their lives to climbing, as if that was their only job… their destiny.

Most people gave up when they reached the unpassable ravine a few hundred feet from the ground.

Only five in a hundred people were determined enough to step onto the slim wooden log that shook in the violent wind, the only 'bridge' that connected both sides.

Perhaps, it was because no one could see the invisible net only a few feet below.

However, there were a few blind people who crossed successfully… in fact, there were a few more blind people who crossed than normal people.

There were more grinding afterwards. Climbing and endless climbing. Once in a while someone fell down.

Very rarely do they climb back up… Giovanni said he had only seen one person do so.

The next test came at the halfway point.

As the altitude increased, the temperature decreased. Giovanni called that an inverse relationship.

At the time, Domino didn't know what a dictionary was… it was a past she didn't want to recall…

As the temperature decreased, snow started falling.

Hikers began to pull on their winter coat. It made them heavy, or clumsy, Giovanni said. They fell at a faster rate.

Some began to turn back. Others stopped there and started to chop trees, and then they built themselves a cozy cabin. The plan was, they could warm up, and they would continue.

However, it was hard to leave comfort. Why should you keep climbing when you have a comfortable bed, cozy fire, protective walls around you? The windows were a perfect gateway to the beautiful scene outside. You were already standing at a height most people would never get to.

Plus, the cabin did take quite long to build…

Especially when you turned around to look at your partner with whom you struck up a conversion during the climb, laying so comfortably in the cabin you just built…

Others trudged by silently pass the cabins. They kept climbing.

There were less and less houses… and fancier and fancier. Eventually, they stopped too before the third pass and built a mansion.

Afterall, the higher up, the more land and less competition… hence more wood, more comfort.

The higher up, the older the cabins. Maybe they were out of use already, their resident gone, having dived into the river of time for a swim.

Even better. They could usurp theirs to add to their property as well.

Eventually, there was a line of constructions along the third pass, forming into a Great Wall that discouraged anyone from entering the third pass.

"COWARDS!"

Giovanni spat on her brand new carpet when he got to that part of the story. She stared at him, not understanding what her fluffy carpet had done to him.

Persian released an Ember to burn it off… she ended up staring at a burnt hole surrounded by fluffy pink.

There was a traveler standing by the line that separated and second and third pass.

A chick. Giovanni called. A pure, white, inexperienced, protected, snowy baby chicken. The only thing that separated it and the obese rats hiding in their cozy slumber hole was that the chick casted its gaze onto the path beyond it.

It stepped onto the path. It was blown back. Its gentle head was smashed against a cabin door, and it passed out.

One of the rats living within came out and retrieved it, feeding it some warm soup and tendering it.

Eventually it became part of the rat family. It became fat as well… and became shaped more and more like a rat…

The next chicken arrived, and was blown back.

So was the fourth, the fifth…

Until time passed, and a new wave struck onto the beaches.

A chick arrived on the third pass. When the signature wind blew her back, she opened her wings.

Instead of being blown back, she soared into the head wind, gaining speed and altitude, and learned to fly.

Then, she smashed into a sharp piece of rock and was squashed.

…

Another wave of time arrived. It was a chick of the most beautiful white, and she also learned to fly.

She was squashed by an avalanche.

…

An eagle watched from his nest a way up. It was a simple nest, cozy enough to lay some eggs, hatch some babies, and teach them the real way to fly.

She stood high already. Very high…

She couldn't even see the village below. They were in two different world. She could spread her black feathers and dive down if she wanted to… she didn't.

Life was good… until a pinecone dropped on his head, and he died of a concussion.

The pine tree, standing thousands of feet above the eagle, laughed uncontrollably at the bird. It was too funny.

He was at the REAL peak. Everything below him was just a joke in his eyes.

Eventually, the timberline decided to move down, and the tree died of the lack of oxygen.

The fourth pass.

* * *

Giovanni stopped. Domino stopped listening.

She knew why he stopped. He knew she was worrying more about the burnt carpet than the rest of the story. It didn't quite pertain to her anyways.

That night, she ordered some grunts to replace her carpet with another brand new carpet. This one was in purple.

The next morning, she went on her first code black mission. Her feathers were white when she exited the Headquarters.

When she returned the Friday of that week, her clothes were tattered and stained with blood. Most of the liquid was her enemies… there were a few rare drops of hers as well.

Killing an entire base full of Aqua wasn't as easy as Giovanni made it… she decided she needed to ask him for some extra reimbursement to get herself a nice treat.

Giovanni gave her a pine cone.

* * *

It was quite surprising though… but Domino was used to surprises. In her perspective, if a cute bunny like Gary could obtain Gengar, the time travelers of her own Team Rocket had to at least beat the League!

She looked at the Rocket officers. Her lips curled up. She was satisfied enough.

Bunnies were cute, but eagles were better, although they were more prone to getting squashed by a pinecone.

She spoke up. "You did well."  
The three's eyes shot up in unison.

Domino shut her own eyes. "You didn't lose face for me."

The three glistened. She finished. "Unlike Gary."

A shout of protest came from the side. "Not everyone is as experienced as you!"

Domino rolled her eyes and tipped her head back to look at her boyfriend. "All I know is, you lost this one."  
Ash was about to retort when the door flew open.

A figure entered and shut the door behind him.

The Trios stood up immediately. Ash turned his body fully toward the intruder. Domino tilted her head the other way.

Well, he wasn't really an intruder… since it was his Viridian Gym Leader Office…

* * *

"We… meet again?" Ash broke the silence first. Giovanni didn't respond and went over to his desk. He didn't speak until he made sure he found a comfortable spot and lied.

He first turned to the Rocket Trios and nodded. "You did well."

The three's mouth dropped. Those three words did not come out of the Rocket Boss's mouth easily… especially not when it mirrored what his daughter said a minute before.

They must have done really well…

Giovanni then turned to Domino. "Get them through Commanders trainer. Make sure they don't get killed by Magma on their qualification mission."

"On a second thought," He then let out a thin smirk. "It would be pretty hard to subdue Mewtwo."

Domino nodded and wrote something down. She said tersely. "Congratulations."

The three's mouth fell. They didn't even have time to marvel at what just happen.

Then Giovanni turned to Ash.

"On the other hand, you did not do so well."

* * *

Ash's eyes twitched. For some reason, he didn't want to argue. Therefore, he fell into silence.

Want to, or some other reason?

"I'm not sure you understand this, but the Indigo League is a piece of complete shit, filled with morons." Giovanni started his rant. "After Oak and Fuji left, the only one good decent here is Goodshow… and he only has so many years to live."

"How do you expect them to have something that will protect against two freaking TOP ANCIENTS!? That's like trying to… have a gunfight in a children's playground!"

In Giovanni's mind, there wasn't much of a difference between League and a playground.

Ash sighed. "I didn't think they're THIS weak…"

"Well, they are." The Rocket Boss deadpanned. "Now I have to be involved in hours of meetings signing useless documents because the scared League officials are too afraid to continue this year's League."

"DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH PAPERWORK THAT IS!?"

"WAIT, WHAT!?" Domino and Ash yelled at the same time. "THEY'RE NOT CONTINUING!?"

"OF course NOT!" He shouted back. "Knowing you two Arceus-chosen freaks, who knows whether if you are going to pull out a Dialga going against a Giratina!?"

"OH WAIT! Someone has already used Giratina!"

Giovanni slammed his fist against the desk and shouted bitterly. "I hate being Viridian Gym Leader. The League is unconstitutional! Even Rocket tortures aren't this cruel and unusual! Fuck paperwork!"

The five exchanged glances.

"In fact, I'm handing in my resignation form tomorrow! Screw this!" Giovanni flipped open his door and stormed out.

"Ummm…"

"I've nev'r seen Boss dis pissed."

"Me neither."

"He's just getting older."

"He's forty."

"Oh yeah…"

"WAIT GIOVANNI IS ONLY FORTY?"

"I don't believe it either..."

* * *

Whe Rocket Boss came back, he was much calmer. He motioned everyone to sit down. Behind him, five floating ice cream was levitated into the hands of the five.

"Free ice cream from ice cream machine." He said briefly. "Lorelei's bill got passed… only good thing out of the past two days."  
Domino took her cone and began licking, followed suited by the rest.

Giovanni looked them and began.

"Once upon a time, there was a mountain…"

* * *

Ash stared at his feet, thinking. The trios stared at the carpet. Domino stared at the ceiling.

Giovanni looked at each one of their faces. "You're not the chicks learning to fly anymore. You're not even the eagle, because there aren't any pinecones that could squash you."

"You're the snowy pine up in the top of the cliff, a root away from the uncontrolled timberline."

"So STOP thinking about the crude and vulgar competitions the rats are hosting and and focus on your fight with the powers out of this world!"

"Your job is to go against the unbeatable timberline, the nonexisting oxygen, and use your photosynthesis to fill the air with oxygen."

"Seriously, is it really that fun to throw pinecones down at rats that aren't even in four, five level below you? There's literally no sense to participate in League competitions. That's like a grown man fighting a three-year-old… NO SENSE!"

"So you five." Giovanni waved his arm. "Get your asses out of this competition and go find something better to do."

"Reports came in that Orange Islands are being really strange lately. Go do some investigation!"

" _I'm not in Team Rocket._ " A voice on Ash's shoulder sounded.

"I wasn't asking from the perspective of the Head of Team Rocket." Giovanni turned to Pikachu. "I'm demanding it from the perspective from your trainer's father-in-law."

" _Fair enough._ "

* * *

 **A/N: End of Kanto.**


	75. Cha 74: Kanto Reflection

**Kanto Reflection**

 **Flash of the Past**

When I first started this fanfic in the June of 2017, I was a very novice writer. I still am, but hopefully a little better.

Nonetheless, I trumped through all of the barriers of writing (time, writer's block, unproductive reviews…) by telling myself that I love to write, to create a world of my own.

For those of you who hadn't guessed, I'm in high school. In fact, at the date of this writing, I'm a rising senior. People always say junior year is the hardest. I agree.

I stopped writing for nearly 8 months from September until June, which I believe to be one of my most regretful decisions. But thankfully, a pair of invisible wings have led me back to writing.

Literally, I have a recording of myself that I listen to that tells me how passionate I am about writing. It is my goal to write at least 10 pages a day.

For the old readers who have stepped through time to stick with this fanfic, thank you. Memory is the most powerful force in any beings, so thank you for letting me be a piece of your memory.

The duo will learn that soon.

* * *

 **Future**

My fanfic is not like regular fanfiction. The end of Kanto is probably also the end of regular Pokémon. From now on, there will be a lot of crazy ideas and abstract concepts flying around. Moves won't be as important, or normal Pokémon mechanics.

Sole Pokémon itself isn't big enough to room the dreams I have. Kids dream big. I hope I can let this dream out before reality crushes it. I can't wait to step out from under the umbrella.

I am serious about the abstract concepts part. I will make sure to do a better job explaining. Kanto is only a peek of the levels and powers I had planned for the upcoming arcs.

In Orange Islands, I will go into precise detail about the ranks of power and all of that. All you guys will need to do is remember the holes that I've planted.

Kanto did not actually come out as great as I had it in my heart. I will one day go back and revise a lot of the scenes to make it more emotional.

One day.

As of now, let us all look to a bright future that will start in the next week. I need a week to get together some of the drafts and plans I have.

Don't worry, there will still be filler posts, but they will be short. Precise, funny, and fuzzy. That's what I'm aiming for.

Ash and Domino will need a short break for the revelation of a new world.

Get comfy on that cushion.

* * *

 **At the end, I would like to devote special gratitude to two of my readers.**

UltimateCCC- Ultimate is one of my first ever readers and my most common reviewer. Thank you man for all of the support you put behind me. You might not have thought much when you reviewed, but your reviews did a lot more than you can ever imagine for me. It pushed me to be a better author. I thank you deeply.

Chessmasteroftheuniverse- He is the most active reader after I've restarted this fic a month ago. He had PMed me frequently, and he is also one of my most frequent reviewer. In addition, he devoted his precious time to creating a TV Tropes page for Sign of Times. For that, I thank you dearly.

tvtropes (dot org/) pmwiki /Signofthetimes /Fanfictionstorytropes

Cut out the spaces because the site doesn't allow normal posting of the https.

I hope all of you will continue to read and follow me. Thank you for your attention.

Crator OUT!


	76. Cha 75: Short Piece 1

**Pikapi**

Ash gave a last look at the pokemon, and then at his starter. "Are you SURE you can handle them?"

" _Of course I can handle them!_ " Pikachu waved his tail. " _Go and enjoy your bi-anniversary!_ "

"Yeah, let go!" Domino smirked excitedly and tightened her hold on Ash's hand. "Half a year doesn't come every year!"

"That doesn't even make sense!"

" _Nothing does in your life, Ash._ " Zorua chirped out from beside Pikachu. " _Seriously, Pika and I this!_ "

"You two better." Ash gave them a final stern look. "If Professor Oak comes back and find his ranch trashed, he's probably going to trash me."

" _I miss Tracey._ " Pikachu sighed. " _If he was here, we could just enslave him and have him be the guard dog._ "

" _Who's Tracey?_ " Zorua headbutted her mate.

" _You'll meet him very soon._ "

Ash quickly pulled the tangent back to the topic. "Remember, I give you full permission to Thunderbolt every pokemon if they get out of line."

" _Can't wait until they get out of line…_ "

"..."

"LET'S GO!" Domino dragged her blabbing boyfriend to a customized, purple and blue Ferrari on the road. "What is there to worry anyways!?"

"Because both of our pokemon are INSANE!?" Ash remarked sarcastically. "Lucario almost destroyed Indigo Plateau!"

"First, Gary had a part in that too, and I'm pretty sure the ranch is sturdier than the dumbass design of the League." The blonde retorted. "Also, Pikachu and Zorua are both here. I don't see what could possibly happen!"

"You just made a very dangerous flag right there."

From the Ferrari, the driver hopped off, revealing herself to be Jessie. From the opposite, James jumped off as well.

They both opened the door on their side and made a humble gesture.

Domino rolled her eyes and just teleported into the car. Ash, not willing to be one-upped, bounced onto the car with a burst f Aura.

James and Jessie exchanged glances of incredulity and helplessness, before walking back to the front seats.

"Thanks for driving us guys." Ash cleared his throat. "And for a lot of other things…"

"You know I still could have teleported." Domino poked him harshly.

Ash deadpanned. "It ain't a road trip if you teleport. You might as well just teleport us three steps from where we started."

"Still better than dating a boy still without a driver's license!"

"HEY! You're older!" Ash huffed. "And I'm a man!"

"Okay, _man_. And don't you know it's impolite to ask a girl to drive?"

"That's your AGE!"

"Ah well, the Nile is not just a river in Kansas."

"EGYPT!"

* * *

" _LISTEN THE HELL UP BEFORE I RELEASE ZORUA ON YOU!_ " Pikachu raised Zorua, who was standing on the back of his tail. The two pokemon on top of each other were about the size of a… chair.

Nonetheless, everyone snapped the heads in the direction of Pikachu.

Not because they heard his voice, but because of the gigantic clash of thunder that lit up the south of Pallet.

Immediately after, a giant Zorua twice the size of Giant Dragonite expanded into reality.

* * *

Ash turned his head backwards and facepalmed. "So… no problems huh?"

"..."

"You wanna go back?"

"You wanna get slapped?"

"Fight me!"

Pink and blue flashed out of the back of the Ferrari. In the nick of time, a purple energy barrier surrounded the two and created a separate space for them to wrestle in…

* * *

Pikachu flashed a satisfied smile at all the pokemon gathered in front of him. He turned his head skyward.

" _Do you mind shrinking down? I mean… I don't mind you big some of the times, but… it's making my neck hurt right now…_ "

Zorua shrunk herself down as she pouted. Didn't he promise to love her however she was?

" _I have gathered you here, pokemon, because we are a team._ " Pikachu clutched his right fist closed and waved it in the air. Three thousand feet up, a giant ball of lightning the size of Pallet Town formed as he unconsciously placed too much emotion into his movements.

" _To be specific, the KANTO team!_ " He shouted. " _We are all followers of Ash and Domino._ "  
" _Needless to say, they are the Chosen and Queen. Since they will probably encounter so many evils in the future, we will need to be prepare for all of them!_ "

" _Preparation shall start with the smallest detail!_ " Pikachu exclaimed passionately. " _All of the teams have a catchy name. So, we need to trump that!_ "

" _We, together, need a name that shake the world and make the evils bow down to our ferocity and power!_ "

" _We shall call ourselves… the TERMINATORS!_ "

"..."

"..."

* * *

" _Ummm…_ " Kirlia was one of the few pokemon with enough discipline and brain power to be left standing after the initial shock of the… 'name'.

" _Isn't that… a villain?_ "

" _Is there a problem?_ " Zorua looked at her questioningly.

Kirlia tilted her head. " _Actually, not at all. Matching evil with evil… I like it!_ "

" _I protest!_ " Wartortle stood up like a maniac. " _That is not a name that could contain the fury and glory of me! We should be called the Turtle Squad…_ "

A beam of lightning blew up against the Water Type and knocked him into a giant hill.

" _Anymore?_ "

" _Yes!_ " Kangaskhan stood up, eyes sparkling. " _We must be called the Exceptionally-Glorified-Insanity-of-Doomsday's-Upmost-Passionately-Burning-Rage-For-The-Advancement-Of-Life-Liberty-And-The…_ "

Zorua lost her patience, and a torrent of Blast Burn, Solarbeam, Hydro Pump, Thunder, Hyper Beam, and Dark Pulse slammed against him, which pummelled him into the same hill Wartortle landed in.

The entire construct collapsed.

" _Any others?_ " Pikachu asked.

The pokemon all raised their hands.

Pikachu sighed. " _Any others who think I can't knock them out?_ "

All of the hands went down, beside Dragonite's.

Pikachu's eyes narrowed. " _Really?_ "

Dragonite was about to reply, before a yellow blur dashed to the spot between his eyes before he could open his mouth or raise a paw.

A beam of lightning the size of his head slammed into Dragonite.

Three seconds later, the Giant Dragon fell over, unconscious.

Pikachu dusted his hands. " _Anyone else?_ "

Seeing no replies, he smiled in satisfaction. " _In that case, we shall be called the Terminators from now on!_ "

The pokemon shivered.

" _No, this is not a democracy._ " The Electric Mouse stated matter-of-factly. " _This is a monarchy._ "

* * *

 **A/N: THIS IS A MONARCHY! Pikachu's King, Zorua's Queen. Comment on whom you think should be the Prime Minister, Chancellor, and the Big Four Ministers.**


	77. Cha 76: Short Piece 2

**Future**

"I hope so too…" Claire released Liv from their long lasting hug and looked unwillingly to the sky.

It was dimly lit, which made sense because of the twilight. The faint illustrations of the stars began to appear clearer. The big ball of fire disappeared into the west.

If Claire used Aura, she could see past the dust of the universe and to the Butter Path Galaxy, which was where she would have to go to for her graduation mission.

But for now, all she wished to do was to be next to her best friend, leaning on her strong figure. It would be three months without her, and, of course, him.

She didn't understand how her mom and dad could possibly separate for three millennium… maybe this was why they valued each anniversary like crazy.

Didn't they say that was before they got married too!?

The longest long-distance relationship!

Liv knew exactly what she was thinking as soon as Claire made that face. She didn't even bother to use telekinesis.

"You know we'll be fine. It's just going to be a colonizing mission." Liv comforted her. "I'll be at Soundy Beach Galaxy. The two're only a few light years away."

"Yeah. I could just ask mom to teleport me to you…" Her words brought a light smile to Claire's face. "Or you can ask your mom!"

Liv rolled her eyes. "They're freaking Guardians and Protectors. They can't be our transport machines all the time!"

"Welp, the Dark Times have passed. I've heard dad moan about having absolutely nothing to do."

"Well… my parents are normal."

Liv's statement earned her a light punch from Claire.

"Admit it. All of our parents are weird as hell."

The two girls giggled against each other, and then both fell into a short silence.

"Have you said goodbye to Victor yet?"

"Yeah… we managed to keep it short."

Liv cleared her throat. "Three hours of goodbye is not short."

"Well, it's just… he keeps on talking!"

"I highly doubt Victor's the one talking."

Claire huffed. "At least I didn't spend three DAYS crying over MY breakup with Terry."

"That's because you don't have a heart." Liv said a bit bitterly.

Claire, seeing the small wave of hurt, realized she said the wrong thing. She winced a little.

Quickly changing the subject, the blonde reached over to take Liv's hand and pointed at a ring. "Sisters forever, right?"

The blunette knew exactly what she was doing, and she followed the tangent. "Through the end of times."

The girls' hands tightened. End of times. They only knew one friendship that had survived that… and that was the last generation.

End of times. Their parents had both expressed how dramatic it was, and how much they didn't want them to experience it.

Thinking about the solemn history always made them a little grim. Claire looked Liv in the eyes and whispered in a low tone. "Do you think… there will an end of times for us too?"

"I don't know. Probably not. They destroyed it a long time ago." She sighed. "But I do know, if the end does come… there's always someone taller than us who will lift the sky in case it falls."

"Hopefully."

A loud beep interrupted the girls' speculation. They looked up, and a giant spaceship seemed to have materialized on top of their heads.

"Claire! Get your bouncy ass up here before I come down!" A dark-skinned boy wearing a hat with a rock logo popped out of the driver window.

The spaceship was quite small. The technology at this point was much more advanced than her parents' time. Spaceships are powered by space-time energy, and could travel astronomical miles instantly.

Claire smirked as she remembered her mom talk about how they needed to use giant rockets to get one person onto the moon…

Her sight traced past the spaceship to the giant block of white cheese floating opposite of the setting sun. Humanity had already converted the moon to a giant industrial factory.

Her dad said that it wasn't until the invasion of…

"Need I repeat myself!?" The boy demanded. "Do you know how much power this costs by hovering here!? Let me tell you! It costs almost 0.000000000000…"

"Shut your trap! Do you want me to jump up there and sew your hole close?"

"I'll see you try, Miss non-adult!"

Claire huffed. "So what your parents bore you two years earlier? Huh, Tom? Now you're just a freaking chauffeur for the rest of the group."

"At least I get paid." The boy deadpanned. "Seriously, get up here before the sun goes down."

"That doesn't make shit sense."

"Watch your fucking language!" Claire jumped up into the automobile.

The spaceship disappeared in a flash. Liv sighed.

Her life was so weird… too bad it couldn't get weirder. Her parents took out all of the weirdness in this world already.

* * *

After what seemed like an hour of bickering, the spaceship appeared on mountain range. Claire breathed. "Thank **God**! I don't have to look at the hole under your nose open again."

"You always talk too much." Tom retorted and opened the door. "Be careful of…"

Claire didn't finish listening and stepped out with a burst of Aura. "I know, I know…"

Suddenly, she felt herself being dragged down at almost five times the acceleration as she was used to from jumping off cliffs.

Her face paled, and she slammed into a dirt hill before she could react.

"... the gravity." Tom finished and facepalmed. "We're at a planet five times earth's size… blondie."

"HEY! You could've told me that before you watch me eat dirt!" Claire hopped back up with blue. She felt herself sink a little, and more Aura was pumped up."

"I WAS TRYING!" Tom threw his hands in the air. "Anyways, your task is to just follow the leader here's rules and help. It's also a training with your Aura abilities. You're restricted from wearing protective suits."

Claire's eyes lit up in fire. It had been so long since her power were tested and challenged.

"This was a task directly assigned down the League by your father." Tom finished. When speaking of Claire's father, a respectful look appeared on his face.

The girl was used to the look. When facing the normal population, they were even more serious. They look was almost holy…

"Even if you want to quit, you can't. There is no suits here. Plus, five G won't kill you… just severe torture."

"Finally! I haven't been tortured for so long!" Claire shouted excitingly. She covered her mouth once she finished comprehending what she just said.

Tom shook his head. "If you don't have anything else, I'm going to leave before I'm overwhelmed by the desire to rip my eyes and ears out."

"Wait!" Claire's mind ran rapidly. Even though she chose against psychic, she was still extremely smart in, well, most things. "If it's five Gs, then how can anyone here do any work?"

"Go take a look for yourself, Miss Genius." Tom smirked and pointed in a direction. "I'm pretty sure you'll understand once you see who's colonizing the place."

The spaceship flashed out. Claire looked with immense curiosity after the direction of his gesture.

Then she realized that she was 'stranded' in a mountaintop. Tom had left her on a FREAKING mountaintop.

She pointed at the sky and swore pointlessly, before dashing off at the speed of Raikou into the direction of Tom's motion.

When Claire flipped over the last hill, her jaw dropped.

Now she knew why he said to look for herself.

A Lucario the size of a mountain itself was making a giant… farm?

Each swing of the hoe created a deep strip that stretched on for miles.

She could recognize him from anywhere… he was the uncle she played with she was young…

Dad's demand, Lucario, Aura training.

Claire connected the dots quickly.

This was her punishment for being late to school and getting caught by Professor Giselle Yuto.

… even her mother was in with the decision, as she decided once she saw a giant Gardevoir fly by, dripping down megatons of rain onto Lucario's field.

Oh yeah… mom was pretty mad that she was slow enough to be caught.

She looked helplessly at her surroundings. Insane pokemon, no wasn't training…

THIS WAS CHILD ABUSE!

" _You're not wrong._ " A yellow mouse appeared in front of her from nowhere. He was wearing a purple scarf that dropped from his neck to become a purple fox.

* * *

 **A/N: Future… I don't know where I'm going with this… it was just fun to write.**


	78. Cha 77: Short Piece 3

**Rocket Meeting**

"Thank you all for being here." James stood behind a podium built on a giant stage. It was the meeting place built for Commanders, to which Giovanni had promoted the three to.

Well, two. Meowth managed to persuade Giovanni that he was the one behind the development of all of the strategies used in the Leagues battles.

The Rocket Boss was actually quite impressed at Meowth's talent. His exact remark was: "You're trash as a pokemon, but quite smart as a general."

After that meeting, Meowth thanked his past self for the restless nights to reading _The Art of War_ … it was actually how he learned to read in the first place.

"It is summer, but the grind never ends." Jessie continued beside him. "We are Rockets, so we must be prepared for ALL situations."

* * *

Below the stage, Butch and Cassidy gave each other a look of fury.

They were still Rocket agents, while the three whom they condescendingly deemed idiots had already climbed to Commanders!

THAT'S NOT FAIR!

Two two had never even dreamed of ever promoted to Commanders! HOW, in what sense, did THOSE three fools deserve the position of Commanders!?

In rage, they stared with burning hatred of jealousy at the three. This was not justice. If fate didn't give them justice, they shall make their own.

The duo would look for all ways to interrupt their plans, to embarrass them, to belittle them… Justice must be served!

* * *

"In da next year or sa, there w'll be some very big ch'nges." Meowth took over the mike. "Dis assembly w'll be on how ta deal with da situations."

"FIRST and FOREMOST!" Jessie pressed the next slide. The giant face of Domino appeared on the screen.

The crowd of Rocket grunts and agents shivered and each let out terrified murmurs.

James nodded at their reaction. He fully understood. Everyone who was not afraid of her was not required to be at this assembly.

"Need I say that you will not bother her?"

A series of cries all echoed the same thing: "NO."

"Good." Jessie tapped onto the next slide. "The face of a brunet boy with unruly hair, eccentric pokemon hat, and a yellow Pikachu sitting on top of it replaced Domino's picture.

"This is Ash Ketchum." The lighting darkened a little. "You WILL NOT bother him either. He is just as equally threatening as Miss Domino."

"If you bother him, the consequence is demotion and damnation. If you are a grunt, you will be kicked."

"If they interfere with your plans, you must back away immediately and refrain from all confrontation." Jessie gave a hard stare at her massive audience. "This is a law signed by the Boss himself."

A sharp intake of breath sounded in the stadium. James nodded. "So do not disobey this! I don't care how important your mission is. If you break the law, the entire Team will chase you down and hunt you back to prosecution."

A hand was raised. James took out a giant flashlight and pointed it at the person.

Inside, he was smiling in satisfaction. He had always wanted to point a flashlight at a person from upstage.

One more thing to cross off the 1,000 things to do before I died…

Butch's eyes twitched as the light shone directly in his facing. He placed a hand before it and was about to shout profanity before Cassidy tugged on his uniform.

The three weren't agents anymore. They were Commanders. The two could be freaking jailed if they actually started criticizing them during the assembly for everyone to hear.

Butch swallowed heavily. "What is so dangerous about them? Aren't we Team Rocket's job to trample all of the good trainers!?"

"Thank you for the question, Broccoli." Jessie, as usual, pronounced his name wrongly, bringing in a wave of laughter from the crowd.

Butch's face flushed red in anger and embarrassment. Cassidy brought her hands up from his back to cover his mouth, pushing back on the rage-filled correction of his name.

"DON'T! Remember when you corrected Boss and he demoted us back to grunts?"

Onstage, Meowth answered the question. "First 'f all, Ash is Domino's boyfriend."

The statement drew another wave of louder, sharper intake of breath that swept through the stadium.

"WHAT!?"

"BOYFRIEND!?"

"DOMINO COULD BE TAMED!?"

"THAT'S FAKE NEWS!"

"MY FANTASY…"

The trio expected the reaction. When Giovanni asked them to do the presentation, he specifically wanted to see their reactions when they told them that part…

"It's relaxing comedy." He said.

Meowth raised his stubby arms to get attention. Even his Commanders insignia couldn't force the stadium to calm back down.

He shrugged at the other two. James and Jessie shivered and quickly stuffed cotton in their ears.

Meowth had something prepared for exactly this reason!

A giant megaphone the size of a room descended on ropes from the ceiling. It dropped until it was right in front of Meowth, who was now standing on the podium.

He took a deep breath.

"SHUT THE HELL UP YOU IMBECILES!"

A sound wave more dramatic than Kyogre's Origin Pulse slammed into the room…

* * *

In conclusion: Rocket meetings start in order and end in chaos… which explains, well, a lot of things.


	79. Cha 78: Short Piece 4

**Very serious skype meeting**

Lucario joined chat.

Lucario: " _Finally! We're out of their sight. Dexter you're a freaking genius._ "

Noah: "What about me?"

Lucario: " _You too good sir._ "

Wartortle: " _That's not how you text, man! It's 'U 2!'_ "

Lucario: " _B S_ "

Lucario: " _Like that?_ "

Wartortle: "..."

Wartortle: " _*% &# !_"

Bulbasaur joined chat.

Wartortle: " _Dexter! Stop blocking my words!_ "

Bulbasaur: " _Morning people!_ "

Dexter: "Arceus damn it, you retarded turtle! It's not fucking right to swear! Watch your shitty language!"

Lucario: " _Suck my ass, Wartortle!_ "

Wartortle: " _^$(#) &$!_"

Wartortle left chat.

Raikou joined chat.

Raikou: " _Thank Arceus. Can I hide in here for a while until Primeape stop chasing my ass?_ "

Lucario: " _..._ "

Dexter: "..."

Bulbasaur: " _..._ "

Noah: "I don't think you understand… this isn't a physical place. It's a digital group chat…"

Raikou: " _I'll take that as a yes!_ "

" _..._ "

Primeape joined chat.

Primeape: " _Raikou… you're a dumbass. An old, obsolete one for that matter._ "

Bulbasaur: " _Good morning!_ "

Raikou: " _AAAAAAHHHHHHHH! You're here! Dexter! HELP! GET ME AWAY FROM HERE!_ "

Raikou is kicked from **Ranch Heaven** by Dexter.

Primeape: " _..._ "

Primeape: " _Guess I gotta go too. See you guys later once I get revenge for my pie!_ "

Lucario: " _Raikou ate your pie?_ "

Primeape: " _No. He called it weak. Need to go smear the two inch stick between his legs with it! Bye!_ "

"..."

Primeape left chat.

Bulbasaur: " _Morning people!_ "

Kirlia joined chat.

Kirlia: " _I'M SO FUCKING SICK AND TIRED OF ZORUA BITCHING AROUND ABOUT HOW HER ARCEUS DAMN TUFT OF HAIR LOOKS LIKE SANTA'S HAT!_ "

Kirlia: " _IT LOOKS LIKE JUSTIN BIEBER'S DICK!_ "

"..."

Lucario: " _WTF?_ "

Noah: "Let me double check really quick that we did indeed block those two…"

Dexter: "Yeah… this could hurt a lot if they catch us talking behind them…"

Lucario: " _Holy damn girl! Chill out. We all know that you'll light her on f*i*r*e* when you evolve to Gardevoir._ "

Kirlia: " _Can't wait to be sexy… Are you hitting on my Steel boy!?_ "

Lucario: " _Damn right I'm hard!_ "

Kirlia: " _Welp, too bad I'm not a panther._ "

Dexter: "I am though."

"..."

Lucario left chat.

Noah: "Nice one Dex."

Dexter: "I'm serious."

Noah: "That's not possible. Our memory comes from Arceus. That makes us unable to be a panther. No one could be older."

Bulbasaur: " _GOOD MORNING!_ "

Spiritomb joined chat.

Spiritomb: " _Why did Lucario just throw down his Transceiver and ran straight through me, screaming?_ "

Dexter: "Dunno no. Why are you asking me?"

Spiritomb: " _He said ask the group chat… and also that you're a gay freak._ "

Noah: "WHAT IS SAID IN THE CHAT STAYS IN THE CHAT!"

Spiritomb: " _So it's true?_ "

Shedinja joined chat.

Shedinja: " _What's wrong with Lucario?_ "

Dexter: "Holy shit how many people are going to ask this!?"

Shedinja: " _None. This is strictly pokemon._ "

Dratini joined chat.

Absol joined chat.

Bulbasaur: " _GOOD FUCKING MORNING!_ "

Dexter: "We are more civilized than humans."

Kirlia: " _Says the machines who are hiding from Pikachu in cyberspace._ "

Noah: "Better than Mew. She dived into the Continuum."

Dexter: "The Giants swam underwater all the way to Kalos."

Spiritomb: " _No, Alakazam teleported to the Venus._ "

Kirlia: " _Can't blame him. Their colors are both pee-yellow._ "

Shedinja: " _That's racist!_ "

Kirlia: " _Just because you're that color too doesn't mean you have to be a bitch about it!_ "

Shedinja: " _Bitch says what?_ "

Kirlia: " _What?_ "

Shedinja: " _HA! BITCH!_ "

Shedinja left chat.

Absol: " _I just read through everything in chat… I have a bad feeling about this. My disaster sense is triggering._ "

Dratini: " _Me too! My panicking sensor is acting up right now._ "

PonytaA joined chat.

PonytaD joined chat.

PonytaA is kicked by Kirlia.

PonytaD is kicked by Kirlia.

Shedinja: " _What is that for?_ "

Kirlia: " _The above material is censored._ "

Lucario: " _Fuck yeah it is._ "

"!"

Kirlia: " _When the hell did you rejoin?_ "

Spiritomb cleared his nickname.

Spiritomb: "Just me lol."

"..."

Spiritomb is kicked from **Ranch Heaven** by Kirlia.

Exeggutor joined chat.

Exeggutor left chat.

Exeggutor joined chat.

Exeggutor left chat.

Exeggutor joined chat.

Exeggutor left chat.

Exeggutor joined chat.

Noah: "What the fuck is wrong with you, you fucking airhead… literally!?"

Exeggutor: " _I'm just making Crator type my Arceus damned name over and over again. It's apparently hard as fuck._ "

Dexter: "There's this thing called copy and paste."

Exeggutor: " _Not on Mac._ "

"..."

Kirlia: " _WTF is wrong is you?_ "

Noah: "Command C and Command V bro."

Exeggutor: " _..._ "

Exeggutor left chat.

Absol: " _Holy Lord! My disaster sense is blaring right now. Gotta go hide in my hole._ "

Dratini: " _Wait up! I helped you dig it!_ "

Absol left chat.

Dratini left chat.

Kirlia: " _Aren't they the pair of trash who sat in on the PTI's astrology lectures during open week?_ "

Noah: "Trash is a strong word. I'll rather go with disturbing morons who don't have an asshole."

"..."

Sableye joined chat.

Sableye: " _So this is why none of you guys helped me escape Pikachu! You're all crowded being cowards!_ "

Kirlia: " _You're the named 'Great Master of Shadows'!_ "

Sableye: " _Look at the sun. It's blaring sunlight right now!_ "

Sableye: " _SHIT! He's coming for me again!_ "

Kirlia: " _Let me help you with a Rain Dance._ "

Kirlia left chat.

Sableye: " _It ain't working. Zorua just pulsed up a stronger Sunny Day._ "

Shedinja: " _I'll go help Kirlia!_ "

Shedinja left chat.

Sableye: " _SHIT! Pikachu joined into the power struggle too… well, it's not a damn struggle_ now…"

Dexter: "Noah! Quick! This is our chance to overpower him. Come help me!"

Dexter left chat.

Noah left chat.

Sableye: " _FUCK! It's not strong enough. SHIT! Pikachu saw me!_ "

Bulbasaur: " _I JUST WANT ONE ARCEUS DAMNED SHITHOLE TO GREET ME!? GOOD FUCKING MORNING Y'ALL PIECES OF SHIT!_ "

Bulbasaur: " _YOU'RE ALL BRAINLESS RETARDS, JUST LIKE PIKACHU! GET YOUR ASS BACK TO YOU GRANDPA!_ "

Bulbasaur: " _HAVEN'T YOUR MOTHER TEACH YOU MANNERS!? GREET YOUR ELDERS!_ "

Bulbasaur: " _STOP BEING BARBARIC FREAKS WHO ONLY KNOW HOW TO THROW AROUND AURA LIKE A MONORIC LIKE PIKACHU!_ "

Sableye: " _WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU CALL ME!?_ "

Bulbasaur: " _READ THE DAMN CHAT YOU DYSLEXIC DUNCE!_ "

Sableye: " _I WILL GALVANIC BURST YOU ALL THE WAY TO THE MOON!_ "

Bulbasaur: " _The fuck? You don't know Galvanic Burst…_ "

Bulbasaur: " _Wait! Who are you!?_ "

Sableye: " _Me? I'm_ _Pikachu! Sableye dropped his phone while running._ "

"..."

Bulbasaur left chat.

 **Everyone was vaporized by an angry Pikachu. He used so much power the planet folded on itself, killing everyone.**

 **!THE END!**


	80. Cha 79: Short Piece 5

**Bubble**

Arceus took a look at the ginormous Hall of Origin. It was grand and filled with hidden power surging through every inch of it.

Golden lights shone off from the suns hanging off of the ceiling. The living room was the size of a normal galaxy, and its couches were softer than cotton, facing a giant ninety by ninety-five television.

The units, of course, are measured in astronomical miles.

However, there was one thing missing…

Legendaries to fill up the space.

Arceus sighed. Ash still had to defeat Cyrus for him to manipulate reality and the bubble to combine. Before that, only Cosmics could merge between the two realms… and there weren't many legendaries who had Realized Concepts.

Creation Trio, Mew, maybe a few others who had dodged his Psychic sweep.

The Alpha One turned his thoughts back to the Bubble at hand. He had stayed in here for a year now.

Sounds of the tide echoed from the latrine, trying to splash off the giant diarrhea turd Palkia laid because of Sir Aaron's cooking.

Speaking of that… Arceus's head began to hurt again. He just remembered Palkia was suing Sir Aaron for being a terrible chef whose food could be used to single-highhandedly biodegrade an entire dimension.

And the trial's date was today… why did he agree to that?

Arceus walked out of the living room and into a smaller office room. Not a lot smaller, though.

He sighed as he took in the scene. Palkia and Sir Aaron were staring at each other like moronic madmen, an inch from each other's noses.

How Sir Aaron could fit to Palkia's nose… well, size wasn't really a relevant concern among the Cosmics.

Gazing from the expression on their twisted face and the fury in their eyes, the Original One could lay down the firm decision that they were very close to ripping each other's throats' apart.

Next to the two furious Cosmics stood Giratina and Dialga.

The Renegade Dragon was on Sir Aaron's side. He was licking a lollipop happily, looking at the feud between the two with growing interest. Within his gaze, Arceus could detect an instigating gleam that suggested that he wasn't as innocent as the lollipop image was trying to portray.

Forget that. When the hell was Giratina ever innocent?

Next to Palkia was Dialga, who was sitting down with a bucket of popcorn on his lap. Whenever he tried to eat, he grabbed a fistful and throw it into the air… which only end up falling all over his face.

Then, when the popcorn was less than an inch away, the Temporal Legend would freeze time and gobble every one down.

Arceus rolled his eyes. " _Is that really meaningful?_ "

Dialga looked at him with Growlithe eyes. " _What do you mean, Dad?_ "

Screw it. Not a single one of the damned Cosmics was innocent.

Arceus was planning to just finish the pathetic trial and get his ass out of the room so he could continue his binge on James Bond series on Netflix.

Before he could say a single thing, Sir Aaron finally broke the stare with Palkia. He grabbed Giratina and pulled him in front of himself. "Tell Palkia that his stomach is weaker than Magikarp's fins."

Palkia roared. Space shattered around his mouth and cracked throughout the walls of the office room. " _And your dick is smaller than Caterpie's tongue!_ "

...

Dialga sighed and pulsed out a wave of Time Energy that stopped the cracks from continuing. It then just reverted the process easily, since Palkia didn't put any Space Concepts in his unconscious shout.

"You're just being a punk right now!" Sir Aaron stuck up his middle finger. "In what world does a being NOT like hot chocolate and ketchup smoothie!?"

Palkia's face turned blue in anger.

Giratina coughed. " _Aaron… to be fair, that wasn't your best product._ "

"Are you the lawyer for him or me!?" Sir Aaron demanded and turned to Dialga. "There's nothing anyone could say to that statement!"

" _He's not wrong._ " Arceus shook his head, muttering under his breath. " _I don't have anything to say to that._ "

" _That is wrong from its deepest roots._ " Dialga retorted. " _From a seasonal perspective, ketchup is the universal food of autumn, while hot chocolate is a drink of the summer._ "

" _You're mixing autumn and summer. Hence, it's wrong._ "

Sir Aaron stared at him in annoyed confusion. "When the hell did hot chocolate become a food of the SUMMER? It's hot enough outside!"

" _Well, you drink hot chocolate all the time… and it is summer right now._ "

"That's because there is NO 'outside'! I also fart all the time as well! Does that mean farting is the universal activity of the summer too!?"

" _Bro! You don't have to make everything disgusting!_ " Dialga wrinkled his nose. " _Dad! Aaron is using profanity in an official courtroom._ "

" _Point of order, your paternal honor!_ " Giratina raised his paw. " _There is not a single damn thing that is official about this room!_ "

" _Of course it's not!_ " Palkia shouted and pointed to Sir Aaron. " _This dumbass is in the room._ "

"If you're this bad at comebacks, you should just shut that hole under your nose." The Knight deadpanned.

" _If you are this bad at cooking, you should freaking stop cooking!_ "

"YOU ASKED ME TO COOK!"

" _Okay, fine. I'm asking you to jump off a bridge right now too. Are you going to do it!?_ " Palkia crossed his arms.

Sir Aaron shrugged. A bridge materialized below him. He jumped off…

…

Arceus was now in a double facepalm… he didn't understand how these four… **** could become Cosmics… he really didn't.

Sir Aaron placed his hands on his hips and looked to Palkia challengingly.

Palkia growled. " _Jump off again. I dare you!_ "

"Fuck no. You're probably extending the fall all the way to infinity."

" _I double dare you!_ "

"No."

" _I triple dare you!_ "

"I quadruple dare you to shut your face."

Giratina sighed and continued to lick his candy. He didn't feel the constant sweetness, but instead a blank stick, the candy all gone.

At the same time, Dialga looked sadly at the empty bucket of popcorn. He stood up abruptly. " _Dad, I think we've heard enough. Would you like to give a verdict?_ "

Arceus opened his mouth, but was interrupted again by a torrent of exchanges.

"Just look at your size. Haven't you think of cutting down weight!?"

" _At least it's better than being smaller than an Infernape… ha, monkey!_ "

"You're the worst customer I've ever seen!"

" _And your food could be used to create the first ever Poison Type Legendary Pokémon._ "

Arceus's eyes snapped open. A scary torrent of light streamed out.

The four shut their mouth in unison as a whirl of God-level energy surged around them.

" _What did you just say?_ " He looked to Palkia.

" _Ummm… he's smaller than an Infernape?_ "

" _No, the one after!_ " Arceus looked like Thomas Edison right before the creation of the light bulb.

"He said my food could be used to create a Poison Type." Sir Aaron raised a finger. "Which is inaccurate, because it has the perfect balance of nutrition and…"

" _POISON TYPE LEGENDARY!_ " Arceus jumped up excitedly. The entire Hall shone with a similar white glow. " _You're a freaking genius!_ "

In a second, the pot of chocolate and ketchup 'smoothie' was levitated over and dumped onto the floor.

The odor from the mix of red and brown made Palkia pass out on the spot. Dialga placed a Time shield in front of himself… which wasn't going to last long under the acidic smell.

Giratina's shadow smoke was also being overpowered easily. Only Sir Aaron sat on his chair and even leaned forward a bit. He closed his eyes, mesmerized in the… smell.

Arceus pulsed a giant white beam into the puddle of goo. A few moment later, the goo started to condense and take shape.

Two spheres of unmelted chocolate floated to the top and became its eyes.

Arceus smirked and stopped casting his spell. " _There we go! This will solve our population problem._

Three _THUMP_ s from heavy objects hitting the ground came from behind him.

Giratina and Dialga both passed out from the smell. Sir Aaron leaned too far and slipped off his chair.

…

 **Hall of Origin. Population: 6.**

* * *

 **A/N: Enjoy!**


	81. Cha 80: Short Piece 6

**Space**

Ash's hand was linked with Domino's as the duo calmly walked down the path.

The path of stars.

Around them were flashing stars, whether in clumps or giant galaxies. Ash's Transceiver was playing _Counting Stars_ as the two strolled in space as if it was their backyard.

Well, in a sense, it was. They're the Chosen. That meant the responsibility of guardianship, but also ownership, of the present universe.

Afterall, it was Arceus's decree.

Silver lights danced outside of the pink and blue bubble around the two lovers. Neither said a word. Talking was too excessive. Talking was for the ones without a pressure of time. Talking was only to show adoration between normal couples.

They didn't need to talk. The Chosen duo could hear the voices inside each other's hearts. They could see their passion for each other. It was destined.

Both of them had experienced some of the utmost cruelty in their childhood. However, like the famous saying went: _When Arceus closes a window, it opens a door somewhere else_ , the two also had their own reward.

For them… neither had had a distorted relationship. Their hearts might be so tough in other aspects of the world, but for love?

Both were as clear as a pair of freshly produced canvas. There was no previous experience, no previous sadness, no stray marks diluting the fervent love. Only purity and trust.

The door was opened. They could see the road ahead of them.

Their relationship was bumpy, but it was straight. Neither could see the end, but the road was made of concrete- solid and inviting.

They would get to the end someday. Now all they had to do… was to relish the sweetness of the walk.

No need to teleport.

The two walked in space calmly. Blue and pink footprints trailed in the vacuum behind them, dissipating after a few minutes.

Both had the power of a Medieval Legendary. The Earth-Space barrier was a joke in their eyes.

Their hold on each other tightened. They held each other's hands comfortably.

It was enough. It was all they needed.

With the other's warmth in their palms, both already owned the entire universe. No need to grab onto the stars. They were in the other's eyes.

After a while, Domino broke the silence. "This is boring."

"I know." Ash sighed, agreeing. "There's not much about space that could be fascinating after the Continuum."

Their minds traced back to their first kiss in the Continuum, after their struggles through death and time, space and reality.

That kiss was the true definition of love. It wasn't fireworks. That was just an illusional metaphor written in repetitive books.

Theirs was a big bang. Afterall, nothing else, they speculate, could cover up the glorious time sequences and cavernous space holes.

The duo faced each other. No words were needed. They leaned in, kissed, and then broke apart.

Domino's head tilted up thoughtfully, and she puckered her lips. "Nah. The background of space isn't great enough."

"Concurred." Ash grasped onto her hand again, and the two switched direction and began to walk towards the moon.

"I feel like we're already like old couples." Ash chuckled.

Domino shrugged. "We don't need to follow what normal people do. We show ourselves in different ways."

She was right. Normal people never had to fall into black holes and traverse parallel universes to find the other half.

They did. They succeeded. Love didn't transcend all. **Ash and Domino** transcended all.

They weren't normal. They were Ash and Domino. Special and unique. You couldn't have one without the other.

"I wish we could one day walk just as peacefully in the Continuum as space." Domino sighed. "That's the real challenge."

Ash looked at her with a light smile. "We have to be Cosmics to do that, right?"

"We'll get there one day." Domino said confidently, pointing her finger directly at the sun, as if challenging it to a duel. "Lizzy said so."

Ash smirked. The Goddess of Charm did say that. Chosens had the full potential to become Cosmics… if they didn't die beforehand.

The King died of Death Force. Sir Aaron died because of the Tree of Beginning.

But neither had a Queen. However, he did. She was all he needed. "When the day comes, I'll make you a tiara out of time sequences."

Domino smiled back. "And I'll get you a crown made of flowers."

"..."

Ash sighed. He shouldn't have expected much more. Domino lightly punched him and leaned on his shoulder.

In the distance, the constellation of Seviper and Zangoose flashed a symbolic silver.

For a brief second, they were the brightest stars in the night sky.

The stars were just reflecting off of the sparks that flew off as the two kissed, for that Ash and Domino would always be the brightest stars in the night sky.

* * *

 **A/N: What should the name of the new Poison-Type Pokémon be? Put your suggestions in the review below. In 3 days' time, I will put up a poll displaying the choices.**


	82. Cha 81: Short Piece 7

**Trans-spatial Love**

" _Therefore, I still think I should become the new second in command!_ " The Tauros finished and looked at the Tauros Leader.

Pikachu held his head in one paw and pointed to the giant sign in front of him. " _Read this._ "

" _Umm… couples counceling?_ "

" _THEN WHY THE HELL HAD YOU WASTED TWO HOURS OF OUR TIME WITH YOUR TAUROS PARTY PURGE!?_ "

Pikachu sparked up in substantial annoyance. Zorua quickly leaned against him and eyed the two Tauros to scram.

Pikachu softened a little, holding back the giant bolt he was about to release. Instead, he licked Zorua happily.

Shaymin floated down from above in her Sky Forme. She was probably the only one in the Ranch who wasn't scared of Pikachu. His mutated lightning worked with everyone else, including Ground-Types, but Shaymin was immune to his electricity.

Pikachu and others had inquired her repetitively about it, and her response was always the same.

" _Maybe I have better morals?_ "

"..."

She looked behind herself at the Tauros charging away from the two, and sighed. " _No one here needs counseling… or at least romance counseling._ "

" _Denial is the first barrier to true love._ " Pikachu raised up his tail.

" _We're doing this for volunteer work._ " Zorua grinded herself further into her mate and chuckled. _Delia convinced us that we could help the world out a lot by using our powers._ "

" _Yeah, she definitely meant romance counseling._ " Shaymin said sarcastically and transformed into Land Forme, hopping away.

Pikachu and Zorua shrugged at each other. Shaymin was right. They weren't doing this for 'volunteering.' This was just an excuse to escape training and spend more time together.

Ash and Domino had a very strict no making-out policy until everything was done.

Of course, Pikachu and Zorua speculated that even they themselves hated the rule. Therefore, the Pokémon duo breaking the rules would just be an excuse for their trainers to do the same thing themselves…

A abrupt white light flashed in front of the snuggling couple. Both looked up in shock as a torrent of insane power that could match Pikachu soared out.

The yellow mouse stood up in alert. There wasn't many things in this world who could equal Pikachu in raw power.

Mega Lucario and Mega Gengar were both Top Ancients, but Pikachu still knocked both out. Those two were both only a step away from Formation, but the Electric Type was only a hair away.

Even Formation Pokémon, like Groudon and Kyogre, couldn't defeat Pikachu, since their power was restricted if they didn't want to destroy the world.

On the other hand, there was no restraints on Pikachu, since a hair away was still not fully Formation, which meant he could still exert 100% of his power, while Groudon and Kyogre could only use a fraction. A battle between them would most likely end in a tie, with half the world gone…

At that point, type advantages really didn't matter. They didn't even matter as much at Ancient battles. Only at Medieval did it still had some effect…

Therefore, when the Pokémon Duo sensed the whirlpool of power in front them, they both sprung into a defensive stance.

They had some guess who one of them was… but the other?

As the purple energy died out, the figure of Mewtwo materialized. Pikachu and Zorua's jaws dropped.

Not at Mewtwo. They had predicted that part.

But at the pink beauty in his arms who was glaring the deadliest look of fire at him.

" _CRESSELIA!?_ "

The Lunar Pokémon smiled at them in embarrassment and lit up in an intense pink.

" _LET! ME! GO!_ "

Pikachu and Zorua sweatdropped as Mewtwo promptly followed her command and dropped her straight on the ground.

" _OW! Did you have to be this straightforward!?_ " Cresselia yelled.

" _That's Earth's gravity for ya!_ " Mewtwo retorted sharply. " _You said you want to get used to Earth._ "

" _Why do I weight four times as much here!?_ "

" _Again gravity._ " Mewtwo gave her a look. " _You're also getting a lot fatter with what Metagross is cooking these days._ "

" _YOU'RE CALLING ME FAT!?_ " Cresselia lunged forward and blasted a Moonblast at Mewtwo, who blew it apart with a wave and wrestled her back into his arms by grabbing onto her rings.

" _How are you so STRONG!?_ "

" _Well, I am designed to be the strongest Pokémon._ " Mewtwo puffed out his chest in pride, pressing into her backside in the process.

A loud and heavy clearing of the throat came from Pikachu.

" _Strongest Pokémon?_ "

Mewtwo and Pikachu's eyes met. A giant explosion between them created a hole six feet deep without them even doing anything.

Zorua wiped a bead of sweat off her brow and quickly stepped between them, meanwhile fixing the hole with a mini-Stone Edge. " _Let's not fight here, or else Ash and Domino would probably scalp all of us._ "

Cresselia hummed. " _Rayquaza has a pretty sturdy Sky Tower that we could dual in._ "

" _As much as I want to do that, Ash would scalp me just as well if I just leave the Ranch unsupervised._ " Pikachu coughed and broke the gaze. " _So let's end this tomfoolery here._ "

" _Why brings you two to the land of the Terminators?_ "

" _Terminators?_ " Mewtwo gave him a weird look. Pikachu matched his look proudly.

" _I heard from a little birdie… literally… that you two have a couples counseling service here?_ "

The Pokémon duo's eyes widened and quickly exchanged glances. Their eyes darted to Cresselia in his arms, to his serious face, and then back to each other.

" _Yeahhh…_ " Pikachu said slowly. " _I mean, it's not really a…_ "

" _Great!_ " Mewtwo threw Cresselia down into a chair in front of the booth and sat down beside her. " _Let's get to the point, shall we?_ "

He point at the Lunar Legendary " _Can you just tell her to stop denying herself and confess her love to me?_ "

Pikachu and Zorua stared at the in wide eyes.

Cresselia huffed. The chair under her broke in splinters from a violent pulse of Aura. " _Don't flatter yourself! You're the one who's chasing me!_ "

" _YOU STOLE MY PANCAKES!_ "

" _YOU STOLE MY MOON ROCK!_ "

" _EEVEE NEEDED IT TO EVOLVE! PLUS, YOU STOLE MY SHIRT!_ "

" _Wait! Since when do Pokémon started to wear shirts?_ " Pikachu raised his arms in exasperation.

" _I'm a clone. I do need to submit to normal rules._ " Mewtwo shrugged.

" _Well, seems like this is a relationship of Tsundere._ " Zorua sighed.

Pikachu nodded. " _Reminds me of Ash and Domino's beginning._ "

Cresselia and Mewtwo both huffed.

Pikachu noticed the lack of mortification at the mention of the two's returning affection. He thought to himself, so they had gotten past the blushing stage. They should be halfway there.

Zorua nodded, thinking the same thing. " _Well, the advice is simple._ "

" _You just need to go trap yourself in a tomb out of which you can't escape and both of you are afraid to death._ "

Pikachu continued. " _Then, one of you need to make the other own a lot of money._ "

" _Then find a underground crimelord to be your father._ "

" _Finally, go teleport to the Arctic during Christmas so you can be separated by parallel universes and time slots by Santa Claus. After you two find each other, kiss in the Continuum, and you should be all set._ "

Cresselia and Mewtwo stared at the Pokémon Duo with an unexplainable expression, a mixture of disbelief, confusion, and idiosyncrasy.

Pikachu waved. " _Now get off my lawn, unless you want to fight me here and then be scalped!_ "

* * *

 **A/N: Mewtwo and Cresselia!**


	83. Cha 82: Short Piece 8

**Short Piece 8**

Giovanni looked at his right hand man, who was sitting in front of him with his chin slightly down in respect.

His hair was the frostiest white, even more so than the snow on Mount Silver. He was dressed in his signature yellow suit. His yellow irises stared at Giovanni's nose, avoiding the Boss's gaze out of reverence.

He hid his power and coldness very well. That was only shown for his enemies, which was when he would turn into a roaming dragon that howled the lands.

However, there was need for that right now. He was at home. In front of Giovanni, he would always be the loyal guard dog that would never stray north when the Boss pointed south.

He was the combination of both destruction and tranquility. He was the perfect merge of defiance and humility. He was the second-in-command of Team Rocket, a position that even surged the Elites.

He was Zero of Team Rocket.

Giovanni looked approvingly at his most trusted officer. He never showed any emotions in front of his Team. Zero, however, was one of the few people who got to see the mask unveiled.

"Do you know why I called you here?"

Zero stared at Giovanni's face, an inch below his eyes. Of course he knew. After all, he was the master strategist of Team Rocket.

"No sir, I do not."

Giovanni wasn't surprised to hear the denial. Zero never placed down any cards, even neglectable ones, without a very confident speculation.

Maybe that was also why Giovanni trusted him to be in charge of the Team- a firm hand.

That was also why he didn't choose his own daughter. Domino's too risky. Ninety-nine out of a hundred of her dangerous plans would most likely succeed. However, it was that one percent that Giovanni was afraid to bet on. The Team was too precious. Any risks must be mitigated, unless it was absolutely called for.

Nonetheless, even Giovanni had to admit himself that he was also a giant risk-taker. That was another reason why he valued Zero. He was a counter to always review and balance the risks with a more comfortable plan.

It was why Team Rocket's advancements had been slow lately. However, it was exactly because of this slur that allowed League to begin to form a slight trust between them.

Giovanni flipped opened the map of the Home Islands on a board and turned to him. "Explain what you see."  
Zero fell in silence. Of course Giovanni wasn't telling him to explain the geography. He was referring to the course of the rising powers, the Teams, and the Leagues.

Zero didn't speak for ten minutes. Giovanni waited patiently, sipping calmly on his ice tea. He didn't like coffee. Plus, he didn't need it. In fact, he had been getting a lot more sleep than usual because of the lack of activities and reports.

That worried the Rocket Boss a bit. Eerily, it felt like the calm before a giant, tubulent storm.

Zero spoke up. Usually, he didn't like speaking. Even when he did, the sentences were crisp and clean.

They weren't today.

"In brightness, it is obvious that we control Kanto, Orange Islands, and Johto. Magma and Aqua splits Hoenn apart. Galactic is in charge of Sinnoh. Plasma is in Unova, and Flare is in Kalos. Skull is still a gang in Alola."

"However, the underground traits are much more complicated."

"Although we do have firm grasp over our land, we already detected numerous Magma and Aqua spies in our lands, which doesn't make sense."

"There had been long lasting peace between us for very long, and both of them knew that they couldn't match us in any measurements of power."

"In addition, Magma and Aqua are utmost enemies. Therefore, they had always sought to destroy the other and take full control of underground Hoenn. Acting out of their proper territory and advancing into our lands is very weird, granted that they should be spending these resources on their own battlefields."

Giovanni nodded in agreement. "What is your speculation?"

Zero pointed to the region northwest of Hoenn. It was almost double the size of Hoenn, and it almost match the land Rocket had with the combination of the two Regions and one Archipelago.

Sinnoh.

"We've also found some Galactic spies, which is the glue that could tie all of this together." Zero looked Giovanni dead in the eye, showing his seriousness. "Something much stronger than Magma and Aqua themselves have enslaved both of the Teams, and it is forcing them against us to cut down our strength."

"You think it's Galactic?"

"It has to be." Zero confirmed. "Sinnoh had always been said to be the center of Origin. From the information received from the Chosen…"

His voice crackled uncomfortably as he voiced the word, but he continued rapidly. "Sinnoh contains almost all of the entrances to other dimensions, including the Creation Trios and Arceus himself."

"Galactic is like a man at his prime right now. No one knows what strong he is until someone actually hop in the ring with him… and no one does. You never know if he is going to pull out a gun labeled as Dialga or Darkrai."

Giovanni silenced. Then he smirked. "But we have Ash Ketchum."

Zero's eye twitched ever so slightly. "We certainly do, sir."

The Rocket Boss then pointed to the other regions. "What about them?"

"Magma and Aqua are like handicapped men. They have struggled way too harmfully against themselves in Hoenn, and their strength is depleting rapidly, which is what allowed Galactic to swoop in."

"Plasma and Flare are both like elderly men entering into the cemetary. Both Team's values are old-fashioned, and less and less young people are willing to follow their footsteps."

"Pokémon training is encarved in the society. Nothing is going to change that, and certainly not Plasma. All Flare wants to do is to make money… but there are so many other ways now to do so instead of violence."

"Both of their values were once good two hundred years ago, when communication was obsolete. But, in the modern times, their ways have become dull."

"Skull is like a growing teenager, full of potential. Its value of seeking the Truth appeals strongly to human curiosity. However, it would still be years until Guzma could lead it to become a real, radiant team. Before then, he cannot defeat Flare. With Flare in the way, he can never get out of the Alolan cage and start its journey into the central Home Islands."

"Therefore, all we need to worry about at this point is the threat of Team Galactic."

Zero paused. "Plus, according to Miss Domino, that was the reason why the last timeline ended."

Giovanni stared at the map. After a minute, he waved his hand. Zero stood up and bowed, before exiting the room.

The Rocket Boss stood up and walked around the conference table for a few circles. Then, he grabbed a red marker off the board.

What Zero had said, he had already determined. He just needed another intelligent mouth to confirm his hypothesis.

He pulled the cap off and drew a giant star in the middle of Sinnoh, on Cyrus's base, or at least the hypothesized base from Ash's memory from the last timeline.

Smaller circles were drawn on the dwellings of the legendary Pokémon.

Giovanni stared at the map for a long time. Even if he knew the coordinates from the last timeline, he still couldn't do anything. If he just rashly send in bombers to the Galactic Headquarter… well, he wasn't sure that was the headquarter.

He didn't want to alert Cyrus. He still needed to hide his sharpest sword.

He hand rested on a phone beside him. The firm hand shook slightly, a rare sight for the Rocket Boss.

He closed his eyes and dialed a number. The number he had memorized to his heart. He had never called this number before… but for the completion of his plans, he decided to sacrifice his pride just a little.

A little for the Rocket Boss… it was still enough to drown half of Kanto.

The phone picked up after three precise rings. "Hello, Cyn? This is Gio."

* * *

 **A/N: The unfolding of a humongous curtain.**


	84. Cha 83: Short Piece 9

**Interviews**

"Welcome back to 69 News, where we deliver the latest, global, non-fake news at the moment's notice."

"Normally, the regional League Contests are a very suitable way to challenge and promote friendly contact between Pokémon trainers."

"However, this year seemed to endure a surge of talented trainers. In fact, some of them are so powerful that their Pokémon also destroyed the League arena during the Semi-finals."

"Here to join us for today is Todd Brown, photographer and journalist, who would be interviewing some of the trainers' Pokémon."

* * *

"So, I understand you are Mr. Ketchum's Pokémon?" Todd looked at the blue and black bipedal beast in front of him.

Lucario nodded, scratching his ear slightly. " _I am._ "

Todd took a look at the translator. "Well, how would you rank yourself on the power scale of Mr. Ketchum's team. Are you the most powerful?"

" _No._ " Lucario said immediately. First? That was a joke. " _However, I would like to think of myself as second._ "

" _But the thing is, I don't think raw power determines everything. Tactics and how well you use the power is the most impactful factor._ "

"So are you saying that the Pokémon in first is NOT good with tactics?"

" _Good Arceus… not at all. If he's not good, I don't know who is…_ "

* * *

"Please introduce yourself." Todd said.

" _Name is Lord Wartortle, Leader of the Turtle Squad!_ " Wartortle made stuck his chubby arms out in a sort of Nixon-like posture.

Todd coughed, ignoring the ridiculousness of the statement. "What is your opinion on Mr. Ketchum's training?"

" _Ash? Well, he doesn't actually do anything… except when we get too full of ourselves, he comes in with an Aura Sphere and pummel us…_ "

" _But yeah. We train with our ultimate passion and desire to seek the bounty of the world. Our goal is to burst through the limit this prison of a world cast upon us, and we shall head through to seek the light!_ "

Todd looked up helplessly. Weakly, he waved a hand. "Next?"

* * *

"I understand you are an unusual Pokémon who is previously unfounded?"

"Yes. I am a Porygon. I am technically an artificial intelligence created from the sheer amount of data and mysterious forces." Dexter's hologram flashed.

"So, are you a machine, in a sense?" Todd adjusted his camera more thoroughly to adapt to the illusional figure.

"Indeed, I am part machine. However, I am also a Pokémon because a machine does not have thoughts. A Pokémon, on the other hand, is able to think and direct his actions by himself, regardless of previous programming."

"In that case, I am curious to know about your opinion on, say, love."

"Love is insanity." Dexter deadpanned. "Love doesn't exist. Get it through your head."

Todd raised an eyebrow. "Isn't that a stereotypical opinion of a machine?"

"You're implying that since I think the same way as the robots you see in movies, I am a robot." Dexter shook his head. "However, I am merely speaking the truth that can be supported by millennium of data and experiences."

"But there are Pokémon on Mr. Ketchum's team who are in love." Todd gestured in the direction of a yellow mouse and purple fox snuggled together.

Dexter snorted. "Exactly why I said insanity."

"..." Todd sighed. "Okay… how do you think you rank in terms of Mr. Ketchum's team?"

"Probably third." Dexter said after flashing for a couple of seconds. "Lucario and I haven't fought yet, so I'm going off of the amounts of wins and losses through Ash's journey."

"However, it is not accurate because Ash ordered us not to unleash our full powers in secret." Dexter stated, without a care for certain Gym Leaders' feelings. "You can see what happened when some of us can't learn to control themselves."

A distant hiss sounded. Todd held his forehead. Good Arceus… why was even the most humble-looking machine so… mean…

"So one last question. Who do you think the strongest Pokémon is…"

Dexter didn't even wait for his interviewer to finish. "Pikachu."

"Wow, you have such confidence in him."

Dexter shrugged, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Talking to some of the other Pokémon, they have all agreed that Mr. Pikachu is the strongest. What makes him stand out so much?"

"I'm not sure if the other guys told you this or not." Dexter looked him straight in the eye. "We have a saying here at the Ranch."

"When in doubt, Pikachu."

* * *

Todd looked at the furry mouse sitting in front of him, with his mate still curling up beside him. Neither cared it was an interview.

He felt a little disrespected at their lack of attention.

However, to two Pokémon who could destroy a great chunk of Kanto, given enough time, a mere interview really wasn't that important.

"So I've talked to a lot of your teammates." Todd spoke up. "They've all pointed to you without a doubt when I ask about the strongest Pokémon. What do you think why you are so strong?"

" _Easy question._ " Pikachu opened half of his eyelids lazily. " _You just need to be me._ "

Todd gaped at the Electric Type. His tone was just so… clear. He wasn't even trying to be proud, or to show off. It was just a matter-of-fact statement. He was strong because he was Pikachu. The end.

Zorua smirked and pushed Pikachu. " _You might come off as blatant or flamboyant if you say it like that._ "

Pikachu shrugged. " _Fine. Why do YOU think I'm so strong?_ "

" _Because you're Ash's starter._ " Zorua's eyes glimmered. " _His first ever Pokémon. It's only logical you're the strongest._ "

In this context, strongest meant not of the team, but of the world.

Pikachu smiled at that. It was a pretty reasonable explanation, and he liked it. For that, he reward Zorua with a lick, to which she chirped happily.

Todd facepalmed. There was literally nothing about this Ranch that was reasonable. It was as if the entire team was living in a bubble of their own, in which their will was the rule of world.

They were strong because they are they. Pikachu was the strongest because he was Pikachu.

The Pokémon needed no further elaboration. The current reason was good enough. They didn't need to care what others think.

They were pure. They were straightforward. They were proud. That was why the insane Terminators were powerful.

* * *

 **A/N: Remember to vote for poll on profile page! There are a few choices that you've suggested to me for the Poison Legendary's name!**


	85. Cha 84: Author's Note

**A/N: Quick update, guys! Good news or bad news?**

 **Bad news: For the next week or so, I will be going on a wifi-less trip. Therefore, there will be no updates for the next 9 days.**

 **Good news: The next chapter that you will see will be the beginning of a new arc, one full of insanity and twists. That's right, when I get back, Orange Islands will start!**

 **See you all in a week!**


	86. Cha 85: Orange Islands 1

**Cha. 1**

Agatha's eyes panned across the room. All four Elites were present, and Charles Goodshow sat subconsciously at the head of the table.

Even in her seventies, her fiery and impatient temper failed to die down. "Who is this special guest who we are waiting for?"

A knock sounded on the door. Goodshow looked down at his watch. Ten o'clock. Right on time. It was as if he had waited outside of the door to knock… but the President knew _he_ wouldn't do something this pointless.

A button was pressed, and the conference door flew open, revealing…

Giovanni.

Goodshow stood up immediately. The four Elites exchanged unsure glances. They didn't understand why Goodshow was extending such a gesture, and they were even more befuddled when the President bowed slightly with his hands stretched across his chest in a Moltres-winglike shape, the highest regard in the League.

Giovanni bowed back. His hands stretched into a shape in front of his heart. But instead of the Moltres-wing, it was of a Rocket.

The four Elites bounced up in shock, and thoughts and doubts raced through their heads. Goodshow gave them a calming glance and turned back to Giovanni.

The Rocket Boss smiled. "It took you a while to point out my disguise. Why?"

"Because we both know about the invasion up north, and Magma and Aqua's alliance." Goodshow sat back down. "I don't think you will just let that obvious of a sign go."

Giovanni opened his mouth to speak, but Lance didn't give him that chance.

"HOLD ON!" The Champion pounced in front of the Boss and gripped his suit. "ARE YOU…"

"Yes I am." Giovanni said calmly and looked down at Lance's hand, still on his clothing, with an emotionless glint. "Young man, I advise you to release me if you want this meeting to go smoothly."

"SMOOTHLY!?" Lance turned his head toward the ceiling and laughed out loud. "Are you kidding me!?"

Goodshow frowned. Why couldn't Lance see through this? Giovanni did seriously want a peaceful meeting. If this was a terrorizing scheme, there were so many ways than to put himself into direct danger. If anything, his presence was a display of trust.

Plus, if capturing the Rocket Boss was really this simple, Team Rocket would have been disbanded centuries ago.

He sighed slightly. Oak left the Champion position too abruptly, and he brought Fuji with him. Lance was the best replacement he could find… even so, he was a bit too young. His skills were competent, but still untested, unlike the tricky old fox he was facing right now.

"Lance, let go please. Mr. Giovanni came in peace."

Lance's eyes crossed, and he let go reluctantly. Giovanni fixed his outfit and turned away from him, sitting down as if nothing had happened, or that he was in the center of Indigo Plateau.

The Rocket Boss stared straight at Goodshow. "Obviously you're the hand behind the League for the last eighty years."

"Indeed I am." Goodshow chuckled. "In fact, Madame Boss and I had quite a rocky relationship."

Giovanni smiled, neglecting to answer. If Goodshow was about to play the age card, he could always flip the table and end the game right there.

Goodshow detected his slight dissent as well and decided to dive right into topic. "Lorelei, can you grab me that map?"

The Ice Elite handed him a Home Islands map, and Goodshow folded it in half so that only Sinnoh, Hoenn, Kanto, and Johto were showing.

On the map, the four regions were like four different boxes pieced together so that each region touched two others, making a bigger square.

Kanto laid in the southeastern corner. To its west was Johto, which bordered the sea on its southern and western side. North of Kanto was Hoenn, separated by the mighty Bamboo River, the deepest and widest river on the Home Islands. Its flow ended in the mountains of the western Sinnoh border. Sinnoh sat directly north of Johto and west of Hoenn, but it had little touching space with Kanto.

However, the four regions was not quite a square when pieced together. Kanto and Sinnoh were both double the size of Hoenn and Johto.

Kanto's extra land jutted out south into the sea, in the form of a peninsula, which was surrounded by numerous islands known as the Orange Archipelago. Kanto was geographically divided in the North and South, South being the peninsula and the North being inland of the coastline.

Sinnoh's landscape stretched past the folding of the map upwards. Most were unexplored mountains with countless legends surrounding it. It was also the ambiguous region where the Sinnoh League struggled to maintain control— the gathering of bandits, poachers, and the traces of a certain Team.

Giovanni's eyes scanned through the paper. Only last week, he had reviewed this entire geography with Zero, and the two of them had established a concrete idea of what they wanted.

He looked to Goodshow and motioned him to start talking.

The President pointed at Northern Kanto. "Needless to say, both you and I have found and capture Magma and Aqua agents here."

Giovanni added. "Sometimes working together."

"Which is insane." Goodshow shot a look at him. "Those two had been going at it for years, fighting over Land and Sea, which is why Ever Grande has the easiest job keeping its crime rates low, even though it is the weakest of the southern regions."

"My hypothesis is that a power far greater than those two themselves had seized control over them, which is what is forcing them to cooperate." The President traced his fingers down Bamboo river into the bordering mountainous region. "We both know who that power is. It is against him that I am proposing an alliance."

* * *

Giovanni opened his eyes. That was the theory that Zero and he had come up with at first as well. It was the only logical one. But it all seemed too… simple.

From what Ash had said, Cyrus was a man planning to take over the universe. He can't be this predictable. Afterall, he even fooled Arceus at first.

"Your thinking is completely logical, and it is also way too convenient. Everything goes the way we wanted it. That's not Rocket thinking. We have to be prepared for the worse." Giovanni laid a careful finger down in Hoenn and started tracing its border.

"If Galactic had influence over Magma and Aqua, why don't they first take over Hoenn before starting a two-front war? What good will Cyrus get by hinting so clearly of his intentions? So clearly that we are sitting at a table, collaborating?"

Goodshow didn't respond. The Rocket Boss was not wrong. He had also thought of the same thing, and there was no explanation for the hole.

"We are obviously going to ally with Hoenn, and they'll doubtlessly accept it because it _is_ their Teams we are dealing with." Giovanni pulled the map closer to him and pointed at the heart of Hoenn. "What if, just what if…"

"Cyrus wanted us to form an alliance?" Giovanni turned to Goodshow. "Tell me, what will you do if we do form a three-way alliance?"

Goodshow blinked. "We'll send our troops into Hoenn and help Ever Grande exterminate the Teams."

"That's what any logical leaders will do." Giovanni confirmed. "And it is also the most predictable. Why don't we send our troops into Sinnoh instead and terminate Galactic?"

"Because they haven't proved to be in the scheme." Goodshow was confused. "Actually... why don't we!?"

"We don't because there will be no excuse to. Because you're the Leagues, and you can't operate without obvious, evident moral supremacy." Giovanni traced his finger through Hoenn into Sinnoh. "What if Cyrus's plan is for us to send our most powerful reserves into Hoenn, to defeat Magma and Aqua, and…"

He made an gesture of explosion. "Exterminate everyone?"

Goodshow's eyes widened as a bang of realization struck him. He pierced at Giovanni.

What Giovanni had said was perhaps the most ridiculous thing he had heard in decades, and it was also the perfect, most devious plan that would wipe out any opposition if it did succeed.

Cyrus was using Magma and Aqua as a enormous bait that any League could not resist swallowing if they had the chance to. In Ever Grande's eyes, if they could completely terminate the leading crime organizations in their region, they would pounce on that chance without a second thought.

Obviously, they couldn't do it alone. Afterall, they wanted to ensure complete annihilation of the Teams. Therefore, even if Giovanni and Goodshow didn't unite, Hoenn would propose an alliance to Kanto and Sinnoh so they could work together in busting the Teams.

Then, like Giovanni said, the alliance would send its most elite members to knock out Magma and Aqua. They couldn't hold back. It was two powerful Teams they were dealing with. There would be no reason not to go all in.

And once they were all in, Cyrus could release an ultimate weapon of his and wipe out the most elite Pokémon and agent gathering, ridding the Leagues of all of their possible defense against whatever his next step was.

It was a perfect plan. Cyrus had calculated every aspect of the human psychology and laid careful traps under each move. If the League had even started to fall, there would be no returning.

It was also the most ridiculous. No one would believe any part of the plan. No one would even imagine that possibly occurring.

The immense scale of the plan… using Magma and Aqua to lure in the regions. No one would ever think that Cyrus could just toss away two giant powers for a simple bet.

Similarly, no one would think that Galactic had the power to strike last as the ultimate winner. If anyone could say that Cyrus had a weapon powerful enough to destroy the elites of all three Leagues, they would be laughed at for years. If Cyrus was really that powerful, then why is Galactic still hiding in the Sinnoh mountains?

But what Cyrus didn't predict was that the Kanto League had to heart to actually ally with Team Rocket. He didn't predict that there were two master strategists in Rocket that were just as crazy as he was. He also never predicted that Arceus had pulled out his God-level powers and altered the universe, transporting him to a completely different timeline.

He didn't know that his danger level was already exposed to Giovanni, who had been keeping a keen eye on him ever since Ash and Domino came back. Giovanni knew that he was capable of destroying the _universe_ , not to mention three Leagues.

It was impossible. It was also the most logical. It was the perfect plan.

Cyrus's position in Goodshow's danger list skyrocketed. This was a giant game of gambling, using regions worth of resources for an ultimate toss and turn. What kind of courage, what kind of intellect, what kind of decisiveness did he possess to wager such a game!?

Granted that he could indeed gobble up all three regions.

Giovanni pushed the map back in Goodshow's direction. He spared the Elite Four a quick glance. The four were still stuck in processing the intricacy of the plans that he had proposed.

"Cyrus loves manipulating human hearts." Giovanni smirked. "Coincidentally, I do too. If he wants to gamble, I will too."

"Maybe Domino didn't address everything fully in her contract with Lance during the League competition." He looked Goodshow in the eyes. "If you still want an alliance with Team Rocket, you will have to accept that I will place both of our entirety onto the table for a Texas Hold'em."

"I'm sure Cyrus has a few trump cards, but I have a bunch as well, including two king cards."

"And I'm also pretty damn sure my cards can wipe his off the face of the Home Islands."

"So, what do you say, Charles?"

Goodshow looked into the face of the smiling man in the orange suit. There was no signs of hurry or fear, only tranquility and a hidden torrent of power.

This was why the Rocket Boss had always been the most dangerous character on his list. He thought carefully, and he nodded.

* * *

"Orange Islands?" Ash repeated.

Domino nodded and looked at her Transceiver. "Yep. That's what he said. Dad wants us to go to Orange Islands."

Ash's original plan was to completely skip Orange Islands and head directly for Sinnoh. He had collected enough Pokémon to destroy a freaking chunk of the planet, and he wanted to get the itching wart known as Galactic off his back as soon as possible.

He frowned slightly. "Why? There's nothing we can gain from Orange Islands. It's nice to meet Tracey again, but other than that…"

" _Yeah. I can sort out the issue with Lugia's three birds even by myself._ " Pikachu added from Ash's shoulder. " _There's nothing else._ "

"Well, I don't know." Domino sighed. "But we're going because I'm going."

Ash rolled his eyes. "Princess, why are _you_ going? You're an Elite. You have the privilege of rejecting a couple of missions."

Domino handed her device to Ash. "Okay, no problem. If you dare to call Dad and reject him, I'll go to Sinnoh with you."

Ash's eyes twitched. "You know I don't like talking to Giovanni."

"No shit. You're scared of him." Domino huffed. "Then don't make me do it."

"I'm only scared of him because of YOU!" Ash protested. "Do you know how hard it is for him to like me after what happened last timeline?"

"Harder than getting you to admit you're wrong?"

"..."

"Maybe not that hard…"

Domino took Ash's hand. "I know I may seem smart to you, but there are a bunch of other strategists on the Team who can match me, and there was one who can evidently top me, and there's also Dad."

"This was probably through consideration of everyone on the Team. Do you know how rare it is for Dad to give a direct order?"

"This is the plan after hours and hours of forging and reviewing. There's definitely something important on Orange Islands." Domino pecked Ash on the lips and smiled. "If you don't trust my Team, trust _my_ judgement. Let's go to Orange Islands."

Pikachu and Zorua sat together a dozen feet behind the two. The electric mouse shook his head. " _Ash gives up his dignity way too easily whenever Domino seduces him._ "

Zorua rubbed herself against him and purred. " _That's not seduction._ "

" _Then show me what is…_ "

" _..._ "

* * *

"So that's what is currently happening." Lance finished and sighed. "I know this all sounds extremely ridiculous… because it is…"

Misty and Brock exchanged a glance. Misty tilted her head. "Actually, it sounds pretty convincing."

Lance's eyes twitched. These millennials had way too bursting of an imagination…

"But either way… can I reject this assignment?" Misty asked sharply.

"I'm afraid not. Goodshow made the decision, so there is no going back." Lance shook his head definitively. "But you two aren't currently busy with anything anyways, so you guys would be a great choice for the spy work."

"And it's perfect. Misty trains Water, and Aqua worships Water. Brock specializes in Rock and Ground, which are the heart of Magma."

"But we were planning to travel with Ash." Brock stated flatly. "The League can't just allocate a duty in this short of a time."

"A war is starting, guys. A war." Lance emphasized. "Desperate times call for desperate measures. You two are the only League officials with your hands untied and are also competent enough for this job."

"Please, I'm begging you. Make some sacrifices for the League." Lance paused. "Plus, if we get get rid of Aqua and Magma swiftly, you can go back to traveling with your friends in no time."

Misty and Brock looked at each other and groaned. Lance pulled out the League card and the honor card. There wasn't much they could say to that.

Unwillingly, they took the respective Magma and Aqua uniforms laid on the table before them.

They both thought they could stick with Ash this timeline and travel for a long, long time… who knew there would be a curveball that shortened their journey by more than half, even by last time's standards…

Misty gave Lance a hard stare. "You owe us big, Champion. I demand a raise when I get back."

"Same." Brock said curtly and walked away with Misty a step behind him.

"Wow, someone still remember that I am the Champion!?" Seeing them go, Lance crossed his jaw in annoyance, grumbling sarcastically. "When the hell did I become the messenger who gets shot!?"

* * *

In front of Arceus and the Legends was the board game Risk… shaped exactly like the Home Islands.

Unlike the normal two dimensional game, this was three dimensional, with four special regions popping out in the center. At the edge of the Home Islands, the paper, representing the fabric of space, curved downwards.

If someone wasn't looking at the game from above, but instead sideways, they would see the rest of the planet being curved down, and then the solar system… galaxy… eternity.

A black smoke began to drift from one side of the curve into the Home Islands, stopping… near the base of Kanto, right outside the ocean that surrounded the southern peninsula.

* * *

 **A/N: I'm back with Chapter Uno of Orange Islands. Hope you guys like it! I plan on doing Orange Islands for 30 chapters, shorter than the norm.**

 **With the geography of the four regions, what I'm basically trying to say is that they're shaped likea giant square divided into four equal squares, with Kanto sticking down and Sinnoh sticking up.  
**

 **From this point on, things will begin to go very fast-paced, and very un-Nintendo. Be ready for a dangerous and curvy ride!**


	87. Cha 86: Orange Islands 2

**Cha. 2**

Sometimes, when life gave you lemons, you made lemonade.

Other times, you took them in the palm of your hand and squashed them until they turned into bits of urine-colored junk and launched them back at life.

Misty thought bitterly as she watch Ash, his head still lowered to absorb the shock… and to hide his sadness.

She was glad he wasn't displaying any excessive emotions. If he had… she might burst through her wall as well.

There wouldn't be tears, of course. Tears were for goodbyes. This wasn't a goodbye. What she was more worried about was letting anger and depression cloud her judgement. Who knew what could happen then?

Brock patted her shoulder. He was the one doing almost all of the talking for the past half an hour. This was how they worked. When he came back after Ash passed Sinnoh last time, he and Misty had quickly re-established their cherished bond.

He knew how she worked. Misty's cope was to stuff everything into a box and compress it until life got better. Then, she would let it out little by little.

Brock's method was more brute. He just let the blow crack through his skin head-on, and _then_ he allowed the healing to commence.

Misty sighed. "I guess we will join you guys after Orange Islands… shouldn't be that long."

"Still three months almost." Ash frowned. "Wow, three months!"

"Yeah. We all thought our journey would be much longer than last time… who knew…"

This non-goodbye was dragging on for too long. Any longer, it would turn into an actual goodbye.

"Well, good luck, pal." Brock stood up. He reached over and fixed Ash's hat. To him, Ash had long become his brother. "I mean it."

Between men, not much words were needed. They knew what each other wanted, what each other thought. Their bonds were like hard stone, firm and attached.

Ash punched Brock's shoulder lightly and smiled. "Three months."

"Three months."

They weren't kids anymore. They had both seen too many waves. The blows had forged them both into concrete structures.

Ash turned to Misty. Women were more fastened. Mercury and water. It curved, but it never broke apart. Still, their bonds were just as resilient.

Misty pulled out her mallet and turned it horizontally. She looked at Ash and pushed it toward him.

Her eyes shone purely. "I'm not giving you the lure this time. You probably need something to smash things with more."

Ash linked eyes with Misty. Traces of water seeped out. He reached into his backpack and pulled out a blue orb, the one from the Pokéatlantis tomb.

He placed it in her hands and took the mallet over. "And when you become a Water Master when I return, then you can say that this sphere represents two things."

"Your power and your eyes."

Misty dove into his chest for a hug, and Ash returned it. Brock closed his eyes.

This was about to be a long three months.

* * *

Ash was packing.

He had been packing for a few hours now, which he really didn't need to. Only girls took that long to pack… Scratch that, Domino had been waiting down in the living room for an hour already.

Ash never liked unexpected sharp changes. He enjoyed adventures, but not unfriendly ones. His way to cope was to bluff through them.

He was bluffing right now. Bluffing through life by packing.

He really did spend a lot of time packing.

When Ash headed downstairs, Domino was staring into Juliet's eyes. He coughed slightly in expression of his confusion, and Juliet broke away from Domino's gaze and leaned backwards into the couch with a frantic air.

"ASH! You're finally here!" She panted and closed her eyes. "I've already restricted her for an hour. I'm expecting your thank-you present tomorrow!"

"Wha…" Ash tilted his head.

Domino rolled her eyes and pulled Ash down next to her, giggling slightly. "She wanted to make sure I don't lose my patience and go up there to interrupt your grieving."

"And then she challenged me to a staring contest." Domino laughed. "What she didn't know was that I'm the Queen of staring contests."

Ash pressed her against his chest and smiled in amusement. "Thanks, guys."

Domino and Juliet winked at each other. Ash flopped backwards onto the couch and addressed Juliet. "But on a more serious note, Domino and I are leaving tomorrow."

Juliet smirked. "I'm here to talk just about that."

"Since you're down some companions, I was wondering if you have a new spot for me." She looked at him hopefully, eyes opened to their full extent to show her sincerity.

Ash gaped at her. "You want to travel with… _us_?"

Domino smirked and wrapped her arm around her new best friend's. "Apparently… even after I briefed her on the insanity that we met, and the insanity that we probably _will_ meet."

Ash blinked, and then laughed excitedly. "In that case, welcome to the team, Juliet!"

The two girls beamed and high-fived each other.

Ash looked out the window and smiled. Maybe Arceus did open a window for every door he closed.

* * *

Ash turned away emotionlessly from the girl batting her eyebrows at him at the far end of the deck. He did it more for her sake though… he didn't want too many people to die today…

He turned his eyes back to his own girlfriend and took in her figure, standing a short way from him, bent slightly over the fence of the cruise ship. F̶r̶e̶q̶u̶e̶n̶t̶l̶y̶, S̶o̶m̶e̶t̶i̶m̶e̶s̶, R̶a̶r̶e̶l̶y̶, Never did he allowed his eyes to drift over to Juliet's equally curvaceous body, her shining hair, shapely behind, voluptuous legs…

Cough, cough...

The coast was approaching them rapidly. Orange Islands were a way off from the mainland, but the distance wasn't extensive.

Their first stop was Valencia Island, mainly to retrieve Lapras. He was his only Pokémon from Orange Islands, and Ash released him at the end of his journey at the islands.

This time though, he didn't need to say goodbye.

The cruise ship, well, that was purely the girls wanting to enjoy a nice ride, since they both agreed that: "We're psychics, not tools."

THEN WHAT'S THE USE FOR TELEPORTATION!?

When the three got off at the beach, the first familiar sight that greeted Ash was not of Lapras… but of a lanky teen with a signature red bandana on his head and a green t-shirt, carrying a fixed sketch pad, walking next to… PROFESSOR OAK!?

At the same time that Ash saw him, the Professor took the group in as well. The elder waved, and Ash quickened his pace in his direction.

"Professor Oak! Tracey!" He stopped in front of the pair with a huge grin on his face. "How are you guys doing!?"

Tracey blinked. "Wait, you know me?"

Ash blinked as well, and his hand went to his forehead. "Ahhh! I forgot you're not reminded yet."

"Ash, my boy!" Professor Oak nodded and clapped his shoulder with zeal. "I've come for Tracey early this time. There's going to be a lot of work in the lab…"

Oak's eyes darted from side to side and pulled Ash closer to him. "I need to create a world."

"W... what?" Ash did a double take and looked up at Oak in surprise. He had heard a lot of insane things in the past… but what!?

"I need to create a world." The regional professor repeated.

Ash blinked rapidly. "Prof, with all due respect, you're not Arceus."

Professor Oak smirked amusingly. "Remember the digital world, Ash?"

Ash nodded, still not seeing where this is going. The old man continued. "Do you also remember Cyrus's pocket universe from last time?"

Ash's gaze hardened immediately. Thoughts raced through his head.

Cyrus's pocket universe was how he escaped Ash last time. He was sucked in the black hole, which might even be a backhand trapdoor created by the power of his pocket universe.

Now that Ash thought back, that so-called defeat might even be on purpose.

Cyrus needed something to erase himself from the sight of the world to continue carrying out his plans without attention from Leagues, and Ash became the perfect person for the job.

The power of the pocket universe was still as vivid as the day he saw it. But now, he understood the magnitude of power that it possessed.

It was the power equivalent to a Cosmic Pokémon. There could have been no way Ash could destroy him with his skill last time.

So many things made sense all at once. The power of the pocket universe explained how Cyrus could capture Palkia and Dialga. They all have Concept-level power, so a little tweaking and planning from Cyrus might just be enough to enslave the Creation Duo.

It also explained how Cyrus could succeed in destroying the last parallel universe. Concept-level power is way above what this realm could handle. No wonder that he could break reality. The only question left was… where was Arceus?

His thoughts raced back to what Professor Oak was saying. He looked at his teacher. Professor Oak was staring back at him intently.

He was trying to… build a pocket universe, just like Cyrus. Probably to counter Cyrus's.

Ash didn't know how to react. He thought he was crazy enough, and then… He gave the Professor a newfound look.

In the old man's eyes, he saw a deeply hidden gust of power, of madness that had been carefully covered by the dust of time. But being disguised did not mean it did not exist.

It only hibernated, waiting for the perfect time to burst out in one giant plume of unexpectancy and dominance.

Ash took in a deep breath. "I don't know what to say to that, Professor."

Oak laughed and patted his shoulder. "Believe me, you'll get used to it."

"I'm old, so I better let the rest of my age come out in one brilliant firework before I become obsolete."

He turned toward Tracey and made a gesture to Ash. "This is Ash, Tracey. Shake hands, young men."

"Nice to meet you, Ash." Tracey stuck out his hand. Professor winked at Ash. The brunet teen knew exactly what he meant.

He licked his lips carefully. "Professor… I need to tell you something."

Tracey's hand hang in midair awkwardly, and he coughed before withdrawing it.

Professor Oak frowned. "What's the matter, my boy?"

"Arceus's memory lift is starting to shut off. I was just notified of it during the League by one of Arceus's… 'double.'"

"I think I can manage five more tops." Ash cast a look toward Tracey. "And I don't think I can recreate it until I become at least… Formation.

Formation. Professor Oak winced. He was the creator of the power scale, so he knew better than anyone else how hard it was to hold Formation power… especially for a human.

Formation was equivalence of Groudon and Kyogre. Even Pikachu was not a Formation yet. The electric mouse was a hair away, but still not quite. Pikachu was a pre-Formation, or the period in between Ancient and Formation. He was about to transform, but there was still a tiny barrier he had to break through before Realizing his full Formation-level power.

Ash had said that he had the power equivalence of a Medieval, which was about the same level of a Moltres.

Professor Oak winced again. In Groudon's eyes, Moltres was probably nothing more than a fried chicken.

A slightly larger fried chicken.

Therefore, it wasn't much of an exaggeration to say that it might as well be years and decades until Ash became a Formation.

Or more. Even for him, as the Chosen, the process of evolution is insanely long. Ho-Oh spent millennium already, and he was still an Ancient. Pikachu was an inexplicable factor that could not be explained... because he was just Pikachu.

Oak nodded solemnly. "Do you want to remind Tracey, then?"

"I will." Ash nodded. "I'm saving all of my reminds for my previous companions. For Pokémon… I'm going to work something out with Pikachu."

Through this entire conundrum, Tracey had been staring at Ash like a stupefied turkey. Ash smirked and reached over to tap his shoulder with a weak blue-glowing palm.

"Welcome back, buddy."

* * *

 **A/N: Enjoy and review.**


	88. Cha 87: Orange Islands 3

**Cha. 3**

Zero's heart jumped a little when he saw Giovanni return with a dark face.

"Did the meeting go… astray?"

"No, it stayed on topic." The Rocket Boss growled. "A little too on topic."

Seeing Zero's confused face, he sighed heavily. "Team Rocket would be the one declaring war on Magma and Aqua."

Zero winced. You never wanted to be the first one declaring war in an alliance. That would most likely attract all of the initial firepower and hate.

"Goodshow is still that tough to deal with, huh?" The strategist remarked. The President had been through so much more than what people initially thought of him. He was in the same generation as Madame Boss. Zero highly doubted that there was anyone in the world in a higher age level than he, or even in the same age level, for that matter.

Well, at least the human species.

Giovanni nodded. His fingers drummed the table as thoughts popped in and out of his calculating mind. "How are Masked Marauder and Matori doing?"

Masked Marauder and Matori were the two elites Giovanni had sent to spy on Magma and Aqua months before when he originally detected unnatural movement in northern Kanto.

"The latest reports from 003 and 007 all say the same thing." Zero knew exactly what Giovanni wanted to be aware of. "There are a dramatic amount of linkage between the Hoenn Teams and Sinnoh."

'Sinnoh' obviously wasn't referring to Lily of the Valley.

"Message Marauder and Matori. Have them write a declaration of war and implant it into their respective Teams. Put my signature on it." Giovanni said coldly. "Our goal is to finish everything as quickly as possible."

"Only so can we shock Galactic immensely enough."

Neither the League nor Team Rocket knew what Cyrus was thinking, but Cyrus knew every move of theirs. Through this entire incident, they had been the reactive ones, and not the proactive side.

Whatever Cyrus's plan was, it was not a good idea to let him keep running with it. And the best way to stop it? Pummel Magma and Aqua hard enough as a message for him.

 _Message_ : If you don't lay back, we shall do the same thing to you!

 _Proof_ : Just go check out the ruins of Magma and Aqua.

Zero opened his mouth, and then closed it and lowered his head.

Giovanni, noticing his hesitance, frowned. "What?"

"Sir, if you want Magma and Aqua to be stopped quickly enough, you can always call 009 back." Zero said hesitantly.

Giovanni let out a long sigh. "Can't you see? That's exactly what Cyrus wanted. If he can hold Domino, and hence Ash, in the Hoenn battlefield, even for a short period of time, he could pull out his trump cards somewhere else."

"The next thing you know, we might have an enormous mutant legendary smashing through the HQ window."

"If we hide Ash and Domino, which Cyrus most definitely know about, with the Indigo League incident, he'll be more inclined to hold back his cards to prepare for them. That'll buy us more time. Time is what we need right now to figure his plans out!"

"Is that why you let them show off with Ancient and half-Formation level power at League?" Zero asked with a clearing realization. "To send a message to Cyrus?"

"Indeed. That was the plan." Giovanni closed his eyes. What he didn't say was that he also just wanted his daughter to have the last few months of peace before the inevitable war with Galactic started.

THAT, would not be a possible wipe-out like with Hoenn. It'll probably draw on for a long, long time.

A soft wind came through the window. Giovanni sneezed. He took out his handkerchief and frowned. He didn't like it when he sneezed for no reason. A very famous quote came to his mind.

"Trouble is stirring on the horizon."

* * *

The Orange Archipelago was made of dozens of islands laid out in a seemingly random pattern. Some of the islands were really close to each other, and others were separated by miles upon miles of water that required cruise ships for transportation.

The immense distance obviously caused many problems, like the difficulty for communication. Even though technology sometimes came to solve many of the issues, it was still hard for island dwellers to interact.

Instead of a combined 'Orange Islands culture,' it was more like numerous small cultures that separated the different land mass. It was one of the reasons why Orange Islands had yet to establish a confirmed League, though there were unofficial ones.

If the cultures couldn't bind, a League probably would never form. The different islands couldn't agree on the same procedure.

Simdow Island was one of the distant islands of the Archipelago, sitting far south in the chain. On it resided a small town of not more than a thousand citizens.

The night just turned day, and most of them were already up in their daily tasks.

But today was different. As the morning passed and the noon sun hanged high up in the air, the rays became dimmer and dimmer, as if the sun was being swallowed by an invisible mouth, or as if a mysterious, darkening fog was veiling over Simdow Island.

By three in the afternoon, the visibility had gotten so unbearable that the township had to turn on lights that were usually not in use until seven in the evening.

The town had pulsed out numerous messages to the unofficial Orange Island Center and even Kanto, but no replies were heard.

The panic began to overwhelm tranquility. By four o'clock, even the lights were not bright enough. Most employers decided to shut off work. Rumors of its being the end of the world spurred around the town.

Against the background of the darkness, no one noticed the grey flash trailing down the black sky and crashing straight into the ocean only a few miles from the coastline of Simdow Island.

However, this crash was nothing like any other. A deep hole appeared in the ocean surface that stretched down to the seabed.

The water, instead of flowing back in the fill the hole, stayed immobile, as if a force was holding it against gravity.

From the hole, a dark figure rose. It was a figure made of pure blackness. Its entire body was covered in a frightening smoke.

His entire body WAS smoke. Smoke that could consume everything. Fragments of it shot out of its body and into the water.

Instantly the water evaporated into a dark fog.

A mental projection sounded around him. " **Learn to control your powers. I can't hold off this separation for too long.** "

The smoke condensed and expanded, pulsing rapidly. The figure began to wobble toward Simdow Island. " **Understood. This Universe is just so… weak. We're supposed to get Concepts from…** _ **here**_ **?** "

" **That's what Teacher said.** " The voice died down. Even speaking was enough to make them weak. The journey here was too, too long. Even the time warp system wasn't enough to cancel out the temporal effects. It was so long that time had lost all meaning. A thousand years weren't much more different than a hundred, or ten thousand.

" **I'll be down here meditating.** **W** **e must grow out of this weakened state.** "

The hole in the water began to sink, and the water started to pour back in. The dark figure outside took one look at the hole and sighed. " **I wish I was psychic like you. You just needed to meditate. I need life to regenerate.** "

" **That's why I covered this island up.** " The voice in the hole said quietly. " **Quickly! Suck them dry and replenish your Sacred, then we have to get out before the Legends here notice.** "

" **I think they call it Aura here.** " The Stick figure said. " **This may take a minute or two.** "

The smoke figure zoomed off into the distance, floating as it went. His pace seemed relaxed and slow, but his speed was quicker than that of a Lugia. Within seconds, it rose to the top of the center of the round island, against all forces of gravity.

Then, he opened his mouth. A wave of mysterious energy swept across the island, forming an umbrella that hid the sky. The nearby water started to bubble up, turning into a dark fog that quickly filled up the island.

Sounds of freakish screams suddenly pierced through the fog, and they multiplied exponentially.

* * *

A boy stared in shock as his mother suddenly fell down on the ground before him. He ran over to help her up, tripping in the darkness in the process.

When he crawled over to her, he saw her clutching her stomach in the fetal position. She was squirming and struggling on the ground, growling deeply. He carefully turned her toward him.

Then, his eyes widened in horror as he let go in fear. She collapsed back onto the ground.

Her face… her face was covered in blood, as if an invisible smear a bucketful of the red goo onto her face.

The boy couldn't help but take a second, horrified look at the gruesome face. No, the blood wasn't smeared on. It was pouring out!

From her ears, her mouth, her nostrils. Her eyeballs had been burst, and blood was just streaming out in rivers.

The boy screamed and threw up right there. A sweet scent, instead of the usual acidic smell of backwash, filled his throat.

A torrent of blood oozed out of his own mouth and onto his hands. The boy stared in utter shock and incomprehension at the scene before him.

He didn't know what to think anymore. Fear, confusion, all of the emotions filled him all at once. Another stream of blood poured out of his mouth, then his nose, then everywhere.

The world turned red before his eyes, and that was the last thing he saw. Then, his eyes exploded, replaced by the racing, competitive waterfall of red gore.

He felt as if his entire anatomy was filled with a destructive pressure, pushing blood out of his skin. His organs were twisted together and swirled, as if someone had stuck a pole inside and twirled.

His clothes were soaked in blood, blood that seeped out continuously from his pores.

The boy lasted about ten seconds in this state, and mercy was brought onto him as his skull exploded, and his brain was blasted into a white cream that flowed, with the blood, mysteriously uphill.

Toward a certain point.

Toward the center of the island.

A geyser of blood and gore, symbolic of certain life forces, poured out from the island and into a dark cloud looming on top of Simdow Island.

The geyser continued for a few minutes, and then it stopped gradually as blood ran out.

The darkness from the cloud lifted from the island. A vague, black shape clearly more condensed zoomed back to an opened hole in the middle of the ocean, significantly faster than when it first came.

The hole closed again. Simdow Island remained sitting on the ocean, as if nothing had happened, besides the countless red streaks on the surface, and a thousand lifeless deformations.

* * *

 **A/N: No, I will not be switching ratings. Scenes like this won't be too common... (I think?)  
**


	89. Cha 88: Orange Islands 4

**Cha. 4**

Giovanni stared at the desk with his eyes narrowed and face darker than the floor on the grunts' level. In fact, his expression had not been this... extreme since the death of Madame Boss... or when Domino ran away...

"How many has this been?"

Zero tapped his fingers on the desk with an emotionless face. The patternless clicks betrayed his seemingly tranquil posture. "Fifth in only one and a half day."

The desk held a series of pictures of islands with lifeless, deformed corpses lying throughout. Red streaks were swiped across the islands.

The brutality was one that even the Rocket Boss frowned at. Next to the files were letters after emergency letters from League, all asking the same question with different wording- some polite, some much more colorful.

 _DID YOU DO THIS?_

"Simdow, Terra, Lincoln, Petri, Tanzan." Giovanni counted down with his fingers. "This is almost impossible. There is no way Cyrus can wipe out five islands in two days without using a large enough power that our radar can detect."

"I know we can't." Zero stopped tapping and looked up. His eyes were bloodshot. Team Rocket was an underground team, but it still had its rules and basic morals. "Even if we send in Mewtwo."

Team Rocket was still… _human_. This was not.

"This must be Galactic's attempt to put doubt in between us and Kanto League." Giovanni furrowed his brow. "But it doesn't make any sense. It just doesn't! Goodshow is not Lance. He is definitely smart enough to know we won't do this."

"It's WAY too obvious, and there's just no motive! Even for GALACTIC!" The Rocket Boss slammed a fist onto the desk. "This is… purely DISGUSTING!"

Zero shivered slightly. Having been with the crime lord for nearly three decades, he had rarely seen him this pissed off. Even through the most dangerous times, the orange-suited man had stayed calm.

He recognized a slight shiver in his posture when Giovanni raised his hand up to pet Persian. Zero forced himself to stay calm, but his efforts weren't much more effective than Giovanni's.

This was five islands, five thousand people. Dead. DEAD.

Giovanni closed his eyes. He had said a long time ago to numerous Elites, what the purpose of Team Rocket was.

Team Rocket existed to control the world and to bring about a better world. Democracy, of course, didn't tolerate this philosophy, which was why the Team was underground.

But this genocide… this was directly against everything Team Rocket believed in.

Giovanni sighed and looked out the window.

"I wanted to give you a relaxing break with your Chosen." He muttered. "Why must this happen?"

* * *

When Domino took a look at her beeping Transceiver, she immediately did a spit-take on her iced tea and choked on the remaining droplets.

Her eyes bulged out. Even for a Rocket Elite, the images on there were… just…

Ash, seeing her outburst, peered over curiously. Domino snatched her phone away and placed a hand in front of Ash's face.

Ash looked at her innocently. Domino's voice trembled. "You don't want to see this."

Ash raised an eyebrow. His curiosity grew stronger. His girlfriend wasn't fazed even when she was staring into the eyes of Darkrai. Why was she acting like this?

A repeated look at her face told him that it was something much more serious than he imagined. Her eyes were glued to the screen, and he noticed that her eyes were glowing slightly pink, a sign of her losing control of her psychic powers.

Domino raised her head up and locked eyes with him. In her eyes, Ash saw mountains of bodies, an illusion left over from her psychic. His hand gripping his lemonade cup started to shake. The balcony wind became noticeably colder.

She panted slightly. A drop of sweat trailed down her neck and was unconsciously evaporated. "Ash. Calm down."

Ash raised an eyebrow. She was losing her mind. Logic commanded him not to say anything.

Domino took a deep breath. "You need to be very calm when you see this."

Ash looked at her. His heart pounded faster, as if resonating with a pacing war drum with an increasing rate of beat. How was she expecting him to be calm when she was acting like half the world was about to collapse? Or worse!?

Domino turned the phone toward him, her hands shaking.

The image took a second to come into focus, and another second for his mind to register. The blonde watched as Ash's face turned from the initial anxiety into a bulging disgust, then complete shock, and finally to a glowing red anger that could very well match Victini's V-create.

Her hands clasped onto his shoulder immediately and placed a psychic cage onto his body to restrict his quaking Aura, while seeping a Calm Mind into him as quickly as possible.

The Aura meditation technique that Ash was using snapped into effect as well, holding back the waves of uncontrollable energy threatening to pour out and turn the hotel under their feet into complete waste.

Domino's figure blurred into a vacuum as she teleported herself and Ash far away from the hotel to a thousand feet above the nearby ocean.

She felt her psychic cage quickly dissipating under the wash of his Aura. Sighing, she let go and dropped Ash into the ocean.

Even though they were both Medieval level, she did not want to be in the way of Ash when his emotions spiked to a distinct peak.

Sure, Ash was gentle and kind when he was peaceful... even when he was _not_. However, when he raged, well…

A massive steam explosion rose from underneath her, and she saw a swirling whirlpool form from where she dropped Ash.

Domino frowned. She knew that emotions fueled Ash's Aura, but it also made him go into a blinded state.

She herself had no such problem with losing her head. She had no ties with this world. As long as Ash was safe, and Giovanni and a few others, the entire world could go to hell for all she cared.

But Ash… he loved the world, because he believed the world love him… and then this.

The whirlpool continued to rotate, and no signs of its dissipation was seen.

* * *

When Domino carried Ash back to the balcony, his eyes were still locked by scarlet bars. There wasn't a need to dry him off. The relentless Aura already did that for him.

Domino held his hand and laid her head into his chest. She breathed softly. "I'm here."

He extended a trembling hand and ran through her hair, not saying anything for a long time.

"Is this why your father made us come here?" Ash said with a toneless ambivalence. Did Giovanni knew this was going to happen? Were they sent here to prevent this?

Why didn't he just come out and say it? What was he scheming? How DARED he use the lives of thousands… thousands of people for a scheme?

Domino knew exactly what he was thinking when she felt him starting to shake again. She peckered his cheeks lightly. "This was not a Rocket plan. This is against Rocket beliefs. Dad was as shocked as we were when he saw the reports."

Ash looked at her and said nothing.

She continued. "The Orange Central Office discovered this less than a day ago. The autopsy showed that all of them had been killed in less than two days. Five islands in two days. There was no destruction of the terrain. Only the people are dead."

Ash's head snapped up. "That's not possible."

"I know. Even we can't do it without ruining the islands." Domino said quietly. "Dad sent me this as soon as he heard word. League has just placed this under its highest alert, and we have it in Code Black."

Ash pointed a shaking finger at Domino's screen, still with the picture of the corpses on Simdow Island. "They… they're sucked dry! What kind of person would do this!? Just… what!?"

Feeling his anger soar up again, Domino quickly placed multiple Calm Minds on him before his anger could stack up to previous levels. "That's not a person, Ash. It's a monster, even by Rocket standards. Hell, even by Darkrai standards!"

Ash closed his eyes. He couldn't think anymore. His mind was clogged completely. Even though he had been in the face of numerous disasters, none was this horrid, this sickening!

Even Domino wasn't much better. All she knew was to stay by Ash and watch him until he was calm. Until _they_ were calm.

She was his Queen.

* * *

Juliet wasn't much better when Domino broke the news to her. Even though she was calmer than Ash, she did make the ongoing storm on top of their heads vaporize with torrents of psychic bursts.

Ash wasted no time after he came back to his senses. His eyes were no longer bloodshot. Instead, they took on a dangerous glow that seeped Aura out uncontrollably. Without psychic protection, Domino even felt staring into his shining eyes painful. It was like staring into the sun, equally bright and equally penetrating.

He wrote an email to Professor Oak, attaching on the pictures he copied from Noah.

A quick response from the Kanto Professor replied that he had already received news. Even though it had only been half a day since the discovery, nearly everyone in the top positions in the Kanto network had received word.

The words in the email were made of knives, and Ash could feel Professor Oak's rage over the virtual net.

In his calmer mindset, he did picked out certain bits of information from the elder's response.

First, Professor Oak said that the tech experts at Indigo Plateau noticed that, with every genocide, the satellite detection on the respective island blanked out for a few minutes… and the time for the blank was getting shorter and shorter.

Ash's face was stone cold as he scanned through the email. The killer… or killers, was getting quicker and quicker with each island.

But still! Even their slowest time with the first Sindow Island took no more than five minutes!

Ash still couldn't imagine what kind of a force could suck a thousand bodies dry in less than five minutes while not damaging the island one bit…

A tiny stream of fear ran down his back, and it was quickly torn apart by the anger that surged up as his mind replayed the unbearable photographs.

Ash didn't let his fury take over again. His eyes shone colder, and he swallowed his emotion. Steadily, he closed Dexter. The Pokédex didn't say anything either and intelligently let Ash be in full control.

There was a force that could disturb satellite energies? Ash had no clue what that could be, and he didn't bother thinking about it, because even Professor Oak said the database had no record of it.

All of the islands that were bloodshed were in the outer ring. This showed that the killer was probably still cautious of the League. They weren't indestructible by any means.

Outer ring?

He walked into Domino's room. She and Juliet were cuddling on the blonde's bed, both of them with a determined expression.

He didn't waste time communicating by using words. He Aura-sped the message he wanted to say into their minds, and they returned with the same speed with psychic.

Instantly, an agreement was made.

A second later, the three disappeared.

* * *

Ash stood on Simdow Island. It was closed off by League officials and Rocket agents joined together in distinctive uniforms, a sight that was never even imagined a week ago.

Sure, they still distrusted each other, but at least they were in peace. The invisible power struggle that could have happened between the two forces were completely crushed by the bloody tragedies, which rendered both scared and furious.

League agents were human. Rocket agents were human. They all had one goal, one determination: Kill the monster who did this.

The trio hovered in midair, invisible due to Ash's Aura absorbing all light. They stared down at the island. It was less gruesome than the pictures… but only slightly.

The cleanup efforts were still going on, and it would go on for a long time. Even hundreds of feet in the air, the image was still as gripping and clear as the close-ups.

The boy's face was emotionless. He had succeeded in shutting his anger out. A hazardous disposition rose from within. Next to him were the two females, and they all had a similar atmosphere that could turn even an Yveltal away. They were even more dangerous this way than they were filled with rage.

There were four more flashes, and the trio walked past each of the four other islands. Ash's heart quivered at the sight of each one.

He was forcing himself to endure through all five nightmares. If the killer was this violent and cold-blooded, he needed to train himself to be just as cold when he faced the monster.

If he had to force his own humanity out of himself to deal with _it_ , he would!

When he got back to Simdow Island, he wasn't himself anymore. He had pressured himself into a more methodical, a more dispassionate, a more robotic Ash. He needed to be like this. If he didn't, he didn't know what will happen.

He needed to be like this to fight that bastard!

Now, he could look directly at the bodies on the island without twitching, but his power was vibrating more and more, thirsty for revenge and hungry for an outlet, for something that deserved to be pummeled.

Domino took out a map. The two girls were in a similar state as he was. She pointed to another populated island on the other ring of the Archipelago.

"Here?"

"Here!"

* * *

 **A/N: Next chapter shall be an epic battle. Be prepared to see Pikachu in his full power… Holy Arceus, I almost peed my pants when I wrote Pikachu in his full power!**


	90. Cha 89: Orange Islands 5

**Cha. 5**

Domino, holding Ash's hand, reappeared on the clouds above Simdow Island. Both of their faces were as dark as the night above them.

Juliet flashed in a minute later. The two turned to her with unemotional eyes. She shook her head, and the couple sighed.

In the past four hours, they had visited every one of the outer islands of the Orange Archipelago to not only look for traces, but also to plant down specific psychic traps.

Still, nothing. It was as if the murderer had evaporated, knowing that the League was onto him.

Ash gritted his teeth. His fury started to surge back up again. His soul was a mixture of hot and cold. Icy cold from the desire to choke the killer, and burning hot from the obvious rage that had been building up to a bursting limit.

Domino was about the open her mouth to put in a suggestion for dinner when a sharp, distinct pain choked through her brain.

It wasn't pain. It was more like a mighty vibration that signaled…

"The traps!" She yelled and snapped her head westward. "Someone triggered the traps!"

The three's face turned into incredible alert, and their eyes shone a daring red.

With a flash of pink, they disappeared.

* * *

Professor Oak's dinner was interrupted abruptly by Tracey slamming through the door, panting.

Without him even speaking, Oak stood up immediately. Tracey pointed out the door. Oak's eyes narrowed.

There was only one thing right now that could get Tracey this rushed.

Behind him, his new assistant called. "The sensor on Tehila Island malfunctioned!"

* * *

Goodshow and Lance locked eyes as the warning that was programmed into the satellite system blared.

Lance snatched up a radio lying on the desk in front of him and nearly shouted into it. "Lorelei. Satellite is malfunctioning again. Tehila Island. Where are you!?"

"Got it. Sabrina and I will be right there!" The response cut through the air. "Get the reinforcements ready."

If the murders were really strong enough to wipe out five islands in such quick succession, Lorelei knew that she could not, by any means, stop them herself.

But she still went straight ahead to Orange Islands anyways. The Archipelago was her home, where she came from. In the Four Elites, she was the most pained by the massacre.

Against all advises from the League, she volunteered to go deep into the Islands to be the first respondent whenever the satellites stopped working again.

Her goal was to delay as much time as possible until the League could round up enough troops and have all of the psychic Pokémon lock onto the destination, before the murders could succeed in their bloody ambitions.

Even if the price she had to pay was her life.

Even though the Kanto League was on full alert and ultra prepared to teleport all of the troops onto Orange Islands, the technology was still not advanced enough for instant lock-on and transportation.

Moving hundreds of agents and Pokémon in a single second would take an unfathomable energy that the League could not afford unless it was truly at the brink of destruction.

Even with all of the previous preparations, the League still needed a few minutes for everything to completely transport over.

Hence, Lorelei and Sabrina was sitting in the center of Orange Island, ready for any turn of events. It wasn't realistic to place guards on every island. Their power would be separated too much, and a few guards on each island is obviously not going to do much against such powerful killers.

Goodshow frowned deeply. His intuition was shouting that something did not seem right in this entirety, but he couldn't place his finger on it.

He did not like this feeling at all. He looked at the adrenaline-filled Lance and sighed. He couldn't convince the Champion to stop unless he had concrete evidence.

* * *

Bronton Island.

When Ash, Domino, and Juliet reached the end of their teleportation tunnel, it suddenly collapsed as a massive wave of energy struck through the spatial passage.

The trio fell right out of space into the sea a few miles away from Bronton Island.

They grasped collectively as darkness melted into their eyes.

Not the darkness of the night. It was the darkness of Death. A screen of pure black covered the sky of Bronton Island, and it stretched all the way to where they were levitating.

Where they stood marked the perimeter of a giant aerial whirlpool that replaced the stars of the night. Even from afar, a distinctive smell of blood and gore entered their nostrils.

When Ash identified the smell, his rage finally tipped over, and he was a string away from losing all sensible thought.

He couldn't believe it! They were here a few seconds after Domino's psychic markings were triggered! How could the monster wipe out a chunk of the island's population in this short of a time!?

Even no Pokémon HE had could complete such a task!

The dark veil in the sky turned crimson. With his Aura spiked to maximum, Ash's eyes burned from the accursed coloration signaling dozens, or hundreds of lives.

He dashed in the direction of the island, each step transcending the waves beneath his feet faster than a hurricane could travel.

Domino and Juliet followed suit, glowing with a bright pink. The coast was enlarging in no time. The scent of blood was growing heavier by the second, and the sky was turning from crimson to a bright scarlet.

TOO SLOW! TOO DAMN SLOW!

Ash's eyes were bloodshot. They were the only thoughts that dashed in panicking cycles in his mind.

SPEED! People were dying by the second, SECOND!

His Aura was vaporizing at an insane rate, but he could not give even a stray damn to it.

Quicker! Just a little quicker!

Ash roared into the ocean. With a magnified _BOOM_ , he tore through the sound barrier!

The coastline entered his eyes, and he jumped up from the water, darting thirty feet into the air.

Then… he slammed into an invisible wall as he stepped foot onto the sandy beach of Bronton Island.

Almost instantly, the two girls behind him reached the shore as well. Ash's eyes twitched. His head was still aching painfully from the smash, and it was too late for words.

He tossed his hand, and two shots of Aura zoomed out in front of Domino and Juliet and turned into a Protect shield before them.

Immediately following an united loud _BANG_ , the two girls rolled back. Ash could see the ripples of the two collisions weaving through space.

Force field… and not a very strong one either. Ash thought fast while picking up the two girls, all in one swift movement.

Obviously, the killer wasn't expecting someone at a Medieval Level to be on his tail this fast, so the shield was probably targeting regular citizens of Bronton Island.

Medieval Level was equivalent to the power of Moltres and Entei, strong enough to deform an entire island if they wished.

In the blink of an eye, ten times faster than the ticking of a clock that resembled a singular second, Ash communicated that message to his companions.

The responses back were both decisive and deeply forceful:

 _WELL… BREAK IT!_

A powerful Aura Sphere popped into Ash's hand. It glowed a cavernous blue and seeped power with a beautiful majesty.

Domino and Juliet each had a psychic projection of their own in front of them.

Domino's was a giant hammer, its pinkness condensed so much it began to turn into an equally florid color as the sky cover's.

Before Juliet was a drill that pulsed enormous waves of potency. Her weapon matched Domino and Ash's, and her body vibrated with the similar power of a Medieval.

Together, the three smashed down onto the shield. The impact was so pressurized the air particles around zapped out of the way, creating a deep vacuum that formed for half a second.

It then compressed the atoms not fast enough to escape to a radioactive level, and they disintegrated into a mighty explosion that blasted the entire force field in front of them to shattered pieces.

Pikachu, who had ridden steadily on Ash's shoulder through his entire frenzied run, took in a quick breath.

They literally just created the effect of… a freaking nuclear bomb. Pikachu's eyes twitched. Even though he could do that as well as a Top Ancient… but STILL! They were humans!

Zorua, on Domino's head, shook slightly as well. Even though she rarely used her full power in the ranch or elsewhere- because there is no need to- she _was_ Pikachu's mate, and that spoke for itself.

She stretched, and her fur puffed out a few extra inches. But instead of the normal cute appearance she usually take on, a ruthless purple glow poured over her.

Her eyes changed ever so slightly, and her posture tweaked. With only such small changes, Zorua shelled herself with an aggressive exterior of an expert hunter.

Her entire disposition changed. No one could say, seeing her in this state, that she was cute. She was not cute. She was threatening!

Afterall, she was Domino's starter, if the disappeared Mew could be ignored. Pikachu was Ash's starter, and they were mates. It was only fair if she could match him in, well, everything!

Behind Ash, Lucario materialized and sped into Mega Evolution. Sir Aaron's staff from a millennium ago appeared in his hands, and he stuck it deep into Bronton Island.

Cracks started to surge out from below his feet to cover the entire beach, much like spider webs overlaying the coast and stretching inland.

Kirlia materialized at the same instant. She was a lot more controlled than the humans and Pokémon next to her, likely because she was the Emotion Pokémon.

Nevertheless, she was surrounded by a fitting, mysterious tranquility, waiting to be converted into a storm of calamity. And when it does, it was an underestimation to say that it trumped the force of a tornado.

It took less than a second for the barrier to break, the Pokémon to materialize, and the trio to recover from the force of the recoil.

Detecting the invisible hole in front of them, Ash led the way and stepped right through the forbidden barrier.

Crossing over the hole was like stepping into another dimension. The entire island was covered in a black fog that could only be seen through with Aura or Psychic coated sight.

The scent of blood was dozens of times stronger within than at the outer coast. In the distance, Ash could hear desperate screams with his enhanced hearing.

Rage was not enough to describe his condition. Nor was fury. He had never been more livid in his life, or did he think he ever would be. He was so angry that it started to have the opposite effect.

He almost wanted to laugh. His emotions were so spiked that it pummeled into a ravine, rendering him unexpectedly calm and methodical.

A strange feeling washed over him, as if someone was staring at his area. He raised his head to a direction based on his intuition.

Aura penetrated the deep darkness, and a pair of red glowing eyes met his.

Instantly, Ash knew those eyes belong to whom, or rather, what, he was searching for.

At the same time, Domino, Juliet, Pikachu, Zorua, Mega Lucario, and Kirlia all followed his sight to the pair of devil eyes.

In the next instant, everything, both figuratively and literally, blew up.

* * *

 **A/N: Sign of Times will be back shortly after this commercial break… otherwise known as life.**


	91. Cha 90: Orange Islands 6

**Cha. 6**

At the same time Indigo Plateau detected the satellite malfunction, Giovanni's screen received the same disturbance.

Next to him was Zero, and directly in front was the Rocket Trio, all three standing upright and serious.

Well… as serious as they could be.

Giovanni stared at the screen without saying anything, and Zero maintained the silence.

Jessie, James, and Meowth exchanged concerned looks, before speaking up. "Ummm… Boss?"

Persian turned his head toward them with an uncaring glance. Giovanni responded. "Speak."

"Should we…" James's voice was slightly nervous as he breathed out his suggestion. "Go over to Tehila…"

"No!" Zero interrupted him with emphasis and stood up abruptly. "I got it!"

"I almost have it too." Giovanni replied. "But since we don't have time, explain."

Zero's eyes shone with an intellectual glow. "The first five disturbances with the satellite, whatever their reason was, automatically made everyone _assume_ that a disturbance meant that they were appearing on an island."

"And then they STOPPED!" He almost shouted. "Their train of thought before and after they stopped must be different; or else, they WOULDN'T STOP! They could just keep going on their terrorizing streak!"

"The murderers must have somehow realized that the League had received word of their murders, and they probably have now prepared a trap for them to jump into."

"Initially, they blocked out the satellite systems probably to prevent any power leakage as they massacre the island. But now, with the League teleporting everything, Lance had already cause a giant power turbulence in the systems, so the disturbance won't even be necessary! No one would notice anything!"

Giovanni's face blossomed into understanding. "That means… the area of disturbance isn't where the massacre is going on! It's just them diverting our attention."

Zero pointed at the satellite screen. "Look! The League is already sending troops."

He tapped a few keys on a nearby keyboard, and most of the waves representing energy transfers turned blue on the screen pasted to the wall. "Everything blue is identifying the League-coded turbulence. Now, we just need to watch for another turbulence that would come from the sixth massacre."

There must be a sixth massacre. Why else would the murderers bother messing with the satellites again?

"And the sixth massacre will leak power because there will be no more coverage on the satellites, because whatever covering the satellites are at Tehila!" Giovanni slammed his fist onto the desk. "Why is the League so damn stupid!?"

"I'll call them to have them track any non-coded disturbance." Zero picked up his phone and smiled a little. "Their entire headquarter is probably a complete mess right now. No one is probably watching the screen for something that extra, that small."

Before Zero could even start speaking into his Transceiver, a distinctive, non-blue swirl appeared on the map… right in the center of Bronton Island.

Zero placed down his phone in shock. "What!? Why are they starting the massacre without even waiting for the League to finish their teleportation? They can't be THAT stupid!"

"Wait! What if it's Ash and Domino!?" Jessie interjected. "What if they found the killers already?"

"Very likely." Giovanni clicked his tongue. "They probably went around the islands coding everything. Unless Oak misdirected them to Tehila, which thankfully he didn't, they could've teleported over already."

"Bronton Island! Bring Mewtwo!" The Rocket Boss turned to the Trios. "Let's make this your first blood as Commanders!"

* * *

Ash was not the one who moved first, nor was Domino, or even Pikachu, or anyone else by his side.

Because the dark figure moved. In the split of a second, he emerged from the shadow of his whirlpool and released his full form on top of the group.

He took on the shape of a… Circle.

A giant sphere that covered half of the island. He had noticed Ash since his power knocked the group out of their teleportation, but he chose not to care.

What shocked him immensely was that the group crossed the ocean AND broke his barrier all in less than ten seconds, which was not even fifteen seconds after he started forming his whirlpool of Death.

Even when he was in his own Universe, this would be insane. That would require Top Medieval ranks to do so, or even Ancient!

Even though that power, compared to him, was still, well, trash, it did gain his immediate full attention.

The Circle started condensing, shrinking down from his gigantic stature down to the size of a normal refrigerator, in less than a second.

Even though it might look impressive, the Circle hated being giant. His power was divided over too great of a volume. Instead, he liked being normal… or normal in comparison to his true shape that could only be shown in his Universe.

That way, his energy was concentrated and controlled. And more threatening.

Far more threatening.

His sight panned across the group, and his red-glazed eyes dilated. Standing behind the three humans were… four creatures… animals…

 _They call it Pokémon._

An unknown pang of grief shot through the Circle's eyes. Kirlia was the only one to notice, and a slight confusion twirled in her mind.

But she was not given much time to think. In fact, only the blink of an eye, a tenth of a second.

The Circle only hesitated for a fraction of a moment, and he was back on track, dashing straight for Ash.

A torrent of wind blew from behind him, forming vortices of spinning fog. Intangible voices echoed from the darkness, screaming, yelling, pleading.

At first, the voices were small, barely a whisper. However, it had a mysterious quality to it that attracted people to listen more closely.

And when Ash did listen more closely, the voices hit him like a giant truck, tearing through his heart and nearly bursting his eardrums. He forced his mind to calm and pumped pools of Aura into his auditory organs.

It acted as a carpet that reduced the decibels of the sounds to a relatively tolerable level, but the screams were still penetrating.

The odor then arrived next. It was a bilious stimulant that could make a mortal throw everything up, and keep throwing up until he was pouring out blood and intestines.

None of the group had ever come into contact with so strange of attacks before… in fact, looking at the Circle, they might not even be conscious attacks. They might just be the effects of what was to come…

The dark figure, his entire body masked in black smoke, stopped a hundred feet away from the group.

He didn't bother speaking. He knew that they wouldn't understand his language anyways, unless they set up a mental link, which was just absurd.

The black fog in front of him condensed into a hand just large enough to cover the area the seven were standing on. The hand was not the hand of a human.

It had nine black fingers. Its skin was painted black, from fingernails to palm, covered in a absorbing black.

Nine was the epiphany of extreme. Nothing could exceed nine, because ten was just a one and a zero.

It wasn't a giant hand like Groudon's, but its power from its potent density might even exceed Groudon's. It came crashing down toward Ash and the group.

The hairs on Ash's body stood up on their ends, threatening to shoot out of his body. His mind was blaring with screams of warning that he had never experienced before, even in scenarios where he was killed.

Immediately, he knew that this was an intensity that he had never seen before. He had truly never been exposed to a power this great. Even when he retrieved for Arceus the Jewel of Life, the battles between the Cosmics were not as threatening, because he was constantly under a bubble of protection.

But this time, he had to face this magnificent of a power all by himself. His brain yelled at him to dodge. Only one word could explain the insanity of the hand: Formation.

Ash was facing a Formation Level being.

But he didn't dodge, and nor did the rest of the crew.

Mega Lucario reacted first, his speed surpassing everyone else. The hundreds of years of battling with Sir Aaron had gifted him a special sense that could only be gained from licking the blade thousands of times.

The Aura Pokémon swung his staff upward, while blasting his Aura to maximum release. A giant Aura shadow zoomed up from behind him and swung toward the lowering hand, as if a giant aiming to punch out the sky.

However, this time, the undefeated Mega Lucario failed. The Aura Construct stood intact under the enormous black hand for only a second, before crumbling into uncontrolled Aura that faded into the air.

Mega Lucario was thrown back by the recoil and spat out a mouthful of blood as his body trailed a painful parabolic motion through the air.

However, the hand wasn't much better either. Giant cracks started forming, stretching out from the center. Black smoke rushed out of the construct and broke apart.

The group didn't have time to pay attention to the Steel Type though, and nor did they have time to be astonished at how Lucario, a Top Ancient, could not stand even a second under this insanity.

Kirlia was next to react, only three blinks after Lucario first reacted. She had been on full alert ever since she detected that spike in emotion in the Circle's eyes.

From her body, a psychic flower the size of a small house ascended. The flower had eight petals. Each had a giant weapon sitting on it.

Sword, spear, ax, trident. Hammer, bolas, katana, bow. The eight ultimate weapon of ancient warfare.

The flower swirled quicker than even the eye of a hurricane and clashed right into the giant hand, which was already partially scarred by Lucario's previous attack.

It stabbed deeply into the hand and twirled. Cracks started to form on the hand as black fog dissipated from the dark construct.

The Circle roared in frustration. How was this possible? Back in his universe, his attack would even crush any being who dared to oppose him!

Afterall, he was a TOP Formation. Each small step in the level equated to giant leaps of power. Even though he was still not completely healed from the long periods of travel, he still recovered to at least normal Formation!

How could it only take two Top Ancients to destabilize his attack?

Unless... they are Gifted!?

That was not possible! How could he POSSIBLY bounce into two Gifted as soon as he land!? Gifted weren't random pebbles that could be picked off the street!

They were GIFTED! Treasured by each and every institution and superpower…

The Gifted were special creatures of their species who were blessed with the natural affinity that resonated to the essence of the universe. Each of their attacks was significantly more powerful than an equally ranked being.

The Circle roared and cut off his thoughts as he witnessed his hand at the brink of destruction. The Circle pointed sharply at the nine-fingered creation and chanted in a rapid pace.

His words were mysterious and foreign, possessing a strange quality. As he spoke, nearby fog rushed into the hand, repairing it and condensing the construct at a unbelievable rate.

The Circle, however, frowned. The Universe was restricting his power remarkably. His teacher had told him that this would happen, but he didn't think the limit would be so intensive.

The hand clutched together. Dark strands surrounded Kirlia's flower construct, which stood a few blinks before being torn apart. Her entire flower exploded in the grasp of the hand, and she was pummeled straight into the ground by the resulting force.

Next to react were Ash, Domino, and Juliet. Each by themselves was only a Top Medieval, but when they melted their powers together, they were a force that even Pikachu didn't want to tackle head on.

Each of the legendary bird of Kanto- Moltres, Zapdos, and Articuno- was a Medieval by themselves. But when the trio fixed their hearts on one goal, even their trio master could not tame them.

In the last timeline, when they rebelled against Lugia on Shamouti Island, their combined powers trumped even the Ancient level being…

Ash, Domino, and Juliet were, by no means, weaker than the three birds. If anything, they were only stronger. Their powers rose up against the giant hand, forming a similar hand, with five fingers, that collided with the blackness.

A powerful wave of residue swept through Bronton Island. The black fog around them vaporized, creating a rare blank without any darkness in the center of the poisoned land. After the two constructs clashed, neither actually broke completely.

The nine-fingered hand had cracks forming throughput, looking even worse than it did after Lucario and Kirlia's attacks came into contact.

The trainers' hand was in a far more terrible shape. Its fingers had exploded, leaving only a palm filled with deterioration that was being consumed by the empowering dark fog.

The black hand lifted, its seemingly unstoppable downward descent halted. The Aura adept and the two psychics gritted their teeth, pumping an immense collection of energy into their hand, not caring at all for the possibility of burning through their reservoir.

They might not even live to that time.

The dark hand fell again after rising for half a second. The two constructs clashed once more. This time, Ash's hand blew up into pieces, unable the stop the Formation power again.

The three humans were tossed backwards and slammed to the ground. Ash bit his tongue, holding back the pain from his organs and ignoring the cracks he heard that hollered his body.

Domino managed a Calm Mind on everyone, pulling them desperately back from unconsciousness.

By this point, the black hand itself was severely damaged. Seven of its nine fingers had blew off, and half its palm missing.

The Circle frowned a little more. This Universe was compressing his powers insanely. Back home, he could wipe out Ancients in one blink.

Then, he felt that his eyes blurred a little. Below his hand, the smallest of all of the beings suddenly lit up in a potent, purple light.

And green, red, pink, brown,…

A total of eighteen lights, for eighteen types.

A torrent of moves streamed out of Zorua like a waterfall. There was no opposition between Fire Blast and Hydro Pump. Somehow, the elements all mixed together to form one giant beam of hyper energy that splashed right against the hand.

To the Circle's surprise and anger, his hand blew right into fragments and dissipated. The beam of energy continued to charge straight at him, somehow still intact.

There wasn't many ways to show surprise on a spherical face deformed by the rules of reality that he could defy yet, but his eyes showed clear amazement... amazement that a few Medievals and Ancients together could break his attack.

Wait! the Circle took another quick, astonished look at Zorua. His mind replayed what had just happened.

Even though his hand was quite broken from the previous attacks, it was still very concrete… It was a Formation attack afterall. Not even a Top Ancient could possibly break it… That fox… tore through it in one attack!?

He did a double take and realized that she was not only ANOTHER Gifted, but also… a pre-Formation!?

A pre-Formation had already surpassed the ranks of Ancient, but it had not quite reached full Formation privilege yet. It was like a bridge between the two levels.

Zorua's attack reached the Circle. A quick beam of darkness shot out of him and neutralized the attack, and he shook a little from the recoil.

Did… did that fox just… moved me!? A incomprehensible thought came to his mind. BUT...!

And… the fifth second after Ash stepped through the hole passed.

* * *

 **A/N: Time for that commercial break again!**


	92. Cha 91: Orange Islands 7

**Cha. 7**

After he smashed Zorua's attack to pieces, the Circle cursed under his breath. Why did the Universe restricted his power so much!?

Even though the hand that he materialized looked like it was just a simple attack, he had concentrated almost all of his power into it already. It was one of his strongest attacks. Its destruction was sufficiently damaging even to him.

However, the most important thing was that it proved these Ancient ranked being in front of him might actually hurt him… or even worse.

There were so much more he could do if he recovered to his full capacity, or if the concepts of reality could loosen their restraint on him.

But neither of his wish came true. It was too short of a time. Teacher was right. He was too rash. He attracted way too much attention before he was fully healed.

His eyes twitched slightly. After he killed off these beings, he would definitely lay low for a while.

In fact, their remaining power after their death might even boost him to maximum. He had never tasted the life force of Gifted beings… in his universe, they were all ultra protected by their respective institutions when they were young…

Seven Gifted blood sacrifices. The Circle licked his lips subconsciously. On a second thought, maybe he shouldn't lay low.

Mega Lucario leapt up from the hole he was knocked into and streamlined for the Circle. Being the most experienced battler, he knew the tactic Ash was planning.

The darkness was obviously stronger than any of them. The only way to win was for the seven to keep tackling him until his energy was drained, all while hoping that the seven together had a more powerful energy reservoir than the Circle.

That meant relentless fighting back. Even if they were knocked into the dirt and had their bones crushed to dust, they still had to find a way to stand up and lunge back.

It was a battle to see who would quit first.

On top of Mega Lucario's head was a giant cloud of Aura that covered a fourth of the Island, shining up a giant part of the sky.

Out of the cloud came barrages of Aura Spheres from all sides that rained down around the smoking figure. Even if they didn't collide with him, they'll still evaporate the fog around, ripping him of his power supply.

At the same time, Mega Lucario's staff expanded to triple his size and he slammed it down toward the Circle, crossing a hundred feet of distance all in one step.

The Formation frowned, not thinking that the meek Ancients would dare to fight back. He simply lashed out with a fist, landing on the staff.

A deafening _BOOM_ sounded, and blue and black held off for a second. Cracks washed down the Aura-boosted staff, and Mega Lucario's spikes on his arm snapped into pieces.

His arms trembled. He wanted to hold off for just a second more. Just one!

Half a second passed, and he was thrown backwards even quicker than he came into the distance, blood gushing in the air.

The Circle turned his head toward the arriving Aura Spheres with an unimpressed expression and pointed.

The black fog around him condensed on top of his head to form an umbrella that was large enough to shield his entire body.

The Aura Sphere smashed into the umbrella, which resiliently stayed intact as the raindrops pummeled the tool.

The round of Aura Spheres passed, and dirt splashed up into the air. All around him, the land was completely ruined and overturned.

Giant holes appeared within a ten mile radius of the Circle, taking up a third of the island. The island looked as if a thick layer of ground was just sliced off of its eastern side, like squadrons of bomber planes just ran through a dozen times.

The fog around the group cleared, Aura neutralizing the deadly scent.

The Circle's hand shook a little. Even though his face showed nothing, the slight wobble signaled that he was not unscathed… far from it.

He screamed in frustration. He was not used to being hurt. Not at ALL!

* * *

His sight took a blink to focus, and that blink was enough time for a graceful yellow blur to dash in front of him and pounce.

The Circle yelped and lashed forward with a punch. The attack screeched loudly with the friction of the air and connected with the yellow Volt Tackle, knocking Pikachu out of his Extremespeed.

But Pikachu did not fly backwards like the others. He was Pikachu! He was the ultimate powerhouse! He was the symbol of lightning, the creator of the word insane.

A deafening crackle sounded in the air, and even the unstoppable whirlpool veiling Bronton Island seemed to freeze. An enormous bolt of lightning tore through the whirlpool and struck down directly at the Circle.

The black figure raised his umbrella frantically, and it was smashed to pieces by the electricity, which continued to travel down and blew up against the dark figure.

A scream of pain echoed from the figure, followed by a cry of anger.

The Circle's eyes burned with a deep red. It had been millennium and millennium since he was hurt this badly...

He concentrated on Pikachu's form, which didn't slow even slightly after summoning a lightning that could splice the island.

Nine giant balls of electricity condensed around Pikachu. His face was lit brighter than the sun. He WAS the sun, shining and penetrating the world of darkness around him.

The Circle recognized this as the perfect moment to strike. Pikachu's attack was delayed a blink by the slight necessity to be charged up, even for a mutant like him. The dark figure roared and powered up with a pool of darkness...

Before the Circle could react, his attack was interrupted by two torrent of blows that came at the speed of light.

Two gripping force shot straight for his eyes, zooming only slightly slower than Pikachu's arrival.

The smoking figure had no choice but to raise his energy in a defensive position. Within, he was crying with madness.

How was he pressured by a few _weak_ Ancients into a defensive position!? Back home...

The dark energy collided with the two beams of lights, and the Circle's attacks were torn apart by the incoming rays.

After all, the attacks were just temporary, uncharged strikes that could not be compared to the first attack of the nine-fingered hand.

However, the two frantic beams did stop the trajectories of the two rays, revealing them to be… Dexter and Noah!

The two Pokédex!

Normally, both of them were relatively quiet, and they rarely maxed out their power outage, even in battles.

The closest Dexter came was in a recent League battle, and that was still far from his true colors.

This time, both Porygon were on full blow. Streams after streams of energy poured out and interlocked with each other...

Before the Circle could attend to them, Pikachu had used the precious time of the interruption to finish charging up his own attack. The nine balls glowed to an intensity that could blind even third stage Pokémon.

Pikachu pointed. The nine energy balls rose to the sky, forming a three by three square that took on a powerful hold. Slowly, or quickly- time had lost meaning for a split second- the balls spun around each other in a mysterious pattern that seemed to replicate the deepest makeup of the universe.

Inside the balls of the lightning... the transparent figure of... the entire galaxy appeared from within.

The Circle's eyes bulged out, and, for the first time in a long time, he felt a pang of fear. He roared and raised his hands.

A black sphere, like a miniature model of himself, fueled with darkness, radiating massive power, rose up against the bright shadow of the galaxy.

The two rose high in the sky... the scenery was amazing. It was a mini-display of a battle between a galaxy and a black hole. One tried to light up the eternal space within the spatial distortion, while the other tried to swallow the esprit galaxy in a mouthful.

The two powers mashed against each other. There was no residue waves, no recoil that formed from the collision. The two superpowers just focused fully on each other, not wasting any energy that floated out of their individual system.

It might have been a blink, or it might have been hours. The miniature galaxy and black hole gradually neutralized each other, tearing apart the other bit by bit until...

The sky above them turned to an absolute blank. Absolutely nothing. A complete vacuum. There were no flashing lights or potent energy waves. There was nothing.

Pikachu collapsed on the spot. The Circle looked like he was a hundred thousand years older. Wrinkles suddenly formed on his skin, and his entire figure seemed to dissolve, its smoke floating out, no longer able to contain himself.

But before he could even take a breath, Dexter and Noah's overlapping beams of energy finally finished twirling on top of the Circle... to form… the ultimate attack.

It was in the shape of a CONTINUUM!

Not the loosely translated Continuum Dexter had shown in the League battle, but parts of the TRUE Continuum that the two Pokédex ripped out and displaced onto the Circle!

Neither Porygon could form the actual Continuum by themselves, since they were only Ancients. But when the two joined energy, they could formulate a power that trumped even Formations! A power that could even, by some degrees, trumped Pikachu! They were the epic Porygon Duo, the two and only, created by Arceus himself!

The Circle's face changed drastically. This attack was stronger than anything he had faced today. As the stripes of Continuum dropped, all light and sound were just sucked into the hole, swallowing absolutely everything.

Directly, it dropped onto his head. The dark figure screamed as more than a thousand times the pressure of gravity stacked onto him. Visible deformation in the forms of cracks sliced through his smoking body.

The ground beneath his feet collapsed, and he was stapled into the dirt!

There was nothing he could do! He was facing the CONTINUUM! Not space, but the mysterious, omnipotent Continuum!

He cried out in dismay as more and more of his life essence was squashed out. He didn't get it! How could two Ancients release the Continuum!? That would require freaking Concepts! And Concepts meant Cosmic!

If he could use all of his powers... if he didn't just endure Pikachu's galactic attack... if he wasn't surrounded by a group of Gifted who foolishly and insanely threw themselves in front of him, he could've handled it, even a fragment of the Continuum, with ease.

But, he was indeed surrounded by a bunch of lunatics who would go to the end of the world hunting for his life.

Dexter and Noah, by no means, were relaxed while doing this. Their projectors clunked and smoked, and their fans were spinning so fast they could slice through titanium.

Dexter roared at Kirlia, losing all of his normal feelingless, robotic voice. "KIRLIA! We can't hold him anymore! Get over here and execute your plan!"

Kirlia disappeared in a flash and reappeared with a hand on Ash's belt, then teleported right in front of the Circle with a Pokeball.

The entire journey took less than three blinks, three tenths of a second. The Continuum was already breaking, both due to the dark figure's resistance and Dexter and Noah's power shortage.

She tossed the Pokéball out, and… Ash's Dratini materialized in a psychic bubble as he landed.

Kirlia HAD to put him into a psychic protection. Dratini wasn't even a Medieval yet. If she tossed her out on the battlefield randomly, she could be pummeled to a pancake by even the residue waves.

Dratini wasted no time. Before Dexter and Noah had dashed out, Kirlia had already explained the entire plan.

His eyes locked onto the dark Circle, who was halfway into the ground. The Dragon's body glowed with a sparkling blue that pushed back even the black fog.

Dratini had one special power. Being the grandson of Mespirit, he had possessed the power of emotions- that is, manipulating the emotions of others.

He channeled all his focus onto the exterior of the Circle's mind… and he drilled!

Normally, there was a sheet of protection around the brain, made of psychic waves. Any being must have it. Some were insignificant because they were mortals, or non-Medieval Pokémon.

However, the Circle's normal mind protection was stronger than even psychic legendaries' protection. Under normal circumstances, Dratini could never penetrate the psychic bar to advance into his inner mind.

Today, though, the Circle was being compressed dangerously by Dexter and Noah, and all of his power was going toward balancing the insane Continuum on his head.

Dratini's spell tore right through his brain barrier and gripped onto his inner thoughts...

* * *

The Circle's eyes widened.

Deep within himself, a fire rose through his body, streaming through his inner organs, and overwhelmed his mind.

It was the fire of anger, of fury, of a rage that was even more terrorizing than what Ash had felt when he first saw the picture of Simdow Island.

Angry. The Circle was maniacally outraged, to the point that he had suddenly lost all thoughts of comprehension, turning into a hysterical psychotic that wanted to destroy the world.

A wave of energy filled him, and he slammed his hands up into the Continuum, against its immense power.

The hands, his real hands, exploded into pieces as the Continuum dissipated them. The force of the explosion, nevertheless, was the final straw for Dexter and Noah.

Their holograms popped and their projectors clashed into the Earth, fracturing and snapping.

The Circle had lost all conscious thought. He could have easily waited another few seconds for the Continuum to stop as the Porygon run out of energy… but he was just so MAD!

Kirlia yelped and teleported backwards with Dratini, who was still locked into the Circle's mind.

His body was shaking like a tremendous seizure, and sweat pore from his pores.

"WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO!?" Ash yelled crossedly at Kirlia. "You just made him STRONGER!"

"No! An enemy blinded by rage is far easier to deal with than a conscious enemy!" Kirlia shouted back and analyzed methodically.

The Circle roared again and turned to the sky.

The whirlpool in the sky that was still sucking life away from the island condensed, and kept condensing until it formed a giant axe.

The axe was painted in a blood red. It stood tall against the background of the island and ocean, reaching far higher than even the clouds. A violent, oppressive feeling vibrated out from the weapon

The Circle screamed and pointed at the group. His eyes were colored with blood. There were no signs of thoughts, just the barbaric instinct to kill, kill, kill!

The giant axe started to tilt toward them. A very bad intuition soared up the hearts of the group. This… this power exceeded even Formation. This was a power that could not be tolerated in this world!

There was no way they could stop this… this was impossible!

"What have you DONE!?" Ash cried at Kirlia.

Kirlia, on the other hand, had a strange light in her eyes. She was waiting for something, something that HAD TO COME!

The axe fell. Ash desperately forced Aura into his hands, but his energy seemed like a dim candlelight in comparison to the giant axe tumbling down.

The force of the weapon could definitely chop even the island in half, and then keep slicing down until it pierced through the ocean bed and beyond!

It would be impossible to stop it! There was no way!

Suddenly, a black ripple formed in space, and a blinding force rushed out in the form of a white light.

Kirlia smiled. There it was!

The light struck straight against the magnificent axe. The seemingly unstoppable axe trembled dramatically, and it was locked in midair!

The residue shock from the collision didn't even echo onto the island. Concepts of space materialized around the axe, in the form of white beams, locking in all of its power.

Then, the cage of spatial rules downsized, compressing the axe to become smaller and smaller.

Not condensing its power, but literally shrinking it down from thousands of feet into a weapon not more than a hundred feet tall.

A stream of anger and misery shot through the Circle's eyes. He was propelled straight into the ground. His entire figure quaked and shrunk. He was being DEFLATED. " **Soul of Universe! How DARE you!?** "

A voice echoed out from within the crack of space. " _How dare I WHAT!?_ "

The voice was so commanding, yet nourishing. So decisive, yet gentle.

Along with the voice, a sacred shadow cast itself onto Bronton Island. The dark fog resembling death and destruction was wiped from existence, and beautiful, holy songs replaced the screams of terror.

The voice was so sweet, yet so strong, so… maternal!

Maternal as if it was the hand that nurtured the lives of everyone in this dimension. Sacred because it was the ultimate center of the universe!

The Circle spewed out smoke from his mouth, coughing in fits of agony.

" _I do not understand how you survive my Concept without dying._ " the voice within the spatial was forever unemotional, even when it was expressing surprise. " _Next time you want to break my limit on the acceptable magnitude of power, I will make sure you die._ "

With that, white light started to flowed back into the spatial crack, which disappeared against space, as if nothing had happened.

* * *

 **A/N: When you get back after this short break, you shall be entertained with the end of this epic battle.**


	93. Cha 92: Orange Islands 8

**Cha. 8**

Ash and his group stared with their jaws touching the ground at the sight before them.

Confusion wasn't an appropriate enough word…

Kirlia smirked. Waves of satisfaction and pleasure overwhelmed her. It worked! It actually worked!

* * *

Kirlia wasn't usually a very ostentatious Pokémon. Sure, she had a few drama fits here and there that granted her the unified respect on the ranch, but overall, she was relatively calm and peaceful.

That entire portrayal was a complete fake!

The psychic was perhaps the craziest Pokémon on the ranch, trumping Wartortle and Kangaskhan and even matching Pikachu. The calmer she seemed, the more boiling her heart truly was.

She had noticed the glint of emotion when the Circle first looked at the group. Being the Emotion Pokémon, her head immediately spun into strategies on how to leverage that to their advantage.

Then the hand came crashing down, and the first exchanges were done within seconds. It was after Zorua's attack when she heard him with psychic, muttering about how the Universe restricted him.

The language barrier was nonexistent with psychic, and Kirlia managed to sweep a little of his leaking brain waves after he had just been shocked by Zorua's attack.

His complaints suddenly awoke her memory of an event from weeks ago, when she was with Domino in the League Championship.

When the Goddess of Charm, Lizzy, came down to warn Ash and Domino about their memory lift breaking and to explain the meaning of Concepts, she also talked a little bit about the makeup of the universe.

Each universe was its own parallel. Together, they form the Continuum that made up the Pokémon World. Each universe had similar Concepts of space, time, etc.

These Concepts melted and joined with one another in each parallel, and it would eventually create a conscious known as the Soul of the Universe.

The Soul of the Universe is a Top Cosmic that regulated the entire parallel universe and made sure nothing went astray… like preventing a Cosmic power from distorting the Concept of the universe and destroying the entire realm…

In some cases… it failed…

When Kirlia heard that the Universe had placed a restriction on the Circle, she immediately had one thought.

HOLY DAMN! THIS THING IS STRONG ENOUGH TO BREAK THE UNIVERSE!?

Her next thought was significantly clearer, and it brought out her ultimate plan to subdue him.

If the Universe detected that he was strong enough to break reality, then it could've just wipe him out, or encase him, or something to eliminate the threat once and for all.

However, it didn't. It put chains on him.

Kirlia highly doubted that it was the consideration of kindness or any sort of sympathetic emotion. The Soul of the Universe was made of a bunch of cold Concepts. It was the superior being that stared down at everything.

Just like an eagle wouldn't have sympathy for squashing a bacterium, the Soul wouldn't feel for an ant… especially since that ant could possibly distort its inner Concepts and mess up its entire networking.

However, the Universe still resulted to putting chains. That meant, by a simple turn of logic, that there was some reason holding the Soul of Universe back, forcing it to not use its power unless something dire occurred.

Therefore, its power was not strong enough, when the safety of the Universe was unharmed, for it to wipe out the Formation being… which is why the Soul could only put a restriction on him.

The Circle must have known this too, which was why, as Kirlia had heard, that he was restricting his power consciously.

The key was that the dark figure was doing so consciously. Now, if the chains were put to restrain his full power from unleashing and destroying the Universe, and the chains could be ripped apart if the Circle stopped trying to control himself, AND…

AND if the Soul would fight back if a force was strong enough to distort the Universe…

Kirlia's job was very straightforward. Find a way for the Circle to unleash full power to piss off the Soul, and it would do their job for them and pummel the Circle to pieces.

They themselves obviously couldn't defeat the Formation by themselves. Even Pikachu rolled back, scorched.

The psychic just needed something that could mess with the Circle's emotion so much that he stopped caring about the limitations, something that would blind his logical thought.

Then, Kirlia remembered Dratini. He was the grandson of Mesprit, and he was an expert in emotion manipulation. If the team could successfully get him close enough to the Circle and have him deteriorate his thoughts, the darkness might just lose his mind enough to anger the Soul.

And the rest was history.

* * *

But either way, it took the less than a second for the group to figure out that this was the ultimate opportunity that they were seeking. The Circle was lying on the ground, bursting in anguish. The island was cleared of the dark fog, and the night above was rid of the poisoning whirlpool. Stars gazed on the island, and the moon shone brightly on the eastern sky.

If they didn't seize this precious opportunity to pounce, they might never get the chance again.

Again, Mega Lucario was in the lead in the charge. He ran in front of the lying Circle and swung his staff down at the disintegrating figure.

It slammed against the figure, tearing it in half. The Steel Type roared in satifaction. Satisfaction from redeeming his life, from preserving justice, from maintaining honor.

The squirming Circle, which was not much more than a mess, still was not dead. A black fist construct rose out of him and swung at Mega Lucario.

It struck through the air and landed with a hard slash against the Steel Type's chest, flinging him back.

A voice within the dark smoke roared. " **I will not die! I CANNOT die in this puny universe! I cannot die to you weaklings!** "

Before anyone could react, the black mass started to bubble like it was boiling. A torrent of energy blasted against the group, pushing them back with a demanding blow.

Out of the remains of the black, dirty goo shot out an orb of pure darkness and magnificence. It rushed toward the sky eastward, zooming past everyone's grasp.

As long as he could make it back to the mothership, he was safe. The Circle thought whirled rapidly in his mind. It might take thousands… or even millions of lives worth of essence to recreate his body, but Stick would definitely help him!

As long as he could get out, he would SURVIVE! He was a Formation! Formation could never be killed. NEVER!

The black orb was faster than anything Ash could imagine. Even teleportation wouldn't work against it. It was too quick for any psychic to lock on, or at least psychics who hadn't passed the Ancient barrier.

The orb was about to disappeared from Ash's sight in a second, and he breathed out a heavy grunt. After such a tough fight, such a closed match, after putting him and his friends' lives into absolute danger, he still couldn't bring the murder to justice.

He still couldn't revenge the five thousand people who had died. A breath clogged in his chest, making him wanting to faint right there.

Ash turned his head to the sky and howled. It was a scream of deep pain, unwillingness, and utter rage.

Suddenly, as if his yell was heard, something large appeared on the eastern horizon.

The moon suddenly became pure silver, glowing as bright as the sun itself.

The sudden influx in light only lasted for a second, before the intensity shrunk back to the original gleam.

The strengthened light pierced through the long distance as if it was instantaneous, and it materialized above the ocean to become the shadow of a giant white sphere… like a giant, luminescent MOON hanging over the sea.

The giant sphere, upon arrival, forced the sea to turn into a giant swirl of tide upon arrival. Immediately, the glow of the moon Repressed everything, and squashing the black orb containing the Circle's conscience straight down into the ocean.

" **NO! CYTOKINESIS!** " The orb let out a desperate cry and split into three pieces. One headed straight for the the moon, and two turned southward and streamlined away from the powerful projection.

Cresselia's figure appeared in the center of moon and raised her wings. The moon's glow flowed through the air and stabilized everything, giving it a mercury-like feel.

The speed of both halves of the orb decreased nearly tenfold. The Circle screamed in fury and anxiety.

The half heading straight into the moon's glow exploded. A massive ripple of energy blasted into the construct of the moon, tearing it to pieces. Cresselia, not expecting such a power to suddenly combust, was knocked right into the water, coughing trails of blood.

A puff of darkness appeared from the half of the orb that destructed, covering up the rest of the light that was affecting its speed.

It was still not successful. An immense pink filled the southern skies in the blink of an eye, as if the Aurora Borealis was smeared across the night.

A storm of vast power seeped from all parts of the southern sky, a power that could match Pikachu himself.

The remains of the orb was knocked backwards at a great speed back to the island. The Circle's voice screamed as it backpedaled to Bronton Island.

This would be his death if he couldn't escape soon! He already sacrificed a third of his soul…

A deep grief filled his mind. If he still had lips, he would've probably bit them to pieces. He made a very hard decision.

One of the third-orbs separated yet again, dividing into a one-sixth orb that rushed in two directions: one straight into the Aurora Borealis, and the other one-sixth orb and the third-orb heading east for the last path to escape.

The one heading for the pink barrier up north quivered as the torrent of uncontrolled energy within aimed to explode again.

Cracks started to form on the construct, and…

A purple hand reached out from space and grabbed onto the trembling orb. Layers upon layers of psychic power caged the sixth-orb and compressed its power, forcing the energy that threatened to pour out back into its container.

The soul within this orb screamed and dissipated like fog to the morning sun as Mewtwo's powerful psychic swept through the construct, ridding it of anymore thoughts and conscience.

What remained was purely an orb of power and energy, and, even more valuable… Formation level Realization, memories, and secrets.

The other orbs sped off into the distance, and nothing seemed like it could stop it anymore.

By this point, its speed had decreased significantly from the initial dash off the island. Domino's mind flashed and looked to Kirlia.

The two knew exactly what each other was thinking. The blonde grabbed hold of her hand, and the two put their remaining psychic energies together and focused.

A pink light shone around Pikachu. In the next instant, the electric mouse disappeared.

Pikachu's shape materialized again right in the path of the escaping orbs rushing eastward. With their frantic thoughts, they had long given up the dodging pattern of flight. Plus, they never thought anyone could track them with their speed.

However, they forgot that they weren't one, centralized orb anymore. Their speed had slowed dramatically. They were separated into fragments, and…

Pikachu pounced toward them. What remained of the Circle screamed and pushed the smaller orb- the sixth-orb- right at Pikachu.

A giant burst of lightning locked onto the orb that came toward them. Pikachu had seen what the explosion could do, and he was draining the rest of his electric reserve to suppress any of its efforts to blow up.

The last orb, a third of the entire orb, took the instant of opportunity to finally rush out of the enclosing and into the eastern sky.

Then, almost everyone besides the reinforcing Rocket Trio collapsed in exhaustion.

* * *

The dark fog that clogged up Cresselia's moonlight began to melt. The Rocket Trios, riding a floating Mega Metagross, landed onto Bronton Island and began the immediate first aid work for the seven.

Meowth ran over to two deep holes with a shovel and began to dig up the two melted and deformed projectors that used to be Dexter and Noah's instruments.

No one noticed the invisible form that twisted and squirmed in the disappearing dark fog. Even if they were all paying close attention, perhaps Mewtwo would be the only one to notice a small disturbance with his keen sense of psychic.

The form was what was left of the fragment of soul belonging to the Circle.

No, it would be inappropriate to say that it was the Circle. From the massive self-explosion that destroyed Cresselia's moon, all of the Circle's conscience had already been wiped out.

Now, the form was just a pure brainwave with the most ancient wants and needs… in other words, it wanted to get the hell out of this cold, turbulent, harsh ocean surface before it dissipated with a blow of wind.

It needed to find warmth, a shell, something to hide its wavelength from the terrifying environments of this world.

It was just a pure, giant pool of brainwave without any senses whatsoever. The only thing it had… was the ancient desire for warmth…

It wanted warmth, so it could distinguish warm and cold.

The pool of brainwave squirmed in a certain direction. Speed meant nothing to the wave. Nor was time. It just needed to find warmth.

It struggled on for a long time, or whatever the concept of 'long time' meant to the lonely, powerless brainwave.

At last, it found a shell of warmth… somewhere. It didn't know what it was. It just knew it had to worm in before the wave dissipates.

* * *

Dr. Akihabara's computer system suddenly lit up in a blinding glow.

* * *

 **A/N: The Soul of the Universe wasn't a convenient thing that I just made up. Even though Lizzy didn't talk about it in the scene with Ash, that doesn't mean she didn't say it with Domino and her team.**

 **Also, if you hop back to the last chapter of Across From You (Cha. 44-47), there is a reference to the Soul as well.**


	94. Cha 93: Orange Islands 9

**Cha. 9**

 _The League and we have agreed to declare war on Magma and Aqua. Team Rocket is declaring war first. Your job is to misdirect a force of Magma agents near the border of Johto and Hoenn. At Greenfield, we will set up a trap, with a hundred Rockets. When the Magma agents come, they will be pummeled, and their blood would be the declaration of war for Maxie._

There was no signature at the bottom, and there was no recipient name at the top. The Masked Marauder read the note again.

He knew exactly from whom this came. It came by the secret pathways that applied to only the most secretive plans. Only two people were allowed to use them.

The Boss and 000.

The masked elite had been in Team Magma for nearly half a year now. With his sharp abilities and power, he had quickly fell into the eyes of Commander Tabitha, the right hand man of Maxie, Magma Leader.

The Commander promoted him rapidly, after giving him ample opportunities and missions, all of which he succeeded. The Masked Marauder was now the chief strategist in Tabitha's sector.

He tilted his head. Numerous ideas poured into his head on how to effectively lure the Magma grunts into the trap without causing suspicion. Soon, a concrete plan formed in his head.

Looking one last time at the date and coordinates, 003 laid his hands onto the keyboard. With a swift stroke, he began his email to his Commander.

* * *

 _A week later._

It was the night before he would lead the Magma troops into Greenfield. He had the entire plan perfectly set up, and he would escape any wrath of the Commander unscathed.

The scapegoat was in place, and Zero had responded with confirmation of everything.

For the first time in a long period, Marauder's heart beat anxiously. It wasn't everyday that a war would be declared between the regional superpowers, and it certainly was a major honor, in his eyes, to be the one who lay down the first battle.

This could be the sole mission that put him into the history book. Maybe decades from now, the generations would be learning about how he, Masked Marauder of Team Rocket, fired the first shot in the next World War.

He smirked a little, a rare sight to see, and continued his daydream.

Unbeknownst to him, a dark shadow flashed across his windows, at a speed that even he couldn't pick out.

The next time it flashed, it sped through the window. Then, it slowed a little to materialized into a recognizable shape on top of Marauder's head.

Well, semi-recognizable.

It was a third of a purely black sphere. The other two-thirds mysteriously went missing. If an expert psychic was present, he could easily detect the waves of grief and rage seeping out of the orb.

The orb looked down at the Masked Marauder. Then, it dashed straight into his head, merging through his helmet and straight through his skull.

The Elite felt a striking pain that radiated out from within his brain. He felt as if his mind was being pressed outward from the inside, like an invisible tube was just stuck into his head and blew a few gallons of mercury into his brain.

He roared and clutched his head. Within seconds, his eyes rolled backwards and he lost all consciousness.

* * *

He felt himself sinking, sinking through a mass of lights and fluids.

He couldn't exactly see, but he could sense a green light in a pool of emptiness. Instinctively, he knew that the light was something important, something close, something that he needed to protect with all his life.

A wave of turbulence slammed into him from the back. The green light shifted dangerously, like it was going to go out in any moment.

The Masked Marauder couldn't do anything, besides 'turning' his conscious at the direction of the blast.

He saw, in the pool of emptiness, a giant black hole hundreds of times the size of the green bulb swimming toward him.

His mind roared at him to run… or at the green light.

It quivered, and it began to dart backwards. The black hole shook, and large tentacles as thick as half of the volume of the green sphere reached out at an immense pace and gripped onto the green light.

The Masked Marauder felt a terrifying, ambitious darkness rush over him. It was no use struggling.

The green light couldn't do anything. There was no way for it to fight back. It didn't know how to.

Time passed meaninglessly.

The tentacles retracted, and the giant black hole swallowed the green orb in one inevitable gulp.

The Masked Marauder's last thought was that he still had not had cosmetic surgery yet, before he was pulled into eternal oblivion.

* * *

On the bed of 003's room, located in a stray headquarter at the border of Johto, lied his limp form.

Before long, he started to twitch uncontrollably. Each of his movements seemed rigid and uncontrolled, with a horrifying air to it.

His eyes were of a pure black that did not belong to any humans. His lips stuttered as he tried to speak, as if he had not spoken in a very long time… or never.

"T… tis body…'s gud!" A faint, eerie voice that was stripped of any humanistic air echoed in the room. "Steel naught nearly as gud as maine, boot…"

"Perfect… match… ehhh?"

"I can… speakkk human? Ahhh, yis, I ate all of h's memory." Then, Marauder's body began to shake and choke. "Oh my! What the… This is disgusting! How can such a healthy man collect so many clips of naked…"

A knock at the door pounded his thoughts out of his head. "SIR! Are you okay? We heard a scream!"

"Blasted!" The humanoid cursed. "What does he normally say?"

"Who you!?" He shouted frantically.

"I'm Roanne! I'm the agent on firewatch right now!"

"Firewatch? Agent? What the hell!?" He hurriedly dug deeper into the memory of the previous body. "Okay, yes… a mission eh? To start a war? How interesting…"  
"Yes, yes, Roanne! I'm fine!" The Masked Marauder called. "Get some sleep! There's a war to be started tomorrow!"

"A war?" Roanne's voice returned, sounding confused. "But sir, we're just doing some river scouting."

"What?" Marauder muttered under his breath. "Oh… OH! He's a spy! And… Team Rocket? Team Magma?"

"Ahh yes! Please, Roanne, go take the night off. Get some rest. We'll head out tomorrow."

Roanne scratched his head. Was… was the leader drunk? He just told us to get on watch fifteen minutes ago.

But hey, they got to take the night off, whatever the guy's problem was. Roanne wouldn't be the one to question to logic.

"Yes sir!" He responded and backed out of the quarters into the tents outside.

Inside the room, the Masked Marauder smiled. An idea came to his mind.

A war huh? Wars meant death, and death of very powerful beings with the most powerful and delicious blood and energy.

If there was a world war, he could truly feast on the regions, and he might even recover faster than if he go back to murdering towns! Afterall, townsmen were just weak mortals… but here, there were legends to be drained!

Marauder couldn't be happier. Not only did he find a great body to use, but the body also laid out the perfect plans for him to be reincarnated.

Maybe after the war, his power would be even more potent than before he was nearly killed. Never had he gotten the chance to prey off the life force of hundreds and thousands of essence-filled beings…

They called it… third stage here?

Marauder's lips curled up higher when he scanned through a new part of the plan, jumbled up in the collection of… certain videos.

"Hmmm… this guy wanted Team Rocket to win? Well… let's make the war even more interesting! Let's make sure no one wins!"

"Infinite supply of blood!"

 **(A/N: For those who still don't get what's going on, the Circle's orb had possessed Masked Marauder's body. From this point in the story, the Circle's soul would be referred to as 'Marauder.' The real Marauder is dead.** )

* * *

The Magma agents looked at the leader, wobbling in the front.

An air of uneasiness drifted over them. Even the most ignorant ones could tell that… something wasn't right.

They couldn't put their fingers on it… if they could, they wouldn't only be agents.

Throughout their walk, frequent, chilling breezes washed over them, making them shiver to the strange condition. It was mid-summer! Why was the temperature freezing cold?

Their leader also had a very… dare they say it… disgusting smell to him, like the smell of cracked rotten eggs, or spoiled beef.

And the way he talked, the way he walked… nothing seemed normal.

Yet, they didn't dare to question him. The Team was a very hierachically structured organization. If one of them dared to speak up against him, the worst consequence could be death.

"We're here!" The Masked Marauder stopped as he pushed the branches in front of him out of the group's face, revealing a large clearing that led to a plain in the distance.

The agents were confused. "Sir… you said we were surveying the river?"

"Indeed, indeed. That _is_ what he told you… isn't it?"

The agents blinked rapidly. The air of uneasiness condensed into a giant fog that pinned down on their shoulders.

Marauder repeated the code words in his throat a couple of times, and he fling is arms into the air. "Blast off!"

Suddenly, from the trees behind them, countless rifles came into view. Large shouts echoed through the outskirts of the forest and traveled onto the plains.

"Magma! Die!"

The outnumbered Magma agents turned around in shock and horror, and the rifles lit into fire.

The Masked Marauder, following the plan put into place by the previous soul, rolled under a tree and hopped onto it with grace.

The Rocket agents, identifying his face, ignored him and kept the line of fire on the Magma grunts.

Within a few rounds, the entire flight of twenty Magma was left in puddles of red fluid, lying on the ground. Twenty dead. No survivors.

The leading Rocket, evidently a junior admin, came up to Masked Marauder and bowed.

"Sir. All are dead. Waiting for further instructions."

The Masked Marauder looked at him with a hungry smile. "What did… umm… Boss say you do after dis?"

"Sir, Boss said you will be giving out the commands after we exterminate the Magma forces."

"Ahhh, yes… that's right." The humanoid lifted his chin up and looked at the group, giving them all a mysterious smile. "Yes… listen carefully. Do exactly what I say."

The agents snapped to attention. 003 slurred. "I want you all to aim your rifle at your head, and fire!"

The agents all snapped their heads up at him. Marauder smiled. "What? No complying?"

The junior admin's voice quivered. "Sir… sir, what did you… did you say?"

"I want you all to shoot yourself." Marauder spat out each word slowly.

The officer's eyes twitched as violently as a seizure. "We will NOT do that, sir."

"Not willing?" Marauder chuckled. "In that case… I will do it FOR YOU!"

His hand darted out in a blink. Before anyone could react, it stabbed deeply into the head of the junior admin. In one swift movement, he pulled back, ripping his entire head off the base of his neck. Blood gushed out into the air, and the Marauder covered his mouth on the decapitation.

"Oooo, this is good!" He moaned softly.

The eyes of the a hundred Rockets all burst out in shock, disgust, fear, and a dozen emotions mixed together to form a unified action.

They raised their guns together toward the Marauder with shaking hands, and they pulled the trigger straight back into the hold.

The humanoid waved his hand, his reaction time somehow even faster than the speed of the bullets. The blood pouring out from the Rocket officer and the twenty Magma agents rose up from the ground to become a wall of blood.

The bullets slammed into the wall, and it stuck in the filament and froze. Marauder turned his head toward the agents, blood dripping down the corners of his lip onto his chin as he spoke. "Don't worry, you. Each of you will get your chance."

Then, he bent back down to the headless corpse.

A panicked yell sounded from within the crowd. "RUN! He's a MONSTER!"

The entire squadron of Rockets began to dash frantically in different directions, yelling and screaming.

This was a scene from their worst nightmares. They only had the courage for the first shot. Seeing it failed supernaturally, they had lost all of their will to continue.

If they had only stuck to more rounds of firing, the wall of blood would sure to be broken. Afterall, the humanoid had lost its body and most of its powers already. What it had left was only the fragmented soul and the little bit of bloodfood.

In fact, with that singular wall spell, he had strained the last few men worth of essence that he had gotten from the previous massacre.

But, you know, human psychology was so weak and humbling. So disgraceful. Marauder thought amusingly and finished his tasty meal, while allowing what was left over of the blood from the Magma to be absorbed into his body.

He waved his hands, and a massive wall of blood formed within a mile radius of him.

Some of the privileged Rocket agents had reached the border of the wall, after jumping on their Pokémon.

Marauder's eyes lit up as he saw the Pokémon. Their flesh was so much better than just human flesh.

He quickly roared. "Anyone who touches the wall, DIES!"  
The faces of the riders in front changed colors and roared for their Pokémon to stop.

The Marauder's words could be a lie, but none of them had to courage to test it. They were expecting someone else, perhaps someone more desperate, to try the wall first!  
Human psychology… so easily manipulable.

003 disappeared from his spot and zoomed at slightly subsonic speed to the edge of the barrier. In one swoop, his hand penetrated the skull of a rider, which then extended its descent down onto the skin of the Pokémon, which also dissolved at his touch.

It was a Rapidash. She struggled as the hand touched her, and embers shooting out of her nose threatened to overpower the hand.

But then, a black smoke oozed out of the hand and touched the fire energy. Immediately, the fire was covered in a black, as if turning into the smoke itself, turning into… Death Force.

The smoke dropped onto the Rapidash. Within half a second, half of her body melted into a black goo that dropped onto the floor, and another few blinks for the other half to collapse as well.

The Marauder roared in satisfaction. He could feel the essences filing into the pores of his body. They were filling him up… this was even ten times better than even the feeling of orgasm!

In the next second, the wind was knocked out of his body as he was flung straight into his own wall of blood, which then came tumbling down into the ground to become pools of blood again.

Standing in front of the Marauder was a giant, thin creature with a large eye and flat appendages sticking out.

Beside the creature was a teenage girl with flowing honey hair and a fitting blue and white dress.

The creature was so familiar. Marauder had seen a picture of it before… in his own Universe… they were the most mysterious species that he had only read about in the most ancient documents…

The UNOWN!

But, wha… why was the Unown attacking him!? He would never provoke any one of the legendary creature…

More Unown darted out of invisible crevices around him… spaces that were initially filled with… Death Forces!

( **A/N: Note: Death Forces are one of the few forces that could open a path to the Unown. Refer back to Across From You, Chapter 46 to see it being addressed.** )

The head Unown turned to the beautiful teenage girl beside him. " _Is he the guy, Molly?_ "

The stunning girl shouted in rage. "That's him, Uncle Cardinal! He's the one who put our house in his vile blood wall!"

" _Well, well… What do you know… a Sacred being dealing in bloodcraft…_ " The giant Unown paused. He stared at Marauder.

The humanoid didn't dare to move. A vast power poured out of the being in front of him. In fact, the Unown possessed a power that far exceeded even his maximum, his maximum back in his Universe!

Within the being he could sense a timeless pillar that stood unmovably, as if it was a part of the universe itself, the central part of the universe.

It was the scent of… a Concept!

" _You are very lucky…_ " The Unown sighed. " _It is not my place to kill you. Your life belongs to the Soul of Reality._ "

With that ambiguous, mysterious assertion, the Unown fired an enormous beam of light straight into the body of the humanoid, pushing him through the forest from which he came, past marsh at the border of Johto, and slammed him straight into the magnificent Bamboo River all in a second.

Crossing over nearly a hundred miles in less than a second.

" _Let the current take your life…_ " The Cardinal muttered. " _I don't need the force of karma on me._ "

He nodded to Molly, who hugged him. "Thanks Uncle! I knew you can help me!"

The Unown smiled and caressed her hair softly. " _I can't stay here for too long. I need to go before the Sacred Force dissipates and allow the Soul to discover my track._ "

" _Here's a present for you._ " The Cardinal placed an orb into Molly's hands. " _If these people try to force you to do something you don't want, just throw the orb into the sky. It contains the one hit of my full power… anything that is not Cosmic will be guaranteed to be wiped out._ "

The sky began to light up in a glorious white light. The Unown blurred into transparency. " _The Soul's here. I better go. See you Molly!_ "

The light flushed through the clearing twice. Detecting nothing, it shrunk back into the sky again.

What was left of everything was piles of dead bodies, a little more than half of the original Rocket squadron, all staring at the teenage girl in the center of the clearing.

* * *

 **A/N: Enjoy! The diction was kind of rough here. School started today, so my schedule is pretty rushed. Didn't have much time to look over the entire fanfic.**

 **I still proof-read it twice. Hopefully not too much mistakes…**

 **For students in similar shoes as I am, I wish you all good luck.**


	95. Cha 94: Orange Islands 10

**Cha. 10**

Zero was a strand away from losing his temper- the first time in many years. After he had received the news, he came as fast as he could on Yveltal.

The scene before him was even worse than what he imagined. His mind was already on the verge of snapping with the pressure building up from all of the recent murders, thought battles with Galactic, upcoming war with the Hoenn Teams…

This nearly pushed him off the edge. He struggled to calm down as listened to one of the agents with a Pokémon explain the entire occurrence.

Throughout the recap, his expression changed gradually from rage, to disgust, and ultimately to a heavy shock aimed directly at Molly.

He nodded after the last of his questions were answered, and he approached Molly with a gentle and polite gesture. "Miss Hale?"

Molly tilted her head and looked at him curiously. "You know me?"

"Yes. Your family has a deep friendship with the Ketchum family, and Ash Ketchum is one of our most important collaborators."

Molly placed a glance at the uniform the agents were wearing. "Team Rocket, I'm assuming?"

Molly wasn't the childish girl that she was at this point in the last timeline. When she came into contact with the Cardinal, the Unown infused in her mind a sudden influx of eight years of memory… eight years into the FUTURE!

The honey-haired teenager still remembered when she first met the Cardinal, because he told her to forge the encounter into memory…

* * *

The giant Unown stood tall above her, covering the streams of moonlight shining down.

For some reason, she didn't feel intimidated like a normal child would if she found herself encountering a beast that towered her.

Instead, Molly felt safe, as if the scent of the being was all she needed to sleep… it was like there was a mysterious resonation between the two.

She didn't resist when the Unown, having introduced himself as the 'Cardinal,' caressed her hair lightly.

Suddenly, clouds formed out of nowhere above their head, but only above them. There was not a single translucency anywhere else. The stars were shining bright as heaven out of the one-mile radius of her… and the Cardinal.

The clouds started to fumble, and a giant bolt of lightning pierced through the air.

Generally, Molly was afraid to death about thunderstorms… not today though.

Standing beside the looming figure, she felt tranquil, protected, safer than even her father's arms.

A soothing Aura seeped out of the Cardinal, who looked up at the sky with a defiant and yet humble gaze.

Sher remembered him saying, with a calming tone, " _Soul… let me stay for a few minutes._ "

" _When I just become a Cosmic a few weeks ago, the Dimensional Stone led me here._ "

" _Here I am. I think I now see who I've come for._ "

The clouds became less turbulent. Lightning still hung in the sky, full of potential waiting to strike.

" _Yes, five minutes are enough._ "

The Cardinal smiled softly at Molly. The being was nothing like regular Pokémon. Anyone else could possibly distinguish a smile from a frown, but Molly knew instinctively.

The Unown spoke at a quick, yet easily comprehensible speed. " _I know you're confused, but just listen carefully. One day, you will understand what I tell you… and the day isn't too far away._ "

" _I'm from the Unown Dimension, which is a dimension that oversees everything. There are many universes in this world that form reality, and the Unown Dimension is a keystone that binds and connects every one of them._ "

The Cardinal recognized the overwhelming confusion in her eyes. He stroked her hair. A grey energy formed around her head.

It was Unown Energy. It would make sure that she would retain every word of his utterance, even though she wouldn't understand them.

" _Reality sits on the River of Time, which flows continuously. There is an intangible sphere on the River, and that is the Central Sphere that contains the central universes._ "

" _The reason that it is the central point of reality is because Arceus, the God of All, resides in this time period._ "

The cloud above him thundered on, hurrying him to finish. The Cardinal spared a glance at it, willing it to be patient.

" _Within this sphere, the universes all run in the same time zone. The time are identical throughout, without a single second of falling behind into the past or overstepping into the future._ "

" _Besides this one… this one had fallen behind for eight years._ " The Unown paused. " _Even though I've just stepped into the ranks of Cosmic, I still don't understand why… Arceus might have something…_ "

Before he could finish, the clouds suddenly boosted up to an exponential tendency that roared across the sky.

Lightning crashed down toward the earth, but it struck onto an invisible grey barrier that blocked the entire attack without shaking.

The shadow of a great stone, one that floated outside of the boundaries of space and time, flashed past the barrier, and everything settled down.

" _I knew it!_ " The Cardinal growled. The cloud expanded by hundredfold, and a grasping vibration echoed out in a pattern that only the Cardinal could understand.

There were no words- only an increasing rage that threatened to overpower even the projection of the stone.

The Cardinal's face changed for the first time since arrival. He placed his hand onto the Molly's head, and he smiled. " _I brought you the gift of the memories of the next eight years, because we Unowns can access all universes._ "

A flood of memories streamed into Molly's mind. All of a sudden, Molly felt as if her brain was about to explode. Her hands reached up to clutch her head… but they didn't make it in time.

Instead, a gentle grey glow appeared from her hair. Instantly, the pain was gone, as if a comb had just brushed through all of the infused memories into organized shelves.

Pictures and films played in front of her, dotting the intricacy of the next seven and a half years. Wondrous scenes completed the puzzle of time, and she almost fell right into the hole of memory.

A voice quickly broke her out of the uncontrolled absorption.

" _Here is my gift to you, princess. You're the Daughter of Unown! When you see Ash Ketchum and Domino, the two Chosens, remember not to drop our pride! Don't bow down to them! You hold just the same nobility!_ "

A second lightning pounced down onto the shield of the Unown energy. The grey barrier crashed. The lightning landed on the body of the Cardinal, but it didn't seem to take effect at all.

The Cosmic being just glided back as if all of the force of the lightning was doing was pushing him back, but doing no actual damage.

" _Until next time!_ " The Cardinal waved, and he disappeared into smoke. The projection of the Dimensional Stone disappeared with him.

The cloud rolled and roared, unwilling to let him go this easily. Nonetheless, it dissipated, never paying a strand of attention of Molly.

Molly's mouth hang slightly open. She looked down at herself. She was no longer in her eight-year old figure, but her sixteen year old body.

Frowning, she wondered how she was going to explain this to her parents. Maybe lie to them by saying she got mutated…

The next thing she knew, a grey glow washed over her body. When it faded, she was back to her eight year old self.

Nice.

* * *

Zero narrowed his eyes as he stood awkwardly in front of the girl, waiting her to respond.

At base, never was anyone brave enough to zone out in their conversation… besides the troublemakers, of course, led by the previously- nine-year-old Domino.

However, he respected the girl before him enough for her to finish her daydreaming before she returned to her conversation. Afterall, she wielded the power of something magnificent.

Molly's eyes came into focus, and she looked at Zero. Slightly embarrassed from losing track, she asked her question. "Are you Team Rocket?"

"Yes, we are." Zero repeated patiently.

"Okay…" Molly licked her lips. "So… cool?"

Zero's eyes twitched. Why the heck did she steal the first line of the conversation if she didn't actually have anything productive to say?

The Elite coughed. "Well, it is the deep-founded gratitude of the entire Team that you helped us with that blasted lunatic's betrayal."

"We apologize for any intrusion of your property, and I will make sure the monster will be hunted down even if he escaped to the corners of the planet."

Molly's eyes circled Zero's figure. "So it wouldn't be unkind if I ask for a little… retribution?"

Zero's face trembled a little. Was this girl seriously asking for benefits after helping them? Couldn't she just get that on her own!? She just defeated a damn monster all by her own!

To this point, Zero still thought that, based on the Rocket agent's account, that the Cardinal was her Pokémon.

The Elite couldn't leave her unanswered. Instead, he settled for the plan to 'postpone this issue until the next meeting.'

"Of course, Miss Hale. I would like to invite you to the HQ anyways for being of such generous help." Zero bowed. "Would you care to join me back to base?"

"Do you have food and cute dresses!?" Molly inquired with giant eyes that made Zero nearly fall off his Yveltal.

Dresses!?...

"Yes…"

"Yay! Let's go!"

"..."

* * *

Dr. Akihabara, Professor Oak, and Dr. Fuji all stared at the tortuous machine that was pulsing out light beams and waves of colors uncontrollably.

Oak's jaw dropped. "How long…"

"Third day now." Akihabara noted. "It started to act like this the day after you left to manage to massacre."

Dr. Fuji shook his head. "You just can't do anything right, can you?"

"Hey! At least I was at lab!" The computer expert said with mock-hurt. "You were out at Seven-Eleven shopping for tampons!"

"They're for my daughter!" Fuji shouted back.

"Who're you trying to convince, huh?" Dr. Akihabara stepped cautiously away from the cloning researcher. "What kind of perverted interest do you have…"

Oak raised his hand to silence the two pains in the butt. "Gentlemen… can we please focus?"

The two bickering scientists shared an amused glance. Both of them loved pissing Oak off.

"I've run the tests again just before you got here." Akihabara pulled out a stack of paper from under a paperweight. "The test results had been like this for nearly twenty-four hours now…"

Oak took it over, and he did a double take. The Kanto professor stared at him in disbelief. "This shows nearly a hundred times of all statistics of what we had!"

"Across all fields." Fuji motioned wildly with his arms. "And this is with just one computer."

"ONE!?" Oak nearly tripped over himself. "One is overpowering the collections of servers that you had here combined!?"

"Yep." The computer scientist nodded. "We had to shut down the rest of the technology before the power reservoir dies… and it would probably die in five minutes if everything was on full blast."

"But your reservoir could power the entire Kanto region for a day! It's one of our three biggest reservoirs!"

"I know." Akihabara deadpanned. "Do you not see this computer!? It's more advanced than not only what we have, but what the world will probably come up with in the next hundred YEARS!"

"This should not be a thing for at least another few CENTURIES!" Akihabara yelled. "Do you know the implications!?"

It took Oak more than a few minutes to absorb all of the information and overcome the shock factor. He raised a shaking finger at the two. "So you're telling me… you two somehow… 'mutated' this entire servers full of computers into superior technology that wouldn't appear in hundreds of years?"  
"Yop."

Oak scanned the two men's face very carefully. At last, he found no trace of tomfoolery… just very serious expression half-filled with genuine amazement.

"Well… have you tested the digital world yet?"

"No. We were waiting for you to get back to go together." Dr. Fuji looked at him with a smirk. "If our conscience are going to get ripped apart, we're dying together."

Oak's face twitched. "You have tested this out on other things… right?"

Akihabara chuckled. "Yeap. We had several rotations of clones, Pokémon, and even Tracey go through. All of them appeared normal when they got back."

Oak clicked his tongue. "Then what are we waiting for!? Let's go!"

* * *

 **A/N: Two important things addressed today. One: Unown's statements about the makeup of the Universal Reality.**

 **Second: The Digital World just got a boost.**


	96. Cha 95: Orange Islands 11

**Cha. 11**

"Holy SHIT!"

Professor Oak couldn't remember the last time he swore, but he would be doing this sight in front of him injustice if he didn't use colorful language to express his utter shock.

Colorful language for the magnificent exchange of colors in the world.

He, along with Fuji and Akihabara, was now in the Digital World, and it was nothing like what he had seen a week ago.

Last time, the entire world was just a small box that was less than thirty miles in radius. This world… it was… vast. Extensive. Enormous.

There was no border, or at least one Oak could see. Giant mountains appeared in the distance, and the ocean stretched to the end of his vision capacity.

The wind blew onto his face, and he felt a familiar moisture that he experienced everyday by being adjacent to a ocean.

He cried out in disbelief. This world was so real! In fact, there was no difference between this world and the real world!

The level of intricacy… the details… the perfection of the entire portrayal.

Everything fell into place, and hooks connected faultlessly with the rings that formed the entire world.

He had dreamed for months that he could decorate this world to the same detail of reality as the true world…

Not only had the dream come true, the servers had also expanded the world to an unimaginable border far, far more expansive than he could possibly imagine with the technology of today.

But… Oak also felt a little hollow inside. This was the peak of his dreams, and it was just mysteriously achieved without any relevance on his part… it just came…

Oak almost felt like he didn't deserve this, until Akihabara knocked him out of his thoughts with a pat on the back.

The Kanto professor's first thought was to cherish how real the pain felt, how good it felt, how realistic…

Before he fell face-first onto the ground. The computer expert stared at Oak dumbfoundedly.

Professor Oak crawled back up and shouted in excitement. "THAT WAS AWESOME!"

Fuji came over and chuckled. "We were like this the first time we came too."

Oak snapped his head at him. "I thought you said you waited for me!?"

"We gave in to the temptation… especially after Tracey sketched the world for us…"

"You pieces of Tauros crap…"

Oak fell into silence with deep thought. The two scientists stepped back a little to let Oak enjoy the full amazement of it. They knew exactly what it felt like to see a miracle, and they would never interrupt such a precious moment.

It was truly once in a lifetime.

Professor Oak recovered from his trance within a few minutes. He turned to Akihabara. "Have you tried what it was like with all of the servers combined?"

"Yes, but it'll look the same if we're just here." Akihabara said. "Currently, half of the servers would simulate almost the entire Earth, and all of the servers could simulate the entire sphere from here to the moon, with the lunar distance as the radius."

"For five minutes." Dr. Fuji added helpfully.

"And this world is recoverable?" Oak asked with a shining light in his eyes.

"Yep, albeit with a lot of power." Fuji confirmed. He knew exactly what Oak was thinking.

"Gentlemen! Do you know what kind of experiments we could do here!?"

Oak waved his arms in complete excitement. "Can we set the parameters of this world to negative gravity!?"

Fuji smirked. "We tried that already… we threw up all over the beach…"

Oak ignored the last comment. His eyes glared brighter and brighter. "We can even… fly here, right?"

Akihabara snapped his finger. A pair of virtual wings grew out of his shoulders, and he flew straight up into the sky.

He gripped his fist. The air above him suddenly form a giant torrent that condensed into a transparent fist. The scientist waved, and the fist slammed down.

A nearby mountain collapsed. Fuji smirked. "We can do whatever we want in here… although repairing everything would take a ton of energy."

"This… is… just…" Oak took a deep breath. "I don't have a word for this."

"I guess this must be how Arceus feels." Akihabara concluded.

* * *

Domino's ancient Dragonite looked around the beach. He extended his wings to their extent and stretched with satisfaction. " _Ahhhh…_ "

Dr. Fuji's daughter, Anna smirked. "Dragonite! I challenge you to a battle!"

The shiny's eyes darted around the world. " _I know this is a virtual-real world, but that doesn't mean you can undermine logic._ "

"Wow, how humble!" Anna rolled her eyes. "Your constant victory is 'logic'? Even Victini (Victory Pokémon) couldn't say that!"

" _Then I shall prove it to you!_ " Dragonite laughed and ascended. " _I'll restrict myself to ten percent power…_ "

Before he could even finish, he came crashing down as a thirty-time gravitational pressure balance was inserted on top of him, canceling out all effects of his wings or levitation.

" _HEY! You're using your admin powers!_ " Dragonite cried as he adjusted his landing position to one more acceptable.

"Actually, I'm not." Anna smirked. "Everyone who comes here could do this with enough training with **virtual** elements and programming skills."

A crazy thought clicked in Dragonite's head. " _Wait… isn't that just… programming?_ "

"Yeah. This world is a digital world afterall."

Dragonite's eyes widened and lit up with a striking flame. " _The programming of a world?_ "

* * *

The Ancient Pokémon faced Professor Oak and almost screamed in his face. His saliva went everywhere, but it was evaporated in Oak's barrier of heat before it could reach the Professor. " _DO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS MEANS!?_ "

Professor Oak's face was equally stricken with shock. Even with his unlimited imagination, he had never thought about the virtual world this way. "The programming of a world is…"

"The makeup of the universe!" They shouted at the same time.

The makeup of the universe. There was a synonym for that… a Concept.

A Concept. The ultimate fabric that made up reality… virtual reality is reality as well, as it is governed by Concepts…

THE SAME Concept as true reality.

Oak and Dragonite could see the astonishment in each other's eyes.

The Dragonite took a deep breath. He instantly knew… this could be his chance… his sole chance to step foot into Cosmic.

He had been waiting for this chance for so long… for too long… since the creation, nearly.

He looked at Oak seriously and proclaimed without a doubt. " _If you can maintain this world for a month, I would have enough time to study reality enough to Realize my Path to Formation._ "

Oak's eyes widened. Even though he had already tried to overestimate what these Concepts could do for Pokémon, he still underestimated them.

These were life and death, literally. These could change a Pokémon's life, make a moron a genius, and vice versa.

This was the power of Concepts… and this was the beginning of virtual Concepts.

The world was obviously far from finish, and the Concepts were at best minimal. But still, they were the beginning of something momentous.

And they were enough for Dragonite to break through the pre-Formation barrier that had trapped him for millennium.

* * *

When Marauder opened his eyes, he was laying on a bed. His last conscious thought was being beamed straight across the Bamboo River, while somehow not dying.

He blinked rapidly, trying to take in the situation. He couldn't figure out how and why the legendary Unown attacked him…

"You're awake?" A female voice came from next to him.

Marauder slanted his head right, and he saw a round face with short cyan hair. He searched through this body's previous memory and located the identity of the female.

Matori. 007. Rocket Elite. Spying Aqua.

She chuckled without much humor. "Wow, I've never seen an Elite this dead as a dog in so simple a mission."

Marauder coughed terribly and struggled to get up. Matori looked at him without any intentions of helping. "I can't believe you somehow mess the greatest honor of declaring war up!"

The humanoid's face twisted. He paid no attention to what the Rocket elite was saying. Instead, he focused more on his dripping power supply… or the lack of power.

The last thing he remembered was the Cosmic Unown smashing him to unconsciousness.

His entire power reservoir was a mess. In fact, all of his energy that he had gained before clashing into the Cardinal had evaporated, leaving him limp in this torn up body…

Still, there was still some use to it. Obviously, the identity of the Rocket Elite won't work anymore… but he was still the chief strategist of Team Magma… he could set up insane, bloody plans that could get thousands of people to die… then he could fill up again!

His eyes loomed back to Matori. What did the memory say she way? Aqua spy? But HER Rocket Elite identity was still valid, and so was her Aqua identity. Knowing that this body did pretty well ranking up, he had no doubt the fellow elite was equally impressive.

A distorted smile floated on his face. Matori frowned. What was he smiling at?

Intuition made her take a careful step back. He was not in a steady state of mind, she decided.

Little did she knew that distance could not stop him.

Marauder's scalp suddenly split open in a glaring black light. From within, an orb of pure darkness rose up. It was the shape of a third of a whole sphere, and it was quite tattered and streaked with strain.

The orb shook violently, and it cracked in half, releasing a massive sweep of black fog that filled the room.

One of the two one-sixth pieces fell back into the skull of Marauder, clearly out of energy and control. The male elite's head closed, and he fell back, unconscious.

The remaining one-sixth dashed toward Matori. Her mouth barely opened to scream, but no words were quick enough. The muscles in her arm contorted for it to raise, but the neurons were too slow.

The black 'orb' melted into her scalp, and the black fog in the room condensed around her head.

Her eyes rolled back, and she crumpled onto the floor.

The entire process, from Marauder's head splitting, to Matori falling onto the floor, took less than a second.

An hour later, both figures stood up and looked at each other. Together, they picked their heads up at the ceiling and laughed wildly. The same maniacal glow poured from their eyes.

* * *

 **A/N: Just drove 8 hrs today, which is why the update is really late. Still made it though! Enjoy!**


	97. Cha 96: Orange Islands 12

**Cha. 12**

The group was on a ship to Golden Island.

After defeating the Formation monster on Bronton Island, they were near the brink of complete drainage of power. Soon after the Rocket Trios arrived, a flight of helicopter came roaring in to fly them all to a top-class hospital in Mandarin Island.

Not much happened on the trip there, besides with Pikachu.

The electric mouse had been checking out the sixth-orb that the darkness figure left behind. After sweeping through the orb with waves and waves of electrons, he found…

" _Ash, I'm going to sleep for a while._ " Pikachu said to his trainer with a serious and even… solemn expression.

"Okay?" Ash looked confused. "Why are you telling me that?"

Pikachu held up the orb in his hands. It was no longer pure black but filled instead with a yellow shade. " _I found what I need to become a Formation in here._ "

Ash's jaw dropped. Domino's eyes widened and coughed out her lemonade. "WHAT!?"

" _There are strands of his memories in here that traced how he became a Formation._ " Pikachu explained. Ash and Domino wouldn't get what he was talking about, because they weren't at the brink of Formation, like him.

To become a Formation, a Top Ancient needs to Realize his own Path, which was the ultimate way of life he would follow. That required a potent heart willing to conquer all barriers and difficulty, sacrificing whatever he needed to achieve his Path. The Path was the combination of all of a being's goals, experiences, and heartfelt want.

It might seem easy to follow what the heart truly wished, but only few in the billions of grains of sand were able to do so.

Even the most precious desires were weighed down by the pressures of life, influences of others, and so forth. As a result, through time, people lost track of what they believed in.

They lost their heart.

It was also insanely difficult to combine all of one's experiences into a single uniformity. To do so, Pikachu had to sort out the different desires to peel out the one, the MOST wanted strand.

Then, he would need to start building a hierarchy of pyramid of wishes that attached other goals down to form a giant tree of his own Path.

The process was not only time-consuming, complicated, and it also required something to guide, something to make sure Pikachu's soul didn't get lost in the maze of wishes and experiences while he tried to find his true Path.

Pikachu held up his orb and repeated. " _I found the key to Formation._ "

It wasn't a definite key. There was still so many possibilities. The key might not be strong enough to direct him through the entire maze. Maybe Pikachu would still get lost through the navigation.

Maybe he still won't have to strength to tie up all of his values into one ultimate Path. Or maybe, the orb did help Pikachu zoom through the entire maze in one glomp. Or maybe, the orb would just blow up.

Pikachu didn't know what was going to happen either, but he did know that the orb would help immensely in his journey to Formation.

He estimated that there was a third of a chance that he would find his Path to Formation, and a third that he would be lost in his search…

And a third that his soul would never make it back to reality again.

Realization was a dangerous business. Dangerous but necessary. Pikachu's eyes became unfocused as he thought about what Lizzy had said.

Millions of Top Ancients within many Big-Bangs had struggled in the pre-Formation barrier, never to go on. Many had perished. Yet, endless more decided to rush to the ravine and jump, hoping to step onto the clouds instead of falling into the abyss.

It was the nature of life. A curiosity-filled pursuit that directed them to risk their lives for advancements. Now, Pikachu was on that brink of ravine as well, and he could see through the philosophies that united all powerful beings on that edge.

It was his turn to make the decision to jump, and jump he would.

Suddenly, a light filled the tunnel. Translucently, he could see what it meant to have a Path. Although without much clarity, he could identify his own, mirroring what the other before him had possessed.

The crazy pursuit of power and knowledge, and his own emotions and love…

Pikachu smiled at Ash and pounced into his chest. " _I'll see you in a month or so…_ "

" _Guard my body, and when my conscious return._ " Pikachu promised, staring into Ash's eyes. " _I'll give you a Formation for your starter!_ "

Screw the one-third possibilities. He could never abandon Ash! He could never let him go through the pain of losing his first Pokémon. He WILL become a Formation.

The orb in his hand glowed into a miniature sun, and Pikachu placed it in his mouth. His eyes closed, and his body fell limply into Ash's arms.

* * *

Professor Oak blinked. "So your definition of 'nothing important happening' is Pikachu fainting!?"

"Well… Pikachu passing out for a month is relatively less calamitous than, say, destruction of the world." Ash coughed over the phone.

"I don't know about that…" Professor Oak scratched his head. "So what are you going to do now?"

"Well, I don't actually know. Giovanni wanted us to come here apparently to take a break.. and then _THAT_ happened."

Oak fell into a solemn silence. It had been a week since the bloodshed of the six islands. Historians were already ripping through the records, trying to tie different ends together.

The entire Kanto region was in severe turbulence, and League, according to Oak, was attempting to use propaganda to directly point this toward Hoenn, giving them an excuse to start war with Magma and Aqua.

The League was the face of humanity and Kanto and Johto, so it couldn't randomly declare war like Team Rocket could. It needed a moral uphill that allowed them to act in the name of human rights that everyone would agree with.

Oak chuckled as he addressed how Goodshow had remarked how jealous he was at Team Rocket's freedom… at the cost of public acceptance, of course.

"Well, if you don't have anything, I think I have a surprise for you when you get back." The Professor's voice came with an avid enthusiasm that struggled to be restrained. "Some of your Pokémon may even find their way up to Top Ancients or even pre-Formation."

Ash did a double take. After he became a Medieval himself, he knew how hard it was to take even a small step in the rankings. How could Oak boost his Pokémon that much!?

"Come back, and I'll surprise you." Ash could feel Oak's smirk on the other end.

"No problem. I'll get a cruise back." The boy said definitively. "Domino and Juliet are both pretty tired from last week still."

He paused with an evident degree of hurt and worry. "They're both sleeping quite a bit right now."

"Probably their first time." Oak responded. "I'm worried about you too, Ash. You need to learn how to take care of yourself. You might not realize it, but so many things is resting on your shoulders right now."

"I know, Professor." Ash smiled. "I'm used to it from last timeline. I can cope more with being drained by disasters."

"Take care, Ash. Last timeline, you were acting on your own. This time, we are placing many things on you." Oak hesitated. "I'm not going to put pressure on you, but I need you to know Ash…"

"You can't jump in front of Mewtwo's attack again, like last time. You can't be rash."

Ash didn't speak for a long time. Finally, he voice sounded again, serious and powerful. "Thank you, Professor."

Oak smiled. "You've grown up."

* * *

That was the conversation with Professor Oak a day ago. After consulting the girls, Ash reformed the itinario to go to Golden Island, which would give them a flight straight back to Pallet.

Truth be told, all three of them had had enough with cruises and the Orange Islands.

Ash stod at the deck of the ship, peering out into the ocean. Two more hours, he thought, and they would step foot on land again.

Suddenly, a very bad premonition swept over him. Instinctively, Ash's Aura blared up to full power… which wasn't a lot, considering how he couldn't even overpower a normal Arcanine at this point.

What he had said to Oak was true. Domino and Juliet were sleeping a lot, but he had greatly under-xagerrate how strained they were. The two psychics were sleeping for nearly twenty hours a day.

It wasn't that they didn't want to teleport back. Neither of them actually had the power to do so. Kirlia was even worse. After being taken care of at the Mandarin hospital, she was sleeping even more than the girls, getting up for only mandaroty needs.

She was perhaps the greatest contributor of the battle. Without her strategy and manipulation to get Dratini in to manipulate the Circle's emotions for the Soul to blast him, they could never win that battle.

In fact, now that Ash thought back, fear trickled down his back. He highly doubt he could perform such a task again.

His thoughts paced back to the present, He forced his Aura to calm down to logically assess the situation.

Nothing. It was There was no winds on the ocean, not even a disturbance. Ash had no idea where his sudden intuition originated from, but he knew that there was something lurking.

He always knew.

For the next hour, he was on full alert. Wasting no time, he returned to his room to meditate, trying to gain back as much Aura as possible before whatever storm struck the ship.

Abruptly, he felt a sudden jerk that launched him forward. Ash bounced out of the door immediately, the bad feeling in his chest bursting through the limit.

On the deck, he saw no sky. The entire horizon, from the ship to the end of the ocean, was covered in a dark cloud that overtook the space above.

Violent winds blew down from the clouds onto the surface of the water. Giant walls of water surged up to nearly a hundred feet and crashed toward the cruise ship.

With his enhanced hearing, Ash could hear frantic screams in the distance that was spreading like wildfire.

Reacting quickly with an unnatural calm for a teenager, Ash darted back to the rooms and kicked open the couple's room.

He rushed over to Domino and Juliet and shook them forcefully. Domino opened her eyes and exchanged glances with Ash.

There was no need for words. She disappeared from the bed and reappeared on the deck. Eyes twitching, she muttered a swear word. Beside her, Juliet stomped her feet.

"Does this always happen to you!?" Juliet cried against the wind.

"Only after I started following Ash!"

"This isn't natural!"

"No kidding!" Ash yelled after lunging through the stairs. "Can you teleport us out!?"

"I'll try!" Domino and Juliet held hands. Above them, a light pink pool of psychic energy swirled, and a small portal appeared.

It was about to swallow the trio when a blast of lightning suddenly pierced through the sky, as if time wasn't a constraint, and struck onto the psychic pool.

Instantly, the portal was smashed to pieces. Domino and Juliet were shoved back with a cry of pain. A stream of blood seeped out of their mouths.

Ash's eyes widened and lurched forward, grabbing each girl in one arm. They were too weak right now, just like him. Even a beam of lightning was enough to force a hurtful enough recoil.

Also, with that bolt, he could confirm that this storm was NOT normal. This was definitely the intentional doing of something… but what?

He didn't have time to think though. A second later, an even greater pillar of lightning dashed down from the cloud at them.

Pulsing Aura through his legs, Ash jumped thirty feet right before the beam struck down. Gliding through the air, he could feel the immense wave of energy flipping from behind.

He landed and turned. The three of them dropped their jaw. There was a giant hole down the middle of the deck that nearly split the ship vertically.

Ash's first action, which was almost instinctive, was to reach for a Pokéball. His hand gripped Pikachu's, and then forced it away.

His mind ran through the list of Pokémon, and to his horror, he found none with Lightningrod on hand.

A third bolt of lightning came down before any of them could act. This time, it landed in the hole created by the second, completely breaking the ship in half!

Ash was launched overboard, heading straight for the sea. His arms tightened around his companions. He shouted as Aura vaporized off of him. "Tie us together! Quickly!"

Domino ripped her belt off and tied it around their waists, with Juliet following suit. Ash's feet glowed blue and he landed onto the water and ran in a direction.

The blonde yelled, voice faint with the roaring of the wind and clapping of thunder competing for loudness. "Wrong way! Turn left!"  
Ash did a swerve in the water and head straight left. Juliet reached down and grabbed the a Pokéball.

"Go Wailord!"

Nothing occured. Ash almost tripped over his feet as Juliet's Pokéball fell limply back down into her hands, unable to open.

"Damn it! Of COURSE this would happen!"

Before Ash could continue his lament, the surface to the west began to rise violently. A tumultuous wave rising up to two hundred feet dived at them.

There was nothing Ash could do. He had barely a tenth of the Aura at his prime, so he couldn't just smash through it. The giant wave was as if a Formation was using Hydro Pump- rapid and accurate.

The wave smashed into the group. The teen formed a weak Protect around the three of them and sunk below blinks before the torrent punched full force into them.

Ash completely lost control of himself as an outburst of currents twisted and turned them in gross directions, carrying them down further and further.

There was nothing that could help them. Their Aura and psychic were drained, Pokémon passed out or shut in, and this was a Formation being attacking them.

They could only watch as the water took them further and further.

* * *

 **A/N: They just can't get a break, can they!?**


	98. Cha 97: Orange Islands 13

**Cha. 13**

Ash felt like he traveled through a long tunnel without light, with only conveyor belts shoving him around without any control on his part.

His mind was clogged. No thoughts were reacting and linking. Only past memories and weird dreams floated in and out, creating a messy pot of different emotions.

One emotion was dominating the rest: suffocation. The feeling was there since the beginning of time, and it shall very well continue until the end.

Ash was in this stagnant condition for a very long time. Strands of weak Aura circulated his body, keeping the bare essence of life for his survival.

Looking at the dim glow, the last of the energy was dissipating into the dark gallows beneath him.

Suddenly, a torrent of water jerked him irrefusably in a direction. Ash, Domino, and Juliet floated unconsciously with the flow.

Weirdly enough, there was no rocks or seaweed or other obstructions that was in the flow with them. It was only the trio pressed against each other and the icy water, rushing toward an unknown destination.

* * *

Ash woke up to the tapping of Domino's fingers against his face. Her eyes looked droopy, and her hair hung down messily, disobeying the natural ringlet look.

He held up a hand, and she pulled him up harmoniously. A gush of blood ran to his head. Wooziness struck heavily.

Ash took a few seconds to focus on the situation. They were sitting by the corner of a cave-like structure. In front of them was a dark tunnel. Juliet was up already, and her appearance was just as ragged as Domino's. Without doubt, Ash concluded, he looked the same way.

He felt the same way too. He took a moment to look into his body, and his facial expression dropped to a deathly white.

His Aura supply was completely gone.

Ash picked his head up as a sudden coldness filled him. He was a mortal now, a normal human, just like everyone else. It would take weeks to recover to his fullest…

An unfamiliar feeling bashed into him. Hunger.

Ash hadn't experience hunger in so long… After reaching Medieval, the demand for food had declined significantly. Even without it, Ash wasn't quite bothered.

A wave of thirst hit a moment later. More mortal emotions began to overwhelm the Chosen. Pangs of fear began to pierced through his heart again and again.

He was about to explode from the torture within, the torture of becoming a mortal, when he felt Domino's hand laying gently over his shoulders.

She stared in him in concern. Ash shook terribly.

He had become too reliant on his powers. Memories played in front of his eyes.

He saw many images. He saw how he had aided Lugia restore peace to Shamouti. He saw how he had brought peace to Alamos. He saw how he cured Arceus of his fury.

He saw the countless disasters and situations that he had been in the last timeline, and how he had solved all of them as a normal teenage boy.

A moment of realization flushed down Ash's spine.

His power with Aura had corrupted his logic and his courage. There was an unconscious that Ash hadn't noticed until now.

Since he had arrived in this timeline, he had been more and more inclined to solve problems with raw power. Less and less had he used tactics and strategies. He was too rash in so many things, and too influenced by his Aura.

He was going down the wrong path. Ash shivered. He had to relearn his intellect. He had to relearn how to stand on his own, even without Aura.

He had read in many cases how power could corrupt one's mind. He realized with horror that his Aura might had pushed him to the edge of that.

"Ash!" A yell snapped him out of his dreaming. Domino and Juliet's worried face stared at him.

"What's wrong? That was the third time we yelled." Juliet frowned. Ash's face was pale as a sheet of paper.

"Nothing. Just something I needed to think through." Ash panted. "Where are we?"

Domino and Juliet blinked. "What do you mean?"

"Where are we?" Ash raised an eyebrow. "You know, the geographical location…"

"Hold on. Weren't you the one who brought us here!?" Domino shouted.

"Wait, what!? Weren't you the one!?"

Juliet shook her head. "Not me! I passed out first!"

Domino and Ash's jaws fell open. "Where the hell are we!?"

"So…" Ash's sight fell past her into the dark hole that led beyond. "You didn't carry us from the tunnel?"

"No…"

A very eerie feeling befell them. The three exchanged rapid glances. The hole sat there, never the more absorbing and frightening, frightening because of the lack of knowledge.

Ash, Domino, and Juliet linked hands. It was even more scary because all three of them were out of power.

After staring at it for half a minute, Ash brought his feet one step toward the blackness. "Wait here. I'll go investigate."

Before he could place his second foot down, he was lurched back by Domino. "No you're not. We go together!"

Their eyes met. He knew it was no use arguing with her. He nodded and released her hand and began walking in front.

The hole was quite small, the width only large enough for one person to walk through at a time. Ash stepped in first, followed by Domino, then Juliet.

The light behind them started to fade. Only then did they realize a very ominous fact.

That was the corner of a completely dark hole! Where did the light come from!?

The hairs on their bodies stood up on their ends. All three froze as the same time. The light kept disappearing, even though they weren't moving.

Juliet suddenly turned around and started sprinting back toward the light. The duo followed behind her without thought.

They ran for nearly two minutes before Domino shouted out. "This isn't right!"

She wasn't wrong. This wasn't light. They had only been walking for about a minute in the direction of the hole, but they had been running for two minutes, and they still hadn't returned to the original corner!

The light grew dimmer and dimmer. Ash's lips grew dry.

A very similar scene flashed across his mind. Only at one other place did he experience something this weird, this supernatural…

The light before them, still so far away, abruptly died off. In a blink, all three of them were trapped in complete darkness!

Ash's mind shouted at him to be calm, to not freak out. He needed to be rational. He must not lose his mind now!

He extended his hand out and tried to squeeze out a tiny stream of Aura that had condensed. A small, unstable blue flare flashed up. It was so feeble, as if it could be blown out with even the twitch of a hand.

He sighed slightly. "At least we have some light now."

No one replied. He looked up curiously and saw no one in front of him. He shrugged and turned around. "So what's the pl…"

There was no one behind him either.

The light shut off.

Fear gripped his heart and squeezed like a giant hand. It squeezed so hard Ash stopped breathing for a minute. Immortal darkness filled the entire area.

Everything that he had ever been terrified of seemed to materialize out of the darkness and attack him. He felt his mind spinning and burning up, and there was no water to cool him this time, because there wasn't a familiar hand to rest on his shoulder.

Ash panted heavily, which started to become a severe hyperventilation, worsened by his loss of Aura. He had never been so weak, so stripped of everything.

Even when he lost Domino in the Continuum, he wasn't so afraid. But this… this was eternal darkness, and he couldn't do anything about it. This was solitary confinement, and no efforts of his could penetrate it.

His Aura couldn't recover if he wasn't replenish. His mental state was a total blast, and Ash was on the edge of fainting.

He bit his tongue violently. The sweet and sorrow taste of blood filled his mouth, and the agonizing pain delivered a shot of brightness to his mind.

He couldn't faint! If he lost consciousness, then it might truly be the start of an everlasting oblivion!

Before Ash could do anything else, the darkness before him was suddenly split by a gripping red even more penetrating than total darkness.

* * *

The entire world was made of red, and it spun at a dizzy pace that only showed dents of slight color variation.

The dents began to form into triangular structures in the distance, and others to form some sort of squiggle down the center.

Ash could do nothing. He could even close his eyes. They were lit on fire by the scarlet overwhelming his senses.

He could only let it happen. Let whatever was happening keep going.

The world spun slower. The red started to fade away, turning into streaks with different colors in between.

His eyes gained focus on what was in front of him. It took a long period for them to finally recognize what the dents had turned into.

There were two mountains in the distance. A river floated down the middle of the landscape. There was a large tree that zoomed up from the ground into the sky.

No, not the sky. The top of tree became a pure black, with spatial distortions and time sequences zooming by and tearing through.

The mountains in the distance weren't real mountains. They were a chunk of the Universe… Universes.

One mountain was surrounded by a white light that he recognized immediately now to be the light of memory. The other was painted with blackness… the same blackness that he had experienced with the battle with… the Circle.

An unexplained anxiety flooded his mind. The scene before him was… so… weighted and momentous, in a mysterious, uncomprehended way.

Ash forced his eyes from the towering mountains in the distance, so close and so far. His heart beated harder and harder. He was afraid that if he didn't divert his gaze, his heart would burst into pieces of guts.

When his vision fell on the river flowing past, a streaming calm flushed into his body, neutralizing all of the effects of the mountains. Ash couldn't stop a moan of satisfaction. The river was so peaceful, so inclusive…

It was the River of Time.

The tranquility did not last long. A wave of time splashed out from the river. It formed into a twisted mirror that shone directly at Ash.

An overbearing pain from his past shot into mind. Ash roared, like a hurt animal on the brink of death. He fell down to the fetal position and clutched his head.

He felt a memory hidden deeply into his past, forcefully forgotten, began to squirm its way back through the gaps of time.

Ash knew exactly what this was. He refused to acknowledge it. He refuse to think about it!

Reality never went the way he wanted. He felt his head being pulled up by an unknown force toward the sky. He tried shutting his eyes, but his eyelids were peeled open with an invisible pair of tongs.

Up in the sky, a familiar scene encarved into his mind from six years ago, without any doubts that could cloud the clarity of memory once awoken…

Was the figure of Ash's father and mother standing tall in the Tree, Continuum as their background, black and blue lights pouring through the sky like waterfall.

Ash cried with disdain, with unwillingness, with horror.

* * *

Domino's eyes twisted in disgust, pity, trepidation, and a hundred other emotions that she couldn't hold back.

Most of all, it was rage. Rage that whatever brought her here was making her relive this again… the most painful part of her life, a sight that she never wanted to look back on, a time where she had tossed away all happiness and humanity.

In front of her was the streets of Viridian City. She stood on the crossroad of Virtue St. and Purity St., the two roads leading to the deepest ends of the slums.

Her face burned harder and harder. She felt herself turning to stone, unable to move. Fire seeped out of her, yet she was immobile, as if the most inner part of her spirit was frozen.

This was her life six years ago. The forbidden zone.

* * *

Juliet was running through Mossdeep City.

She had been running on this road for as long as she could remember. She was born in this world running, and she kept running.

Pain and grief filled her heart, and she could do nothing but keep running away, away from them, away from _it_.

There was no sun in this world. The entire sky was consumed by the Storm that overtook the ceiling.

Flashes of lightning struck behind her. With each thunderous clap, Juliet jumped in her stride. Horror and an incurable cut squrimed within her, breaking through her defense bit by bit.

Behind her, the giant Eye formed by the torrents of the Storm chased after her endlessly.

 **A/N: Hohoho. The three are entrapped in their most horrid memories. Ash: Father leaving him. Domino: Streets of Viridian. Juliet" Eye of the Storm. If you don't remember, I highly suggest going back to previous chapters and rereading.**

 **Or else, the next chapter would make a lot less sense.  
**


	99. Cha 98: Orange Islands 14

**Cha. 14**

Five years ago, or was it thirteen years ago?

Ash shook his head desperately, trying to toss away the past. He knew this was all n illusion. He needed to break out!

This wasn't just a fear. This was more… it was the moment of his destiny, the light of a new dawn. It had transcended all definition of fear into a brand new emotion of exhilaration.

The black of the sky was flooding over the blue. Ash remembered every detail like the back of his hand. In just a few intervals of time, the blue would fall apart, the black would tear through the Tree and into the Continuum, heading straight for the mountain of darkness.

The blackness was his father, and the blue was his mother.

This was the day Ash's father left him.

Ash didn't know why he was seeing this. He knew this was the place that flashed across his mind before his father left, but what this place was… he had not a single idea.

He didn't know what to do either. This was all in the past, and any actions of his own wouldn't change a thing.

Even if he could change the past, he couldn't do anything either. He didn't know WHAT to do. Was he supposed to help his mother out… just because she was collapsing? But… if this was all real, what had she never told him anything!?

What about his father? Why was he leaving? Was Ash supposed to help him leave?

Ash stared helplessly at the scene playing out before his head. A silent roar escaped his mouth.

Time had no meaning here. It was a replay of events in the sky. The blue broke down in fragments, and the darkness extended out to fill the top of the world.

A figure zoomed out from the mist and dashed straight for the Mountain of shade. The entire world spun. Ash wanted to vomit, and vomit he did.

His head felt like a thousand needles inching their way in… and Ash couldn't do anything but to stare.

This was his weakness. Unlike what people say, what he loved wasn't his flaw. His passion with Domino and his care or Pokémon gave him strength.

No, what he feared was his fear. It was that simple. There was no twists and turns, manipulation of emotions and events. What Ash was scared of, he was scared to death about.

The world stopped spinning, and Ash lie numbly on the ground.

Was it over yet? Why must he live through that pain again? Who was doing this to him!?

A clap of thunder in the sky got his attention. His eyes widened, and tears streamed out.

Near the top of the Tree, there were two colors mingling. Blue and black.

Ash saw stars. His mind completely shut off.

The world was repeating, and there was nothing he could do.

* * *

A hand reached out from behind and grabbed Domino's shoulder crudely. She whipped her head around and came face-to-face with a man in his early twenties.

He had on his face a gross smile, and his eyes were shining of lust and desire… the two sole emotions that were pasted on everyone's face on these streets. His body was lanky. Not the good lankiness, but an unhealthy cut that poisoned the slums.

Her eyes narrowed. The aggressiveness within her rose past a long-time maximum. Domino screeched and grabbed his wrist by the arterial hold. She dug her knuckles deep into the pressure point and pushed the man back.

The man howled in pain and wobbled back. The blonde frowned. Normally, the man would be flying back, not just the few steps he was taking.

Then, she noticed her hands. They were small, only half of her normal size. Domino looked down. Her entire body was of a tiny stature.

 _This was the memory of her seventh year of birth._

She had returned to being a seven-year-old. A cold wind blew against her, and she shivered. She was not only tiny, but malnourished. Bones were popping out of places. No muscles or fat was there to protect against the chills from seeping in.

Domino bit her lip hard. Blood stained her teeth. Her eyes shone with a concentrated light. The man let out a animalistic cry and lunged toward her again.

She dove toward the side and began to run in a direction. Even if she could handle the man, she would have to possibly pay some dire costs. She was too small, too weak.

Her Rocket training told her that a fight would be pyrric. Domino ran.

She was faster than the man. The blonde dashed past uncaring beggars, passing corners and swimming through random holes in the wall that would surely trouble the man. But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't toss him off. She was faster, but not by much.

Her breathing became more and more unstable. Domino cursed silently. At her prime, she could run ten miles without as much as a pant… the man was gaining on her.

He had more stamina. As her speed decreased, his pace became faster and faster.

Domino knew she couldn't go on like this. If there was going to be a fight, she couldn't let herself tire out. If she ran out of energy, she would be a sitting duck.

Energy wasn't prevalent in the slums. Food wasn't either, which explained the former.

She thought back in the days of the streets. Her hand slid down her shorts and into a band tied tightly around her slim thigh.

Secured against it tightly, slightly warm from pressing against her flash, was a small dagger.

Domino had carried a dagger around since as young as she could remember, all the way until she replaced it with a reinforced tulip staff.

When she was three, out on the streets stealing people's food, she had walked past an alley… and since then, the dagger had been with her.

That was the start of her memory. The _BANG_ that tore through the slimy unconsciousness. The sound of the boy being raped still filled her ears.

That was his dagger. She had went to pick it up after the man had left. It was hers ever since.

Domino's eyes narrowed. She slowed dramatically. The man caught onto her within seconds. He was ten feet behind her.

She could imagine him licking his lips in excitement, and disgusting saliva dripping down with his fantasy.

There were many fantasies in the dark streets of Viridian. Their variety had one similarity though.

They made people stupid.

Domino tripped and dove onto the ground. She closed her eyes. She could feel the man stretching out his arms hungrily. Even without psychic, her shoulders felt a sickening pair of bones coming for them.

Her legs struck out with utmost precision backwards and darted into a soft, fleshy spot. A howl echoed behind her. She knew she had hit the spot.

The presence of the hands on her disappeared, probably going for his damaged groin. She didn't bother to look back. She had practiced this countless times at the Rocket base.

She flipped herself over. In the blink of an eye, faster than any untrained human could react, her hand stabbed toward his throat.

The dagger in her hand sliced through the skin. Blood poured onto her hands. A sticky, greasy texture, just like the mud after a thunderstorm.

She hadn't killed a man in so long. Even before she started following Ash, she hadn't killed anyone in a year.

She pulled the blade out. Blood dripped down the handle. The sound of it hitting the ground, along with the fountain pouring out from his throat, was deafening in the alley.

Domino stepped past the fallen man with a face of stone. She placed her dagger back into her band. Her eyes had fallen back to a dark purple.

Survive.

* * *

The Eye pierced down at her. Juliet had been running for days now. She didn't know how she still hadn't fallen. Probably because this was an illusion… but her mind was going to stop working any second.

She had run through many towns now. Each place she ran through, the Storm zoomed through as well.

The ominious wind tasted of death and gore. Each city she passed, the wind ravaged. She didn't turn back and look, but she knew. She knew because this was not just an illusion, from a fragment of her past… this hadn't happened. This was happening.

People fell into the wind. Their bodies remained, but their souls were kidnapped by the Storm. She didn't know what the Storm was, but it was following her.

Why? She didn't know. She knew nothing. The lack of knowledge. It was perhaps why this had become her worst memory.

But it wasn't just the Storm. It was the cracking of an ancient memory that she didn't want to think of, that made her want to just die.

Behind her, the faint, yet distinct, cries of men and women, of children and elders of the cities that she had passed yelled for her to stop. To submit to her fate, just like they had.

Her fate? What was her fate?  
Juliet had often thought her fate was to live a happy life. The memory that had opened after seeing the first light of the Storm ripped that dream out of her head.

An invisible hand reached for her. Its repellent scent revolted against her logic, her will.

She kept running. She had no idea when this would stop. If this would stop.

Run until there was a change in life. Hope told her there might be.

She ran west.

* * *

Ash knew he couldn't go on like this. The world had repeated for the eighth time now. Each time it repeated, the images of his father and mother became clearer. Each time it was clearer, his heart ripped a little more.

His mind would burn up if this didn't stop. It would just lose functionality.

But it wouldn't stop! This was part of his past, and forever would be. It was forged into his memory. This was all his memory. It had happened, and it wouldn't change.

Ash closed his eyes. He needed everything to fade.

Who said that you must conquer your fears!?

Ash couldn't let go. He needed to let go. Letting go was just as go as conquering.

If this was part of his memory, then he needed to forget.

To Forget.

How could he forget a part of himself!?

A concussion? He did have Misty's mallet. A black light zoomed past the sky for the Mountain of Darkness. The world began to spin.

He pulled himself up with the help of a branch on the Tree. The dizziness was still potent, but he had gotten used to the feeling.

Dizziness. Opaque. Wasn't that how life was?

Ash's hand curled around the branch next to him. There was a strand of spider web hanging down from it to the ground.

The thought of Misty and the coincidental arrangement of the branch and the strand pieced together into an object.

A fishing rod.

It looked perfectly like a fishing rod. Ash said nothing, but his eyes were glowing.

Slowly and steadily, he snapped the branch off from the Tree. He licked his lips. Misty once said that fishing was the ultimate medicine of tranquility and peace. It worked even better than mediation.

Ash trudged in the direction of the river. The River of Time. He sat down on the bare ground. The strand of web was tossed into the river.

The strand floated down. There was no rule of gravity or logic that could forbid it. This was the world of illusion, world of will.

Ash closed his eyes. He was fishing for hope, fishing for a mystery that was even ambiguous to him.

The dizziness died down. Misty was right. Fishing was better than meditation.

* * *

Domino limped back in the direction of the gang that she was staying with.

She remembered this gang. It was the longest that she had stayed with. The leader had hired her to be the master thief. Her last mission was a successful carry of a diamond ring from the hands of a millionaire.

She was late for dinner. She was never late for dinner. Not in the slums.

She looked up. Judging by the moon, it was probably three hours past mealtime.

Everyone would've retired by now. There was nothing to do at night. The night was the time for the powerful groups and gangs that dominated the streets. The night was the convenient time for them to conduct robberies and murders.

Them, not her gang. Her gang was a weak division that laid low in the territory of a nearby organization. They were forced to steal in the day, many times more dangerous than the night.

But there was nothing she could do. It was how life in the slums worked. The cold fact was to be accepted, not argued with.

Turning past the corner, she knew that her lodging was down the alley. 'Lodging' was a nice way of saying a dirty, ragged sleeping bag against the side of a trash can.

A tiny screech halted her mid way. Her head snapped in the direction. It was down another alley just past her own. She would've never heard it if it wasn't for her Rocket training.

The screech wasn't the sound of friction caused by things dragging across the ground. It was a muffled scream.

Seven years ago, Domino would've walked away without a care, because that was how slum-life worked. You didn't get into others' businesses.

But this wasn't seven years ago, no matter how similar the streets looked. She wasn't Domino, abandoned child and master thief. She was Domino, Chosen Queen and Rocket Elite. She needn't suppress her curiosity.

She tiptoed in the direction of the alley. When she whipped her head across the opening, she saw a man stuffed to the ground. Another man was holding his mouth as he struggled.

There was a knife stabbed unexpertly into his chest. By this rate, Domino judged, it would take another few minutes for the man to die completely.

The man, lying on the ground, caught sight of Domino. Waving his hands with desperation, he howled lowly like a deceased animal at her.

The man on top immobilized him to the ground and turned his head in the direction of the cause of commotion.

He and Domino's eyes met. The blonde's eyes narrowed.

The man on top was the leader of her gang.

They stared at each other. The thrashing of the dying man below turned into a gentle squirm.

Domino backed out of the alley and into her own.

This was why they said to not interfere in others' business.

* * *

It had been seven days since Juliet was consciously running. The Storm blew behind her. The Eye stared down.

The giant orb was filled with countless emotions, marked the strongest by anger, grief, and hatred.

Thousands, perhaps millions, of souls screamed within the winds. Juliet was about to collapse at any second.

A mixture of inner torture and exhaustion filled her. She could run for forever, but her sanity couldn't live that long.

She had passed through Hoenn into Sinnoh, and she had switched her direction north.

She didn't know where she was going. She turned when her mind triggered, she stopped when her intuition blared. She hadn't stopped yet.

Juliet stopped.

In front of her was an ancient temple. A tone of familiarity blasted into her mind. There was a man standing in front of the door.

More specifically, he was a monk. A Buddhist monk. The temple, on a second view, was that of a seemingly primordial shrine.

The monk radiated off a warmth and comfort that made Juliet want to dive into his arms. Against his radiance, even the rapacious winds of the Storm backed off. The souls stopped screeching, backing off in terror.

His eyes shone with an everlasting intelligence as he looked past Juliet at the giant Eye. The Eye glared.

The sleeves of the monk's robe ballooned up as if a powerful force was resonating through it. The monk's posture was unchanged.

The storm whirled.

* * *

 **A/N: More to come. Stay tuned.**


	100. Cha 99: Orange Islands 15

**Cha. 15**

Time, at the microscopic level, was not like what people think. At the large level, it combined into a stream of undeniable force that pushed the entire parallel along.

Each parallel is its individual plane. As the waves of Time carry it down into the future, the universe move through the fabrics of its own Concepts.

The given structure is like a water wheel. As the waves pushed on it, it spun, rotating the universe into action. Therefore, it gave a mysterious illusion that no one trapped in the universe itself could see.

One had to hop into the Continuum to experience this powerful phenomenon in action.

That, was the irresistible force of macro-time. At the tiniest level, though, time was just a strand weaving through nothingness.

Sometimes, it might not be enough to push an object along… or at least in this unexplained state.

Ash's strand, attached exotically to his rod, was lying in the River. It wasn't being pushed by the currents. It just fell into the depth. Sometimes, it might swirl, but it never left a small radius around Ash.

Ash was sitting mobile on the coast of Time. He didn't know what condition he was in, but he felt serene. He didn't know for how long he had been sitting here, because there was no use for time. He was not pushed by the waves of time. He was outside of the limits of duration.

The special state could not be described, only be imagined. Without time, Ash was experiencing everything all at once. He could see his entire life and a million other possibilities.

If everything was here, then nothing was truly here. He had no thoughts in his mind. He was tranquil.

The black and blue played on and on again in the sky. But unlike previously, it didn't disturb Ash anymore. The River washed again and again on Ash's heart.

They said time healed everything. Time healed by making people forget. Time was like a bubble guarding them away from re-experiencing past trauma. Even though they could remember the past, it would be nothing like reliving it.

However, Ash was sitting outside of Time, so its nurturing power and protection had no effects on him. Yet, he was peaceful.

He had seen everything, and yet nothing. If nothing existed, what could bother him?

The Chosen One sat by the River, watching its waves turn. He didn't know why he was sitting here, or what brought him to this position.

A tug on the strand reminded him. He was here because he wanted to fish. There was a pure desire to go fishing, and so he did.

It was mysterious, and it was appealing.

He didn't know how he could have the entire River in his eyes, but he did. This was completely out of human comprehension, but it worked perfectly.

* * *

Domino woke up to the sound of footsteps at the opening of her alley. Rocket instincts kicking in in a snap, she zoomed out of her sleeping bag in a defensive position. Her blonde hair flipped as her eyes settled on the intruder.

Intruders. Men streamed in, all of whom she recognized. They were all in her gang of thieves. Domino didn't let her guard down. Their faces were not the normal lack of emotion, but of caution and even fear.

Fear? Even if Domino was the elite thief, they were all twisted men on the streets of the Viridian slums. They didn't fear seven-year-old girls for no reason.

A figure broke through the dozen of men and pointed at Domino. Her eyes narrowed. Thoughts began to piece together.

The figure was the leader of her gang.

His voice didn't shake a hair as he growled at her. "HER! She killed Lennon."

Lennon? That was the name of an expert thief in their gang. Seven years ago, he died during a mission to steal a treasured Ultra Ball from the house of Thwarts. He was teaming up with the leader, but only one returned.

Lennon? His face began to appeared from her memory. Lennon!

Last night's scenes flooded into her mind. She didn't realize it yesterday, but a bolt of lightning flashed through her mind, tearing apart any clouds that existed.

Lennon was the guy whom the leader was killing last night!

Everything made sense now, why he was showing up with a gang of people in HER alley. He needed to make sure she couldn't talk, and he needed to guarantee her… death.

Dead people couldn't talk. That was a long-confirmed fact.

The leader held up an Ultra Ball in his hand for everyone to see. "Tell me! Tell me how you have this!?"

Domino glanced at it. It was stained with blood. The red, black, and yellow surface shone like the coloration of the streets.

The leader growled. "I found this on her this morning when I came to wake her up for her assignment! This was the Ball that Lennon and I stole yesterday!"  
"I gave it to Lennon to hold, and he disappeared after midnight!" The leader shouted with fury. "She murdered Lennon for his treasure! She is a MONSTER!"

Domino looked silently at his performance. There was no need to retort.

"Men! Get her!" The leader yelled. The men behind him started to walk towards her, slowly and carefully, nothing like the elated command from the leader.

The leader's words were so flawed, even someone with a pea for a brain could see through it. It didn't matter. It didn't matter if the leader was right or wrong. He just needed an excuse to kill her. The men just need an excuse to defeat the bare slimmer of morals within them and follow him blindly.

Even if she was the best lawyer in Kanto, it wouldn't affect a single thing. The men came toward her. Domino turned her head. She was right up against the wall. If she was at her prime, she could scale it easily.

She wasn't. Her eyes condensed into two tiny orbs.

Domino had always been afraid of blood. It didn't matter though. Nothing mattered on the streets of Viridian.

* * *

The door of the temple slammed open. The monk made a gesture for Juliet to enter. He never took his eyes off the Storm, the giant Eye hanging in the sky.

Seeing Juliet was about to escape into the temple, the Eye thundered with blasting rage. Lightning splashed down and giant blocks of hail descended. Raindrops turned into knives that pummeled through the air.

The monk's face had no fear or excitement, no anxiety and no happiness. He simply emerged, without any ties to the world, without any waste or emotions obstructing his mind.

It was the way of the Buddhist. Calming and selfless.

It was truly selfless. He appeared but not existed. The blades went right through him, as if he was just a hologram. The hail dropped around him. Those that fell within him disappeared, as if his body was a black hole.

Juliet had no idea who this man was, or what kind of power this was. In fact, her ability to think had long vaporized with her eternal run from the Storm.

The monk waved his robe. The door to the temple shut off behind her. Lights dimmed dramatically.

The room was lit by candles dawning a smooth, wavering yellow. In the center was a small, human-sized, golden sculpture of Buddha.

It wasn't a large arena like she had pictured. The inside was so much smaller than it looked outside, by a figment of spatial or some other sorts of power.

As soon as the door closed, an atmosphere of tranquility washed over the room. Instantly, she was shut away from the calamitous winds of the outside. The noise faded, and her heart stopped pouncing.

Instinctively, she knelt down in front of the sculpture. Buddha had one hand crossed over his stomach, and another forming the shape of heart over his chest. On his face was an omniscient smile that instilled peace into the minds of even the most corrupted beings.

His eyes were simple golden orbs, without even as much as pupils. He didn't need them. He had already seen everything. Tones of generosity and kindness shone. It was a statue, but Juliet could feel his sight laying on her.

She buried her head deeper. A voice sounded in her mind. " _What do you want, Child?_ "

What DID she want? Her life was a mesh of events, but what was her true destiny? What does she want!?

Fate had taken her this far. She was a boat floating along, without a sail to direct herself.

" _Poor child._ " A golden light began to surround her. " _I will gift you with a hundred lives. Now, go! Seek what you want!_ "

* * *

In the first ring of life, Juliet was born a sailor. It was an uneventful life. She sailed on the high seas, hunting whale by day, wrapping fish by night. One day, she came into contact with a ship of pirates. Since then, her life was changed forever.

She escaped with a map of their treasure. She spent years tracking down hints, and finally, after a decade, she lifted up the hidden treasure of Bartolomeu.

That was the first treasure of her life. For the next few decades, all the way until her death, she spent in constant search of the legendary treasures of pirates, robbers, gravediggers, that were buried into the past.

It had become her passion.

In the second ring of life, Juliet was a detective working for an elite agency of the government. Her goal was to hunt down the most mysterious thief of all, Zeldom, that lurked the coasts of the continent.

She succeeded after twenty years of tracking and spying. It was the best twenty years of her life.

Until her death, she had captured one hundred and sixty-eight criminals, each of them having been once at the top of the List. She died at the hands of her one hundred sixty-ninth criminal. She was a sailor.

Her third ring was a scholar. Her fourth a chemist. Then, astronomer, sixth a marauder, seventh a beggar…

One hundred lives came and went. They were her lives; they were a dream. After the hundredth life, Juliet woke up to the tapping of a coldness on her forehead.

A drip of water splashed against her head. Juliet opened her eyes. It took a moment for the different images of a hundred lives to go by. It faded a lot quicker than expected, leaving only the most precious part of ten thousand years.

A second drop dripped down from Buddha's hand onto her head. Juliet's eyes shone brighter than the Buddha's own.

" _Have you decided, Child?_ "

* * *

Ash was still in a state of stagnancy. He was outside of time. Nothing could move him.

Suddenly, there was a tug on Ash's rod. Ash snapped his eyes open. The taste of movement… he hadn't moved in so long.

He was fishing. Naturally, he lifted the rod up without thinking. The strand flew up. At the end of the silk was… a glassy fish.

No, it wasn't really fish. Fish didn't bite the hook unless it was baited. It was an appearance of time. A part of the past… a memory.

It was a memory that resonated with Ash. It had flowed to Ash without thinking. It came because it was supposed to come. It was that simple. It came because it was his.

Ash grabbed onto the silk and carefully took the fragment of memory off. He looked deeply into the transparent glass.

A familiar sight filled him. It was the same sight that had been playing for that last infinity of time. The pain that had ripped him apart before didn't come. It couldn't come.

Ash had seen everything.

The Chosen smiled. His grasp on the fish tightened. The fragment broke into pieces that fell to the ground. Ash raised his head to the sky.

There was no black and blue that fluctuated. They didn't exist in his memory anymore. He had forgotten them.

Forget. Ash's hand waved. The entire realm around him broke apart.

This wasn't his father's realm. This was his own realm of the past that had trapped and tortured his soul.

Not anymore. Ash had forgotten.

The world spun. After a blink of red, the entire scene disappeared. He was back to the darkness that filled the initial tunnel that he entered.

Forgetting.

Ash had found his Path.

* * *

The men closed in more and more. Their faces become distorted. Sounds oscillated between faint and loud. The entire reality before her become surreal.

Domino felt her conscious fly up from her body into the air. She had an eagle's view of the slums. Its roads crisscrossed each other sharply. The original red, yellow and black all turned to an incaptivating muddy brown that spread across earth.

The streets of Viridian began to float up from the ground. They twisted into bars, heading straight for her soul. A burning rage and will poured out from within her.

NO! She refused to be captured in the dirt of the world again! She refused to lose the beautiful tulip that had stemmed from the marsh of humanity!

She roared and grabbed onto the bars. They began to twist into a cage from which she could never escape.

NO! This shall NOT happen!

The men below were a few feet from her. They were advancing like zombies, without a will of their own. Domino cried and hugged the wall. Her body seemed to move on their own. She was torn between her physical and spiritual form!

Her body felt a light tap. She whipped her head around. A rope hung down from the top of the wall behind her, and an unknown man in orange-suit was smiling at her.

He said nothing and handed her a gun. Domino took it over.

This was her body. She didn't know who the man was. She had no memories. She only had the memories of the last seven years of her life.

She fired. She fired thirteen times.

From the cage, Domino saw the zombies falling one by one. The dawn of the sunrise casted a red gleam onto the horizon. The desire within herself burned into a flame that lit up the sky.

She knew what she wanted. She had never wished for something more in her life! This transcended all her values, her morals, even her love.

She wanted freedom.

The glow of the sky seeped from the clouds and condensed in front of her. The blood from the ground rose up and joined the scarlet.

The pool of crimson twerked and swiveled. At last, it materialized into a ruby… key.

Domino held up her hand and gripped the key with all her might. Precision kept her hand steady, and she poked the key into the lock of the cage… and twisted.

The lock fell apart. The bars vaporized.

The world collapsed.

Freedom. Domino had found her Path.

* * *

Juliet looked at Buddha. She smiled. "I don't know who you are. You might now even be a person."

Buddha's scultpure stood emotionlessly, unwavered.

"But thank you."

Juliet stood up. She turned around and walked towards the door. She pushed it open.

The knives and hail had just dropped. The lightning bolts were rolling in the clouds, threatening to fall any second.

Juliet stepped out. The monk smiled knowingly. The temple faded into space behind her, like dust blowing into the wind. She came in front of the bald man and bowed.

The monk nodded, and he too disappeared. He had no connections with this world afterall. It was logical to disappear.

Juliet raised her head. The Storm raged, and the souls screeched. The Eye stared down at her.

Juliet's own eyes flashed with an intensive glow that transcended the glare of the Eye, coming near the omniscient stare of Buddha himself.

The Eye shook violently, angry that it was challenged, and the pools of lightning gushed down.

A golden light surround her. The shadow of a temple flashed behind her, real and imaginary. She floated into the air.

Silver and gold met at the same time. The gold was so thin and fragile, as if no match for the towering silver thrashing in the sky.

However, the golden sheet never broke. Rather, it was the silver lightning that faded into the golden touch. The lightning was powerful, but the brilliant yellow was unstoppable.

The pool of lightning dissolved. The souls disappeared, cleansed by the serene glow. The winds died down.

The Eye began to contract, smaller and smaller. It screamed frantically. Juliet's posture were unchanged. Her eyes shone brighter than ever. She held up a hand.

She knew why it was an Eye. It couldn't be anything else. The Eye was a part of her memory, a part of her life because…

She seeked knowledge. The Eye was fearful because she didn't know. It revealed the unknown memories that she didn't remembered.

She always thought she had followed fate, and fate had led her here. It was obvious. This was her desire, her goal.

Vision. It had always been her destiny to see everything.

The Eye fell into her hand. She pressed it against her own eye. The two melted into each other.

Vision. It was Juliet's Path.

* * *

These weren't battles of power. They weren't followers of patterns, of rules. They were conflicts of selves, or Realization, of their destiny.

It didn't make sense, but sense is made, as long as they understood.

* * *

 **A/N: Heho.**


	101. Cha 100: Orange Islands 16

**Cha. 16**

When Ash opened his eyes again, he wasn't in the ominous cave anymore.

He knew this because the first thing he saw was the clear blue sky. He sat up abruptly and panted. His memory of the ship wreckage and the following eerie hours were burned to his mind.

He had experienced so much in his life that he had long developed the ability to distinguish dreams and reality… or at least, what was important enough to not be deemed illusional.

Afterall, what was the difference between real and fake anyway?

Ash shook his head, wishing those thoughts away. Something in his mind clicked. The thoughts disappeared in an instant.

The images of the illusion world flooded into him. The past, the memories, the forgotten. The Path of Forgetting.

How convenient, Ash smirked a little.

He turned his head. He was lying on a beachchair on the, well, beach. Domino was to his left, and Juliet his right. Both of them were still unconscious.

This time, he didn't make the assumption that the other two had rescued him, seeing their unconscious state.

Ash clutched his fist and opened it. A powerful glow of Aura seeped out. It was still the normal size of a fist, but its was a dark blue instead of the normal light hue. Ash's eyes widened.

This wasn't the glow of a Medieval level Aura Sphere… it was the power of an… Ancient. Ash stared at his fist, mind blank.

How… what!? How could this be possible!? The barrier between Medieval and Ancient had stumped so many Medieval legendaries in the past! It was the transformation into a completely new life form! It was like evolving from a monkey into a human, only more difficult!

The process of Ancient was like returning to simplicity. The more simple, the more powerful. The beginning of the Universe was a infinitesimal dot, containing the power of the eternal dimensions.

Ash didn't even enter pre-Ancient level yet! He just completely skipped from Top Medieval into Ancient, without even the preparatory period!

In other words… he basically crossed over one of the most difficult barriers without even the slightest idea of how he did it… completely unconsciously!

" _That, Chosen, is because you Realized your Path._ " A powerful mental voice sounded from within his mind.

A shadow glided over him. Ash snapped his head up and saw Lugia land thirty feet from him.

This was why the island looked so familiar! This was Shamouti Island, Lugia's dwelling!

His eyes met with Lugia, who bowed. " _Forgive me, Chosen, for intruding on your thoughts, but your recent gain in power is not too well control, and I can't help but intercepting some of your brain waves._ "

"Apology accepted." Ash jogged closer to the legendary. "How did you know I Realized my Path? Don't people and Pokémon only Realize their Paths after they reach pre-Formation?"

" _They do. Paths are mandatory for advancing into Formation. Only with a firm grasp on their wants can Formation beings control the potentially corrupting power they wield._ " Lugia gave the teen a firm look. " _That is why, Chosen, you and your friends have become a very special case in our world whom no one can classify._ "

Ash blinked rapidly. Lugia was saying that… they did something that only pre-Formations dared to attempt!? HOW!?

" _I'm sorry for listening to your thoughts again, but your question of 'how' also ties into your first question of how I know you've Realized your Path._ "

" _You've somehow survived the Abyss…_ " Lugia took a breath. His tone became solemn. He repeated. " _You've somehow survived, as Medievals, the most inner parts of the Temple of Sea, the most dangerous creation in the oceanic world- the Abyss._ "

"The ABYSS!?" Ash blurted out. The connotation itself was already a million miles from anything positive.

Lugia gave him a heavy look. " _Indeed. It was the most hazardous part of the ocean. Twenty thousand years ago, it was the bane of all sea Pokémon._ "

" _The Abyss appeared out of nowhere and suck Pokémon in, much like the black hole of the oceans._ "

" _No Pokémon who is caught in had escaped. Twenty millennium ago, Kyogre had spent centuries after the War of Limits with Groudon going through the massive ocean searching for its traces._ "

" _Even she found nothing. No one found any patterns to its appearance. Distance and time meant nothing to it. One second, it could be at the Sea of Kanto. The next, it could've teleported to the coastline of Sinnoh._ "

" _This went on for countless years, until the King of Manaphy was sucked into the Abyss._ "

" _The entire Manaphy species went out of control. Kyogre was enraged to an extreme extent that even Groudon stopped pestering her about the land-water balance._ "

" _She took the Primal Reversion orb and ravaged the entire underwater world, looking for her best friend._ "

" _She found nothing. After the effects of the orb wore off two centuries later, Groudon took his orb and boosted himself near the Cosmic level and went to war with Kyogre._ "

" _Without the power of her own orb, she lost to Groudon at every battle they fought, and soon the borders of the water were pushed to only a tenth of the world._ "

" _It was perhaps the greatest disaster of the world. Both the land and ocean population suffered from the turbulence, but Groudon didn't care as long as more Water Types were dying than Land Types._ "

Lugia paused in his tale and looked back to Ash. " _Remember how I said the Abyss was the most dangerous part of the ocean?_ "

Ash nodded. The Legend continued. " _Well, even if the Abyss was powerful, its power was restricted to only the water. If the ocean completely evaporated, then even the Abyss would be destroyed._ "

" _As a result, when Groudon become complacent and stepped deep into the water to chase after a severely injured Kyogre, the Abyss appeared._ "

" _I don't know the details of the battle. I only know as much as my father told me._ " Lugia's eyes flickered with a deep glow. " _He said that the battle was beyond anything the world had experienced. Even the Soul of the Universe intervened to make sure the world didn't collapse._ "

" _However, even the Soul couldn't do anything to the two Legends, because they were both assigned to their positions by Arceus, and even the Soul couldn't challenge the Original One._ "

" _When the Abyss stepped in, everything changed. The Abyss demonstrated nearly Top Formation power, just like Groudon. Its true form was revealed to the world for the first time._ "

" _The Abyss was an underwater ravine with giant tentacles. It fought bloodily with Primal Groudon. It was said that the continents and ocean were all destroyed, becoming a muddy mixture on which neither Types of Pokémon could thrive in. The best they could do was survive minimally._ "

" _The battle went on for an entire century. Somehow, the Abyss was strong enough to hold back Groudon until Kyogre's Water Orb recharged._ "

" _At the end, Groudon was defeated, and the land barrier shrunk back to take over half of the world, just as before. However, the conflicts in the oceans did not cease._ "

" _Even though the Abyss did help maintain the ocean, Kyogre believed that it only did so maintain its own survival. She still hated it with a passion. The two beings fought, with Kyogre victorious because of her Primal Reversion._ "

" _The Abyss, hoping to calm her, spat out the Manaphy King, still alive after three centuries, which downed her wrath enough for it to escape._ "

" _Kyogre was bewildered to find out her best friend was still alive. In fact, she noticed that the Manaphy King had broke through the Ancient barrier and had advanced into the Formation rankings._ "

" _Eventually, Manaphy explained what he had went through. When the Abyss sucked him in, Manaphy fell into a world of illusions. Ultimately, through countless cycles, he was able to find his heart and Path._ "

" _Then, the next time he opened his eyes, he found himself on Primal Kyogre's fins, the Abyss slithering away._ "

Lugia paused for everything to sink in. He allowed Ash a minute to contemplate what he had said, and he continued again.

" _As you know, the barrier to Formation requires the Realization of the Path, which is one of the most dangerous task in the advancement of power. One wrong decision, you could fall into the ravine of corruption that tears your mind away from your heart, sinking you to eternal oblivion and doom._ "

" _No one knew at the time how to lessen this process. Besides the initial Pokémon whom Arceus created to become Formation, there was none I could think of that had broke through the barrier._ "

" _With the King of Manaphy, everything changed. The legendary said that he might have discovered the key to a safe path, and it lied in the illusions._ "

" _By enduring enough illusions, a Top Ancient could discover his heart little by little, until he explore his entire self. Then, he could have a much greater chance of combining his life into the ultimate Path that would guide him into Formation._ "

" _That, apparently, was what he went through in the Abyss._ "

" _Kyogre then asked, why didn't he break out the Abyss after he became Formation. Manaphy said that he didn't truly become Formation until the Abyss spat him out. The rules of Time were completely frozen within. He could still Realize his Path since Realization worked with memory, which transcends Time._ "

" _However, his body never became Formation until he was spat out._ "

" _Obviously, Kyogre saw this as a precious opportunity to give her Water Pokémon an immense boost. If a few more Formation could pop out in the expanse of the ocean, she could re-attack land and wipe Groudon's territory out, washing off the shame of the past three centuries._ "

" _With the cooperation of the entire ocean, King Manaphy separated a strand of the leftover power of the Abyss from himself and used that to trace back to the ravine._ "

" _King Manaphy then built a giant, invisible Temple that he could use to capture the Abyss. By the time construction was finished, Kyogre had located the hidden Abyss as well._ "

" _There was another great battle that destroyed the new oceans. Legendaries, Medievals, and fully evolved Water Types fell like the rain. For decades, the sea was drenched in dark crimson._ "

" _But at the end, the Abyss lost. But the cost on the ocean was drastic. Kyogre lost nearly half of the ocean's Ancients, including my father. Even King Manaphy perished, burning his own life to ultimately seal the Abyss into the Temple of the Sea._ "

" _Since then, Kyogre began the intricate process of selecting Legends to enter the Abyss for training. She was expecting numerous Formation to emerge from the Temple, ready to blast Land to pieces._ "

" _She failed. None of the Ancients who entered returned. The only one to survive through it to retell the story was a Dragonite._ "

" _The Dragonite entered when he was a Medieval. However, when he exited, he became an Ancient. King Manaphy had rigged the Temple so that it forced the Abyss to release its grasp on time every year so the rules of time can unfreeze, allowing Pokémon to be spat out._ "

" _The Dragonite came out, having Realized half of his Path, which boosted him into the Ancient ranks. He then explained that even with all the help from the illusions, survival through the Formation Test was not guaranteed. It also had nothing to do with a Pokémon's power, only its will and clarity of mind._ "

" _In conclusion, the mission of the Temple to train countless Formations failed._ "

" _This was a result Kyogre refused to accept._ _She was so devastated by everything that she sealed the Temple into the depths of the ocean, never to be seen again…_ "

Lugia laid his eyes on Ash. " _Until today._ "

" _So don't be surprised that you had Realized your Path as a Medieval, or that you became an Ancient. I would be the one surprised if you had't._ "

" _The Abyss is still the most mysterious thing of the ocean, even if it is sealed. But it's not just the Abyss's power, it is yours too. All three of yours._ "

" _You could have never survived the torture of the illusions or formation of your Paths if your will isn't resilient enough. Your experience with the Abyss proves beyond a doubt that you are stronger than you had ever been, stronger than all of the Ancients twenty millennium ago._ "

" _In fact, even I hadn't formed my own Path._ " Lugia said softly. He was a Top Ancient too, just like Ho-Oh and Kyurem.

* * *

The retelling of the tale went a lot quicker with Domino and Juliet, since communication between psychics dwarfed even the speed of sound.

After the legendary had finished, Domino frowned. "I don't believe it."

Lugia smirked at her. " _Which part?_ "

Domino gave him a knowing glance. "The part about Kyogre using the Primal orb to search the ocean for Manaphy."

" _Oh? Why's that, my Queen?_ " Lugia sat down and smiled at her. Truth be known, he didn't believe it either.

"Two hundred years are quite a long time to be pissed, especially for Kyogre." Domino stated logically. "Especially since she's a Formation, her Path definitely would prevent her from losing her mind due to anger."

"Plus, Groudon probably knew this as well, being an ancient Formation himself. Now, the problem arises. Why did the battle go on anyways? Why did Kyogre lost this badly all the way until the end?"

Domino looked straight into Lugia's eyes. "Was this entire thing all pretending? An act to cover up what is truly the scheme!?"

" _That, Queen Domino, is a very good question._ " Lugia sighed. " _Unfortunately, no one could ever answer that question. Everything that we speak of right here is an inference. We would never know unless either Groudon or Kyogre admit to it themselves._ "

"Admit to what!?" Ash interrupted.

"Kyogre's scheme." Domino reply in short terms.

"I don't get it."

Lugia chuckled. " _Don't worry about it, Chosen. These petty details are for the ladies to worry about._ "

"Well, here's another petty deatil for you, Lugia!" Domino crossed her arms. "How can a simple Temple restrain the Abyss!? Even if it is made out of titanium, a Formation could break out without even effort."

" _That is a question I can answer._ " Lugia smiled and panned a look across the three Ancient level humans. " _Have any of you heard of… Arrays?_ "

The Aura Guardian exchanged looks with the two psychic. The trio all shook their heads.

Lugia sat back, smoothing out his wing. " _Didn't think so. Arrays had been lost for ten thousand years. Even young Legends had never heard of it before._ "

He paused for a second to recollect his thoughts, trying to form the best explanation. He started after a minute. " _At the beginning, Arceus created eighteen different elements._ "

" _Trust me, I know it was seventeen_ " Lugia coughed. " _I was old enough to remember the world of seventeen types. Celebi was too lazy to edit everything past the three thousand years mark._ "

" _Anyways, the elements individually were strong. Put together, however, their reactions become insane. Ground and Rock by themselves are just solid bricks and metals. Combined, they turn into cities and mountains._ "

" _In a more complicated example, the planet itself is a mixture of Ground, Rock, Water, Grass, Steel, Electric, and Ice._ " Lugia allowed a small while for the concept to sink it. " _The elements by themselves, not in a thousand years, could overpower the momentous Earth._ "

" _Simply put, an Array is the arrangement of elements in an expert fashion that allowed a pool of different elements to generate immense power that overtakes any power that could be factored individually. In addition, the greatest difficulty from which its power also stems is that… an Array could be held for a very, very long time, depending on the skill of the engineer._ "

" _The study of this kind of power was extremely popular before the ten thousand year mark. It even had a name: Arraygistics. It was so interesting even Arceus played with it._ "

Lugia pointed down at the islands beneath their feet, and then spread his wings into the to their fullest extent. " _In fact, Arceus assembled the most complicated and powerful Array of all in a moment of excitement. The ground below us, the entire Orange Archipelagos, is a giant Array that Arceus set up himself._ "

" _It is so powerful that it had become the center of the planet. That is why the world's weather must come through here, and why I, as a Top Ancient, is willing to spend my life guarding this place. Shamouti, is the key to the Array._ "

Noticing his excitement was a bit overwhelming, Lugia coughed. " _Anyways, I digress. Of course, King Manaphy wasn't nearly as potent as Arceus, but he was also extremely skilled in Arraygistics._ "

" _The Temple of the Sea is ladden with powerful Arrays, elements of different kinds twisting with each other to form the ultimate prison, in which the Abyss lies._ "

Lugia took a breath from his tale.

A bang sounded. Lugia looked down to find Ash collapsed on the ground, swirls for eyes.

Juliet held her head, laughing. "I guess that was too much information for Ash for today."

Domino smirked. "Well… enough for me too! Lugia, want to get some burgers?"

* * *

 **A/N: Yep, a lot of information… most of them pretté importante.**


	102. Cha 101: Orange Islands 17

**Cha. 17**

Celebi shook her head. " _The rules of Time are not accurate here._ "

"Of course it isn't. That's why you're here." Professor chuckled. "Currently, the server has only expanded the universe a little past Mars and Venus."

" _Great, using me as a slave again._ " The Time Traveler crossed her arms. " _How come you never call me for donuts?_ "

The scientist deadpanned. "You stole half of my box this morning!"

" _Yeah, I just went back and remind my past self to take a few donuts._ " Celebi smirked. " _Thanks for reminding me to remind me. I'll take that as my salary._ "

"Cool, cool." The Professor huffed. "You want to helping me now?"

" _What's up?_ "

Oak reached over to the left of the wall of his central lab and pressed a button.

The entire wall beneath them gave out, revealing that… they were… floating up in three thousand feet…

Celebi's wing wavered into a second of activity as she countered the imbalance. Oak stood there nonchalantly, having anticipated the loss of the ground. "I love having powers."

Celebi rolled her eyes. " _Wow, you can fly. Good work._ "

"And do this!" Oak launched a fireball down at the sea, creating a small whirlpool and steam explosion.

" _Interesting. This world can give mortals Medieval powers within._ " Celebi hummed. " _But still, it's not your own power. Not to mention that you'll lose it once you leave virtual reality, the world could only allow so many virtual power to be used at the same time._ "

The Legend clicked her finger. " _In my estimation, if someone ever becomes well-trained enough in virtual arts, this world could only support Formation level power. If that power is used, all other power is just suspended during._ "

"That's why there's still ninety-nine more servers." Oak shrugged. "Want a fight, Celebi?"

" _Nah, I'll destroy you too easily._ " Celebi gave him an unimpressed look. " _Without the Soul interfering with my Concept, my power can soar to at least Top Formation._ "

" _Unless you turn on more servers, this world could barely stand me._ "

"I still don't get how you become a Formation already! A year ago, you're just a Medieval!"

" _Since Dialga disappeared_." Celebi paused. " _His Concepts started to flow into me, so I'm currently the only wielder of Time, hence boost of power._ "

"Well anyways, here it is." Oak descended below the lab. The bottom of the building is so much more eccentric just a plain rectangle.

Devices interlocked with each other like a giant maze. Machines spread across the entire surface, making anyone who didn't know the contraption shut their eyes in a sharp sting.

Celebi, however, knew every part of the monstrous jungle. In fact, she was involved in creating at least half of them. But normally, she would be staring at the blueprint on paper, while listening to Oak lament about how such an intricate design could never be created in the real world.

The psychic looked at Oak and raised an eyebrow. " _You know, if you want to time-travel, you could simply just ask ME_."

"This is the parallel universe machine, not the time traveling one." Oak smirked. "It's the other half you weren't involved with that we're testing today."

" _Hold up!_ " Celebi held out her hands. " _So you're testing a parallel universe device in a world that you made, and can access other universe anyways!?_ "

"No, Celebi. This device, theoretically speaking, can make a hole through the virtual dimension into other universes, which is why YOU're here- to make sure nothing goes wrong."

" _Everytime you asked me to supervise, something has gone wrong._ " Celebi deadpanned. " _It's a damn curse._ "

Oak shrugged. "You ready?"

" _Do I have a choice?_ " Celebi looked around her. " _Where's the other two musketeers?_ "

"Fuji and Akihabara are at the Kanto Department of Energy getting its stored energy reservoir in case we need to boost up more servers if…"

Celebi quickly interrupted. " _Okay, stop saying it. If you keep saying it, maybe something WILL actually go wrong._ "

Oak complied and said no more. His finger fell onto the button on his controller, caressing the blue surface for a second, and then pressed.

There was a light buzz in the world as the sun dimmed and the oceans flashed into a transparent hologram. The sun nearly disappeared. The entire world was fading.

Oak hollered into the sky. "Activate more POWER!"

Lights flashed all around. Celebi held on to Oak, ready to warp into another, non-collapsing realm any moment.

Luckily, the colors stabilized after a minute of vibration. The water of the ocean rocketed up to form a series of words in front of Oak's face.

 **What the hell are you testing!? Your 'surprise' already sucked out a tenth of the region's batteries! We could probably go on for half an hour, and then mission abort!**

Oak made an okay sign to the sky, barely caring if they could see it. Then, he turned to the machine and pressed the blue button again.

A cavernous hole appeared in midair in front of Oak and Celebi. The Professor's eyes widened. His fists tightened. Celebi had to restrain him from exploding in excitement.

"IT WORKED! THE MACHINE WORKED!" He let out a holler atypical of elderly men and grasped onto Celebi. "Ready to go universe-hopping!?"  
Celebi rolled her eyes. Humans… how weirdly fascinating and easily satisfied.

Before she could respond, Oak started pulling her toward the blackness. The wormhole for Oak was like finding a new toy for a baby. From his eyes, the light of a childish exhilaration shone.

Celebi let out a small smile. She had watched the boy of ten grow into a prestigious Professor. Humans were strange, but they also radiate warmth, especially with times like this.

She stepped into the hole. She felt her Time powers being distorted temporarily by spatial concepts… then, the Continuum overwhelmed them.

* * *

Celebi was not a stranger to the Continuum, unlike the curious Samuel Oak. Surrounded by a tainted white energy, the two floated past black holes and time sequences without any disturbance.

The Time Traveler had to be slightly impressed at how powerful human technologies could be… a bunch of mortals putting their heads together could ACTUALLY open the door to the Continuum! Not even Regigigas could do that without his fancy constructions!

Her thoughts were suddenly disturbed by a quaking that echoed through the bubble.

Instinctively, she grabbed onto Oak, ready to teleport away into a time sequence if anything happened.

Professor Oak was more observant and pointed into the distance. "Don't worry. It's just… umm… that?"

Celebi shot a look at what he was pointing at. Her face changed in a shade of black and she immediately teleported Oak away. "' _That,' Sam, is a Space Weedle! Do you know what the hell that is!? He could make wormholes simply by digging his head into the Continuum!_ "

" _Do you know what he picks on for food? Black holes!_ " Celebi held her head. " _Do you know how rare it is to find other forms of life in the Continuum!? Of COURSE the first one I find with you is a damn Top Formation with spatial powers!_ "

" _I've never even encountered anything above an Ancient for Arceus's sake._ " Celebi zoomed out of the bubble and held it like a plastic bag. She zoomed into the distance at a rapid speed much quicker than Oak's contraption initially allowed. " _Let's hope we get away before he notices…_ "

She barely finished her sentence when the space before her split apart into a giant circle. From within the hole, an enormous Weedle burrowed himself out.

Oak stroked his chin. "Ahhh… so that's what a wormhole look like close-up…"

Celebi turned her head to glare at him. " _NOT FUNNY!_ "

The Weedle turned to look at Celebi in interest. Then, a wave of spatial energy knocked her form backwards as he roared.

Celebi was not one to be submissive. She expanded in size and growled back. A torrent of temporal distortions struck back at the Weedle.

The two being's disposition clashed, and ripples resonated through the Continuum and knocked away any obstructions around them.

The two Pokémon stared at each other intently, trying to feel the other one out.

Normally, only Cosmics were allowed into the Continuum. Formations couldn't because they didn't have a Concept yet, so the Continuum would just spit them out automatically.

However, both Weedle and Celebi were special cases, possessing to some degree fragmented forms of Concepts. In fact, rare Pokémon who live in the Continuum all contained some level of Concepts that permit them to attach to the Continuum without being spat out like teleportation.

Professor Oak, unbeknownst to both Pokémon, took out a complex-looking box and started to assemble it into a weird shape.

Before he could finish, both moved. Nine massive beams of Time Sequences exploded out from Celebi and spread into a sphere that enclosed Weedle.

From the attacks, different images of the Continuum appeared, as if nine different Continuums suddenly overlapped to suppress her opponent.

On the other hand, Weedle's head poked in eighteen direction in a single second. Wormholes formed in all ridiculous directions, and he barged out of the cage in a graceful movement of the tail.

Oak's jaw fell. Yes, he had been in some amazing battles in the past, but those are all… battles of mortals.

This… this was the true battle of the gods! Against the background of spatial and temporal distortions, Weedle and Celebi twisted into a frenzy of energy bolts.

Weedle could be far in the horizon at one second, and be right in Celebi's face in the next. Or, Oak could see multiple Weedles spread out in space, not knowing which one is the real.

This technique was not just simple Double Team. It was the involvement of the expert Concept of Space, which made Weedle stretch across the horizon. For all he knew, all of them could be Weedle, or none of them could be the actual body!

His not knowing did mean that Celebi didn't know either. She squeezed a Time Force into the black holes and irefutably commanded time to be reverted.

Weedle popped out of the hole backwards, forcing to submit to the past, and then seeked to crash into Celebi's stomach, which succeeded.

At this point of their power, there was no need for moves. Each punch, each swing was enough to deal out significant damage. This was how Top Formations worked.

Oak stared, amazed at the grand exchanges of space and time. To him, this almost looked like an aesthetic artwork that was drawn in collections of green and brown, while symbolizing much deeper Concepts.

However, he tore his hungry eyes away from them unwillingly. Afterall, this wasn't a wrestling match. His dearest companion was in the midst of the battle, and that instantly descended an appealing exhibit of beautiful portraits to a gruesome situation of life and death.

And when such an opposite change was made, so was Oak's attitude.

With a last click, the box in the Professor's hand transformed to a radar-like gun. He grabbed it tightly, wishing with all his might that this work.

He held it up toward the two entangled Pokémon and shouted intensively. "Celebi! Stop him from moving! Buy me two seconds!"

Oak's order was all the Time Traveler needed. Her hand lit up in a bright green, unsmartly pouring a giant pool of energy into it, destabilizing the balance of her own internal system.

She didn't care though. She knew her trainer for the past five decades would come up with something. She used to scoff at the idea of a passionate bond with humans. Now, Celebi couldn't live without one.

Her hand captured the horn of the Weedle, who screamed out in fury. He thrashed around violently, currents of spatial tension seeping off wildly.

Oak aimed. The radar-gun lit up into a bright yellow. He smirked.

He might have only lived sixty years, but those were human years, each of which filled with learning and knowledge. Of course he wasn't going to roam out into the Continuum without a single preparation, especially not AFTER Ash had recounted his disaster during Christmas.

The gun in his hands melted. There was no rays that shot out… that would be too anticlimactic.

Instead, the melted gun formed into the shadow of a… world that hung over Weedle.

It was the shadow of an entire Universe. Black holes were only the entrance. What was behind them hid in space. This universe, however, appeared in full form!

Before Weedle had time to think, the entire universe slammed into him. Weedle's head snapped back with his energy literally pummeled out of him.

Taking advantage of his conundrum, Celebi, whose hand was still on his horn, poured an immense pool of Time Force into the Weedle's body.

Within seconds, his normally brown texture changed to a powerful green, which then materialized into separate symbols that dotted down the back of the worm.

Celebi kept her hand on him for another minute, and then she stepped back. Wiping a drop of sweat off her brow, she panted. " _Okay! I've sealed his power with Time Incantations._ "

When she looked at Oak, he saw that her eyes glowed with a penetrating emotion of elation and thrill, much like his own before.

She threw her arms into the air and shouted. " _Best adventure ever! I finally get to use my full power without the Soul pestering me! Go ME!_ "

Oak sweatdropped a little bit, but nevertheless reached out and pulled Celebi in for a hug. He had never lost faith in her, and there was a reason why.

Celebi looked up at him and sighed. " _Better get back now. I bet whatever weapon you used that materialized the illusion of a freaking universe probably sucked out all of the power Kanto has._ "

"It's called a Parallel Sifter." Oak looked down at the melted blob, clearly a one-time use, in his hand. "It's still in development…"

"What should we do with the Weedle?" Oak's eyes traced to the giant worm lying unconscious in the Continuum.

" _He's your Pokémon._ " Celebi shrugged. " _My present to you for all of the birthdays that I missed._ "

"You've never missed one."

" _Yeah. I just went back and reminded myself of the last fifty years._ "

"..."

Oak took out an old Master Ball from his time of reign as Champion. He pointed it at the Space Weedle.

"Not a lot of Pokémon deserve this ball, but you certainly do."

* * *

 **A/N: Time vs Space. Nintendo Pokémon are too weak in terms of Cosmic power. I need to bring in something new.**


	103. Cha 102: Orange Islands 18

**Cha. 18**

Polaris went into the mailroom, waving to his colleagues as he passed. It was a brand new day, brand new mission. The sun shone bright in his eyes. As he passed, a woman stopped him and smirked.

"Please, Ava, not today." Polaris sighed.

She was a woman of beautiful looks- not beautiful as in the normal standard of appealing, but in the form of a protruding strength that proudly attracted, while not rudely demanding, attention.

"What?" She smiled innocently at him. "I was just going to comment on how bright the sun is shining."

The man pressed his lips together in a helpless, yet blissfully submissive way. Ava continued. "It would be great if Groudon's here. Ever the brighter."

Polaris's smile froze for a slight second, and he waved. "I really have to go today. I'll catch you at tonight's celebration."

Ava stuck her tongue out at him. "That's what you said yesterday… but fine. Go do your duty, you nerd."

The addressed 'nerd' gave an apologetic smile and turned into the rows of shelves. He sighed internally.

He had been in Magma long enough… four years, maybe? Five? He was definitely one of the oldest, and yet he couldn't promote. They said they needed him at the base level, and they would award him extra once he returned.

Polaris placed his hand into the the cabinet with the last name- Solum- taped across. He pulled out a vanilla folder containing a simple stack.

His eyes darted from left to right. Then, acting nonchalant, he walked to the end of the rows and turned right to exit from the backdoor. As he passed a small desk, his arm with the folder dropped down nonchalantly.

His left hand struck out with the precision of a lynx and grabbed onto the normal-looking layer of paint covering the top of the desk and pushed outwards.

A note glided out, and his hand grabbed onto it with perfect control. It was a movement of ease, as if been practiced gracefully for the past half a decade.

Polaris continued walking, his upper body straight, his eyes level. He switched his folder from the right hand to the left. By the time it was switched back at the door, there was no trace of the hidden message.

Through the entire act that had nearly become second instinct, his thoughts lingered on Ava's charming face.

They said he could choose an extra reward… he already made up his thoughts on what he wanted… or rather, who.

When the time comes, he would beg on his knees for her pardon if he had to. He had served the League for twenty years. They had to count for _something_.

Coming out of the room, he smiled and nodded to the people around him, who greeted back cheerfully. After these many years, he had acquainted most of them, and befriended many. These people were really passionate co-workers, with great perspectives and attitudes.

His cousin had called him a gentle soul… he supposed so. On the other hand, it was also she who threw him into the enduring job.

He hated this feeling of barrier between him and some of his truest friends, separated by their distinct beliefs. Back home, they were viewed as radical… he did too. It took him two gradual years to fully overcome this pain of pretending.

Polaris continued his morning routine, heading into a nearby coffee shop. The owner handed him the "usual," and he placed down the discounted sum. Unlike yesterday, the busy guy headed into the back room with only a hurried greeting, delightedly troubled by the roaring traffic of this morning- stemmed probably from everyone's return for the celebration.

He took his capuchinni and sat down at his standard window. Taking in the bittersweet scent, he found his stimulant to face the new day.

Polaris's hand paused on the vanilla folder, his eyes panning the room for a quick scope, and raised the top. A small layer lied within- afterall, he was a basic agent.

He picked up a sheet and started reading. Continuing on until he reached the fifth page, he scanned the room a second time, checking for attention.

Detecting none, he lifted up the next sheet. A yellow Post-It note was stamped on the next page, by his own doing.

His eyes took five precise seconds to register the few keywords, and the page was flipped again.

Polaris sat for another twenty minutes filtering through the rest. He then stood up, nodded to those smiling at him and the shopkeeper, and walked out.

He walked with a mindless graze. It was the instructed walk of an expert spy. No one could know your purpose, and the disguise was in the form of carelessness.

He turned up the avenue, down a street, and right through a few alleys. There was barely any pattern, and sometimes, he would even walk in cubular circles. Nonetheless, an eagle's eye from above would see the trend of diminishing population as he trailed into the rural side of town.

Polaris looked at his watch. Ten forty-five. Thirteen minutes early. He didn't feel like doing more circles. Instead, he settled for the destined alley.

It was extremely isolated, along with skillful placement of the garbage cans to offer a maze of obstructions for sight. He walked in, carefully planning his route such that his ultimate leaning place would be unobservable by potential passersby.

* * *

Three knockings sounded from the door. Brock looked up in alert. The three were followed by two pounds, then a soft tap.

The elite trainer cleared his throat. "I'm not here."

A gruff voice echoed from outside. "Moltres flies Groudon."

"Ho-Oh races three."

The voice disappeared. Brock placed down his Transceiver and counted to thirty-three. Then, he opened the door.

Glancing the hallway, and finding nothing, he went over to the opposite door. Brock bent down and flipped over the mat in front of the other door, uncovering a folded sheet.

Stealing a quick look at the end of the all to check that the camera was still rotating away, Brock stole his way quietly back to his room.

 _Eleven precise_. The note read.

Brock looked at his own watch. He shall exit in twenty minutes, he decided. Precision meant not early or late. In the espionage business, prematurity was just as dangerous as tardiness.

Twenty minutes he spent searching up and confirming the route to the given alley. He was supposed to be getting his next assignment for an experienced League official within Magma.

At exactly ten-forty, Brock stepped out of his lodgings and paced over to the designated location.

He was quite impressed at the intensity of League infiltration. Even far before the declaration of war, the League had had major influences within the surrounding lands…

No matter how much Domino made fun of the League institutions, a government that could work in the brightness had its own powerful leverage/

Brock turned the corner twice. Instead of making circles, he went straight for the area, partially because no one was around, and majorly because he had run out of time.

The walk from his apartment to the alley took far more time than expected, and he might even be a few minutes late.

He checked his watch. Eleven sharp. He still had two more blocks.

He frowned slightly, hoping the slight delay was not of a matter of urgency.

One block. No one was here. He broke into a small run. Spies never liked running. It made their focus scatter and increased the chance of a 'mishap'.

Brock smirked internally. After being with Ash, he highly doubted the possibility of any mishap being traumatizing.

As he rounded the corner, a series of garbage cans appeared. He tiptoed in, avoiding making any sounds.

This was his ninth assignment. Nine was a special number to him. It was the counts of his siblings. He needed to make the ninth forever memorable and perfect… despite being late.

Then, the image of a figure gnawing on a headless corpse with blood painted across the wall knocked the wind out of him.

* * *

The figure raised his head. His mouth was exaggerated to a non-human extent that covered nearly half of his face. A crooked smile surfaced. With it, a drop of red liquid dripped down its teeth.

Brock felt sweat seeping out, and his stomach churned. Even with Ash, this…

" **You're late.** " The humanoid cackled. The sound was like that of a wooden clapper swaying.

Brock shivered. His resilience from lasting numerous disasters with Ash ticked in.

He had several choices. The most logical was to overpower it with force, but running away didn't seem too unacceptable either.

Before he could identify his preferred course, both methods were rendered ineffective. The humanoid leapt into the air for Brock, traveling so fast that he momentarily disappeared in Brock's eyes.

The next blink, his arm was around Brock's neck. The hairs on it were like hardened spikes, and they pierced into his sensitive skin. Dots of black immediately started appearing around his wound.

A wave of weakness flowed over him. He opened his throat, but no sound came out. Soon, Brock fell into unconsciousness.

* * *

He came back a groggy sense by an overwhelming wave of suffocation.

Brock opened his eyes and found himself lifted off the ground. A tight hand was strangled around his neck, which could feel nothing.

A figure in darkness- he couldn't even see its face- was his abuser. The figure was not the only dark object in the room.

It was a tiny enclosed room with no light, besides a weak bulb on the ceiling. There was a door, which was currently opened, leading onto a long hallway.

The figure, as if following his eyes, laughed silently. " **Don't think about escaping. You are five hundred feet underground in a shelter that will last even if Hoenn collapsed… hawhaw… and it WILL!** "

Brock roared, but his voice choked in the hold of the grasp, resulting in it coming back like a bare scratch.

" **Fierce one, ehh? I shall save you to last then. Some reality entertainment during my world dominatoin!** "

" **Actually no, probably second to last. I have a redhead that protested even more. Sarcastic girl… beautiful orange hair. I shall scalp her after it's her turn being my daily dose.** "

Brock tried to kick, but he ended up a helpless pendulum that swayed in the cold claws. The figure sighed with a tone of annoyance. " **Slight disobediance is fine, but now you're overdoing it…** "

" **Better pray that I don't get damaged, human. Or else, you may come a lot sooner.** "

* * *

 **A/N: Enjoy more trouble.**


	104. Cha 103: Orange Islands 19

**Cha. 19**

Giovanni walked into the conference room, his face emotionless. Seeing his face, Lorelei's eyes turned red. She hopped into the air, he finger shooting at him. The Ice Elite roared at the top of her lungs. "YOU!"

Lance had to grabbed onto her and forced her back, while glaring at Giovanni. The situation was so extreme that he, the adrenalined microphone, had to be the rational one!

Goodshow's face was stiffer than the bark of a century-old tree. A dark shadow casted over him. His eyes met with Giovanni. The two men stared at each other for a long time.

The room grew silent, making the heavy breathing of Lorelei extra clear.

Giovanni sat down. An impossible glint of depression flashed, quickly enough to dodge the eyes of the Elites, but not Goodshow's.

He breathed out. This wasn't even the real Galactic yet… and his plans were already facing massive disarray.

The President's stare was getting tougher by the second. Finally, his hand moved. A sheet of paper slid over. The Rocket Boss's eyes glanced over the page… a hundred names.

His eyes widened. Goodshow said bitterly. "There's a back."

"It's not just your people. Mine were erased as well." Giovanni closed his eyes.

"My COUSIN is on there!" Lorelei howled out. "He's been working for FIVE years! I promised him to return to a GREAT future!"

"All GONE! Gone because of YOUR people's betrayal!"

"ENOUGH!" Giovanni gritted his teeth. His hand produced a stack of papers and slammed them down. "It's not just the League's casualties! I only suffered more!"

Goodshow cleared his throat. His eyes stared at his own sheet. "Read number sixty-seven and ninety-four."

Giovanni's eyes enlarged. His jaw hung open slightly. He hadn't been this… charged since…

 _Misty Waterflower_.

 _Brock Slate_.

Uh-oh.

His mouth instinctively formed a word on the base of his tongue, unwilling to spit it out. Goodshow echoed his thoughts for him.

"Ash Ketchum."

Nothing was going to stop Ash from coming back if he caught word… Then, there would be an escalation of everything. No one would be left to check Cyrus… and in no time, disaster…

Ash COULDN'T come back! Giovanni's mind spun, reaching one final conclusion, the only solution: Destroy the Teams before Ash arrived.

* * *

Lance examined the machines closely. He leaned back and crossed his arms. "I don't trust these things."

"We have no use in killing you." Zero grunted. "If we do, we could've the second you stepped foot into our headquarter."

"You could try!" Lance gave him a glaring look. "It's the machines I don't trust. How can you, an underground team, engineer a dozen long-distance instant teleporter!? Even League didn't discover them yet! I don't trust their safety!"

"There's a lot of things the League don't have." The Rocket chief strategist rolled his eyes and turned away. "Take it or leave it, _Champion_."

Said champion growled. He had no choice but to take it. It was against everything he had ever been taught or believed in, but the pressure was too large.

He looked back at the large meeting room behind them, the door half opened, showing only a glimpse of the hundreds and thousands of agents within, from both Rocket and League.

"Where are we going?" He gutted out.

"Bamboo River." Zero said simply.

"Why not past?"

The Rocket chief gave him a stare similar to looking at a moron. "Because we have to organize the squadrons, take positions, and make sure no bombs are coming at us as soon as we land!?"

Lance's face darkened as he walked away.

Zero snorted behind him. Those League people… thinking they were too good for anyone else!

So what they were League!? They couldn't achieve anything! Even an underground Team could dominate them. In Hoenn, half of the region had succumbed to the damn Teams, and Steven Stone couldn't do anything!

It was only a matter of time before Ever Grande fell. Hoenn League couldn't do anything against the united Teams without allied support from its neighbors.

Hopefully Cynthia listened to him and not aid Hoenn… or else… Cyrus was right at her bed, ready snatch the Lily as soon as the main force left.

His eyes followed Lance's shadow back into the giant auditorium, and he turned to ascend a set of stairs.

In no time, he got to the roof. The dusk was bleeding red. Zero wondered how accurately the sky was going to represent the streaked earth in just a few days…

Two pokeballs flipped in his hand. Both exploded in intense white light, from which his two main hitters materialized.

Deoxys, Yveltal. Top Ancients. Zero took a deep breath. Intuition warned him against sending his best two guys out at the brink of war, but logic won.

"Yveltal. You're friends with the Forces of Nature. Get as many of them here as you can…" Zero stroked his three-winged Legend. The glowing red eyes moved toward the sky, and his head nodded. A serious glow shot out of him. Muscles tensed.

"Deoxys. Find Victini. Then, have him lead you to the Swords of Justice and bring them back. Their nature couldn't allow them to tolerate such evil forces as Magma and Aqua."

Zero paused. "If they refuse… show them the photos of Simdow."

Deoxys, like his partner, said nothing. With a flash, he switched into Speed Forme and dashed out, stepping onto the air like it was nothing, and raced into the sky.

Lucario was able to step on water, which was impressive enough. Deoxys… air. There was no such thing as air tension… but there was also no such thing as normal.

Yveltal gave one last look at his trainer. This figure, though wild and insane, was the first to warm his blinded heart for millennium. He was one of the few things of the world the Death Legend cared about.

His eyes averted his gaze, trying not to show too much emotion. He had to maintain his reputation as Death. " _Will you be okay? You can come with._ "

"Yes. I need you to go. "I have to stay here to direct the entire scene." Zero closed his eyes and allowed a small smile. "These League idiots don't know how to do anything."

Yveltal roared into the sky, and zoomed off. His trainer had made up his mind. He would have to make up his as well.

Zero's eyes trailed past the two figures, already far in the distance, over the invisible mountains, to a point in the north.

Under his breath, he muttered. "Hopefully, we can still save all of our cards."

"What the hell does Cyrus have for the Tree of Beginning?"

* * *

At the base of Cinnabar Island, two grunts, dressed in full black, stared attentively at the radio in their hands.

"Come in."

They didn't even need to disguise themselves. The entire island was already put in restriction due to the impending Mt. Cinnabar, barely locked by an unidentified power from its fetal explosion from less than a year ago.

Mt. Cinnabar… the target of their mission.

"All of them are going to teleport off." The response came gruffly. "Be prepared to ignite."

The two men's faces sharpened. Taking one last look at the blue sky, they started for an abandoned mine to the underground.

Nothing gave them more pleasure than this opportunity. For it, they had to fight through levels of different competitors, until the elites decided that they were the most suited for this task.

It was not only their chance to engrave their name in history, it would also be one of the most striking events of the war. It was their moment to serve Lord Groudon. Most of all, this was their ultimate freedom: To disregard mortality and join the eternal forces of the ground.

The trip down the mine took ten minutes and fourteen seconds. As they neared the edge of the lava pool at the lowest rink, they started to unpack.

Neither had a heat suit on… it wasn't necessary. Protection was only for the weak and those with a desire to live. They were in neither category.

They held in their hands a mysterious package, the same one that their leaders had said would ignite the entire volcano.

Kneeling down for the last time, sweat seeping from their pores, the two men put their foreheads against the rough igneous surface of the edge. The pit of power twisted and turned beneath their feet.

The two men's faces were of absolute sacred and holiness. Each uttered out a prayer that was filled with their last, most powerful desire.

Then, grasping onto the packages, the two simultaneously leapt off the edge of the pit!

* * *

"Sir! We've detected some unusual images above Cinnabar Island via satellite."

"Sir! The entire underground chambers of the southern Kanto sea is quaking with turbulence."

"Sir! The satellite transmission is fully cleaned. The image is a… firework of Groudon?"

"Sir! Mt. Cinnabar ignited two minutes ago! The entire Cinnbar Island is torn apart!"

"Sir! The resulting ash storm has blindfolded all radio and satellite signals over southern Kanto!"

"Sir! The typhoon from the explosion has reached magnitude 7! We need guards at the coast right _now_ for prevention and relief!"

"Sir! There is a wide blackout…"

A shade had built up heavier and heavier on Lance's face and he projected the reports in the central conference room. The room was dead with silence. Even in the bright LED lights, it seemed darker than ever.

Zero punctured the silence with the most essential question. There was no use to lament, only time for what was needed.

"How did Magma break through Mew's seal?"

Being the top of the food chain, they had long knew about Mew helping Mt. Cinnabar, which was deemed for an explosion. Ash and Domino's fight with Blaine only catalyzed the process, but it wasn't the cause of it.

From months, there were troops guarding it. League was fully aware of the impact of its explosion if the seal destabilized. However, Magma penetrated their defenses at the perfect time!

The entire recruit team were called from their internal positions and were prepared to head off to Hoenn. The timing of the strike was perfect… and couldn't be more tragic.

Receiving no response, Zero continued his train of thought. "Even though the seal was weak, nothing below an Ancient could break it. Afterall, it was MEW who locked the volcano."

"There is no way they could sneak an Ancient in… and even if they could, there is no way they would sacrifice an Ancient to ignite it. An Ancient is way more important than the consequences of the explosion."

As heartless as he sounded, Zero was not wrong. In the minds of any leader, an Ancient was worth so much more than a simple island and the lives of a few thousand people.

An Ancient could only form every… countless years. There was no telling. They were the highest class of force down from Formation, who rarely show their faces. That being said, Ancients were the dominating force of any war.

If Magma really had that many Ancients to use to the point that they could use one's life to destroy the seal and die with the volcano, they might as well surrender.

All arrows, thus, pointed to technology… and there was only one Team who could supply the adequate power… and everyone at the table knew exactly which power that was.

"Second question is why." Zero sounded after a few seconds of contemplation. "Why did Magma pull this right before we launch? Is it really to hold us back?"

His eyes darted past the face of each member of the elite board. "We are all sitting here because we are master strategists. There is no way it's that simple."

"Why do we even CARE what their plan is!? Just teleport over and destroy them!" Bruce slammed his fist down onto the table, nearly knocking over his coffee.

"Because, sir, that is exactly what they want!" Zero gave him a hard stare. "Brute force never works against intellect! We cannot move until we figure out each detail!"

"I have it!" Goodshow raised his voice suddenly in realization. "They want us to attack them, just like Bruce suggested!"

"What!?"

His eyes shone brighter. "They are provoking us because they needed to attract anger."

He paused. "I mean Magma. That is why they planted the Groudon firework. Why else would they need to go through that extra process!?"

"And why would Magma want to attract all the attention? They want us to divert our gaze from Aqua…"

Goodshow stood up. His eyes hardened. "That means Aqua is definitely planning something incredible… any guesses to what they may be?"

The room gasped in collective surprise. Bruce sucked in a deep breath. If the logic wasn't wrong… the situation would be disastrous if he just charged right in without thinking.

There was only one thing of such major concern that an entire Team would dedicate their lives to it…

Kyogre.

"We're starting mission NOW!" Goodshow began to fire out a rapid list of instructions. "Initiate teleportation this instant. Aim for Bamboo River. Regroup immediately."

"We need to stop Aqua before the entire naval front collapse with her release!"

* * *

 **A/N: War impending.**


	105. Cha 104: Orange Islands 20

**Cha. 20**

Misty rolled back to consciousness. Darkness filled the room. Collections of the past hundred hours flowed back to her.

 _Snarling claws… disgusting breath, lips parting to show the remains of flesh… bloodshot eyes…_

Her eyes shot open. Her hands flashed down to her body. A breath of slight relief was exhaled as she found at least her clothes were not played with.

Immediately after, a mix of fear and anger- anger tenfold stronger than fear- rushed into her mind. Misty didn't know how she was caught. All she knew was that she needed to get the hell out. She needed to take revenge for her friends. She needed to WIN!

The Cerulean Leader jumped to her feet. She remembered getting locked in an underground cell. Navigating over to a wall, she punched it with force.

Her hand cracked. A slimy liquid seeped from her knuckles. A loud bang sounded through the dark room.

Metal.

Misty gritted her teeth. The pain from her hand rushed into her mind, but she shot it back into her intestines.

Her hand went to the wall again and began to trace a pattern through the room. There was no light. There was nothing.

After turning two corners, her hand clunked onto an abnormal surface, and then back down to smoothness.

Door hinges! Misty knew instantly. She bit her lip hard. A warm taste poured into her mouth.

Raising her already hurting hand, she smashed against the wall. An unbearable pain surged up her arm. Her eyes glared so brightly even the darkness can barely cover them. Her fist rushed through the air again.

 _Bang_. _Crack_.

She couldn't move her middle finger anymore. Others, barely. Her fist was still as determined as ever.

 _Punch. Bang. Crack._

After the echo of the impact, only the sound of a liquid dripping and contacting the cold surface is heard.

Her right arm dropped by her side. The pain of brutal impact was replaced by the puncture wounds of bone fragments stuck into the flesh.

Misty barely frowned. She still has one arm.

 _Bang. Crack. Bang… Splash._

Right, left, right. The sticky liquid was no longer dripping. It was splattering everywhere, staining her clothes, filling her eyes. Her arms were numb. The neurons were dead. Misty raised her fist robotically.

These would probably be amputated when she got out, she thought bitterly. What? Not getting out? Stop kidding. She was Misty! The Misty of Cerulean!

She was crazy, but it didn't matter. Her right arm was raised again. Even without light, she could picture the bare gore on the end of her wrists.

She couldn't stop now! What if the door was just one punch from collapsing?

 _Punch. Splash._

What was her plan after this? Easy. Escape… possibly bombing the place. Easy.

Her shirt was stained in blood. She didn't know if her radial artery was pierced yet… nothing really mattered.

Misty collapsed to the ground. She aimed uselessly. She wanted to keep going, but mortal anatomy was pulling her back.

A bitter smile formed on her lips. I'll haunt them when I'm dead, she promised herself.

Before her eyelids completely closed, she saw a faint flash of… light that crossed her chest!

The light was so dim, yet so hopeful! Misty blinked rapidly, trying to register if she was dreaming.

The light flashed again. It was on her chest! The fierce girl didn't dare move, afraid that the candle would blow out.

It wasn't a candle. A small blue flame started to waver on her chest, growing stable by the second. Misty trembled slightly. Her eyes stared fixed at the magical contraption.

It was no flame. It was a glowing blue sphere, its glow turning nearly purple by the stained liquid on her shirt, and it was set more and more ablaze by the second.

A warm feeling surged into her. It was the same feeling when Ash was demonstrating to her Aura, the same feeling when the sea encompassed her last summer.

Faintly, she could hear the roars of the ocean. A powerful wave of life energy poured into her. Her mouth hung slightly open. From the mess on her wrist, a fresh, agonizing sense of pain lit up. A feeling other than numbness.

Misty's mind turned blank. The orb… that was the orb… Ash gave her before he left for the Islands. She had kept it by her everyday… it was the only thing that was taken away!

A potent, yet calming voice pierced through her disordered thoughts, acting as if an anchor for her sanity.

" _Princess. Please, stay parted with anger. You are the daughter of the Ocean. We are turbulent at times, but we're ultimately the force of soothing and life. Tranquility and irresistability._ "

The sound of seashells rang in Misty's ears. Somehow, she wasn't petrified by the sudden presence, only… tranquil. She was at home.

With a shaking hand she took…

HAND!? Misty closed her hands around the magical orb, its faint light shining on them, as if nothing had happened. The blood on her shirt, though, proved that it was not a dream.

She carefully unpeeled the sticky fabric and brought the orb out. It shone ever the more lighter out of the confines. A last drop of blood seeped into the orb, which lit up ten times as intensely.

A blue aura seeped out from the top and materialized into an unidentified shape on top.

" _Gratitude for waking me with your royal blood, Princess. I've observed you, but I could not say anything for the lock on my power. Pardon my intrusion, and many thanks for breaking my confines._ "

Misty's lips quivered. The sound was so… peaceful. It wasn't like with any legendaries she had met. This was like her closest friend, parent.

" _He._ " The figure echoed. " _I was a guy, many, many years ago. Now, I'm a conscious living in this orb. You can call me… Illusion._ "

"Did, did you… were you who heal me… Illusion?" Misty gasped out. The room was nearly fully lit by now. It was empty, as she suspected. Again, it didn't mattered.

" _Yes, your majesty. I directed the powers of the orb into your body. However, the orb did most of the healing._ " Illusion said, giving a small, holographic bow.

"Why are you calling me that? I'm not royalty." Misty tilted her head.

" _Yes, you are. You are the Princess of the Ocean. You resonate with the water. I cannot be wrong. You have the purest form ever invoked in any being. I, or even Kyogre, cannot match your purity. It is deep in your soul, your majesty._ "

Misty's mouth hung open. She recalled a Slowking calling her that once, but she never paid attention. Princess?

Her hands tightened. "Do you have any ways to break me out of this prison!?"

The figure swirled around, as if observing the cage, and nodded. " _Your majesty. The power is in your hands._ "

Misty furrowed her brow. Illusion elaborated. " _I mean the orb in your hands, ma'am. With it, you can become… well, I don't know, but very powerful. Kyogre can revert to Cosmic form with it, and you're only purer than her._ "

" _Even though you're not trained in the ways of the Aqua yet, you can easily handle enough energy from it to break out this room. The water will never hurt itself._ "

Kyogre? Cosmic!? Misty took a deep breath and pointed cautiously to the orb in her hands. "What… what even is this orb!?"

" _I have no idea, Princess Misty. It was formed by the Ocean long before we were here. Kyogre calls it the… Blue Orb._ "

"Blue orb?" Misty repeated. She shook her head and glared up at the wall. "Either way…"

"Illusion! How do I use this!?"

" _Just channel your deepest will into it. It will feel your soul and grant you the maximum power you can receive for now._ "

Misty's grip on the orb tightened. Her hand shook. A powerful and comforting power seeped up her arms. The Cerulean trainer gasped lighly. It was the best feeling of the past thirteen years! She was… the Ocean!

Her eyes, turning deep blue zoomed onto the wall of the room. Under the blue glow, her smile was deeply mysterious and mischievious. "Door? Let's go another way."

She pressed her hand onto a nearby wall that did not encase the door. The contact was short. Her hand snapped back as soon as she touched.

The wall glowed blue. A second later, it completely collapsed to a puddle of water that evaporated into another pool of liquid.

The wall was thicker than her arm, gone in a touch!

In the other room, a man was unconscious on the floor. Misty took one look at his shirt, and her eyes stung. It was another League spy.

Illusion's voice sounded. " _If you want to take him, just tap the orb against him. There's a giant space inside that you can put him._ "

Misty nodded heavily and complied. With a simple touch, the man disappeared.

"How do I release him?"

" _Reach your thoughts into the orb and pull him out?_ "

"How do I do THAT?"

" _It's easy for your purest soul. Simply… do it…_ "

Misty frowned and concentrated on the orb. Instantly, her conscious was pulled into a wide world of pure blue. It was a beautiful world… because the entire world was water! Breathable water!

There was a slight tap on her conscious. Misty jumped a little and turned around. The figure was right behind her, and he bowed and pointed in a direction.

Misty followed his direction to a man floating in the water. As if part of the orb already, she could feel the man getting healed.

" _Water's the ultimate force of healing._ " The figure said, as if he could see through her thoughts. " _Only the Plants could rival US!_ "

Misty's thoughts locked onto the man. In the next second, as if by natural instinct, she was back to reality!

A deep sigh of mystery came from behind her. " _You're really one of the most Gifted I've ever seen. Even I took many weeks to handle the power of the Blue Orb on my first encounter._ "

Misty ignored the praise. She didn't need compliments right now. All she needed to do was to break everyone out and destroy this underground lair of evil!

Unbeknownst to her and Illusion, the same time as the blue orb shone, a similarly shape orb buried deep in the lair quaked as well.

As the first wall fell, it lit up with a faint red.

* * *

Brock leaned against a wall, staring into space. He had just woke up less than a minute ago.

He had absolutely no plan at all. Seriously… locked in a steel, underground room, without pokemon… without ANYTHING!

All he could do was sit there, desperately waiting for possible help come in… just… SOMEONE! Even the black figure!

Brock's mind spun. He had read that solitary confinement could best be cured by sleeping. Even though this wasn't much better than solitary confinement, he didn't feel tired at all.

He forced his mind to go blank. He knew that if he allowed his imagination to take control, he would eat himself up in no time.

A contorted, pointless range of time went by. Brock was still sitting by the wall, his eyes dark, even though his lids are opened.

Suddenly, the wall behind him disappeared, and the Pewter leader fell backwards uncontrollably as a giant puddle of water splashed into his mouth and lungs.

A pair of hands helped his choking form up. In front of his eyes, a penetrating blue glow showed the most beautiful face he had seen in a long time.

"MISTY!?" It was a cry of disbelief, of admiration, of a dedicated bishop seeing God for the first time.

The orange-haired girl smirked. "Nice to see you alive, Broccoli."

Brock's mouth hung open. Misty smiled and began to tug him along. "I'll explain what happened. Walk with me."

She stepped in front of him to another wall, pressing her hand against it. Brock's eyes plopped out as the wall fell.

Misty's hand waved. "C'mon, let's go. We still have a bunch of people to rescue."

Ten rooms back, in a darkness that she failed to detect, a dim red fluctuated.

* * *

 **A/N: How mad would you guys be if I actually killed the both of them? xD.**


	106. Cha 105: Orange Islands 21

**Cha. 21**

Zero stood atop the Seven Hills at the border of Johto and Hoenn. It was still early morning here because of the time zones, and the early fog was just lifting off the Bamboo River.

As it dissipated, the chief strategist could see the giant formations of the Aqua Armada lining across the entire border like a giant chain locking up the water.

He frowned. The situation was even worse than he had expected. The entire Aqua force was here, meaning that it didn't need to worry about any surprise attacks from the back…

There was only one explanation for that… the Hoenn League had already been subdued, if not even conquered.

"I thought their plan was for Magma to attract attention?" Lorelei spoke up. "Why is Aqua also this prepared?"

"They're not prepared for us." Zero's voice grew lower. "They ARE doing what they need to… We just stumbled here…"

"What requires them to pay this much…" Her hand went to her mouth. "NO!"

Zero mouthed the word silently. Lorelei's body shook evidently.

It made sense too… they didn't need to care about the headquarters back home. Nothing was more important to them to releasing…

Kyogre.

"STOP THEM!"

"What do you think I'm DOING!?" Zero yelled back. "We need to regroup this minute and get them the hell wrecked!"

Zero stared at his remote for the teleporter. It would take another ten minutes for the entire troop to come in. Ten minutes too long.

The Aqua troops saw them as well, but they made no advancements. Afterall, they were water troops, but also…

They were STALLING TIME! Just like they were! They were at the final base of their rituals, just like the rest of the League and Rockets were finishing teleporting.

Zero's face sunk even darker. It was a race against time. Whichever side finished first would crush the other side…

Nine minutes.

At the Johto border, massive crowds of Pokémon swiped across the hills and lands. In the skies, teams of flight experts soared, led by a team of… Moltres.

On the Hoenn side, heavy mist showed the shapes of lurking ships. Neither side dared move… at least not now.

* * *

One more minute. Zero stared at his remote. Bruce, Lance, and Agatha had joined him on the hill, each rubbing their hands frantically.

They couldn't start the charge without Giovanni and Goodshow, who would be the last to come. Zero's hands gripped together so hard sweat began to drip down.

Suddenly, at the side of the Bamboo River, the fog started to roll into multifaceted currents. The cloud above sunk, as if a giant force was pulling them underwater.

Waves soared into the air, splashing powerfully against the Aqua ships. However, the Team's navy didn't even flinch. Their entire armada was linked together by powerful, locked chains that guarantee stability even in the hardest tsunami!

Zero's face changed color, from a black to deep green, then pale white. This could only mean…

Forty-five more seconds.

From the midst of the Bamboo River, a deep whirlpool formed, spitting water up a thousand of feet into the air. A dark blue fin started to pop up.

Lance roared. "How the hell can Kyogre sleep in the Bamboo River!?"

"The only reason the river is so massive and powerful is BECAUSE Kyogre is here! She IS the river!" Zero roared back into his ear. "THIRTY MORE SECONDS!"

On top of their heads, the squadrons of planes and Flying Types twisted blindly into the sudden, artificial rain. Even the Moltres quivered. On the ground, thousands of Pokémon began to stomp the ground.

Collectively, an aura of power and devastation loomed over their hearts. It was a power representing half of earth, towering high above what their imagination could reach. It was more momentous than anything they had seen.

It was of a mysterious ancestry that made their blood shake with fear, minds blank without any will to fight.

The fin grew larger, and larger. It was already to the size of the hills, and _she_ hadn't even shown her face yet.

Zero didn't notice that he had already punctured his lip. Without even looking at the Alliance, the primordial disposition of the being had already suppressed the entire field, enraging the hereditary fear and reverence that killed any courage and morale.

Fifteen seconds. Zero's fists opened. He couldn't wait anymore. A stampede could happen at any time! He needed to something that could unite everyone's will.

"Moltres! Aerial! Strike!"

The crowd in the sky began to turn slowly. Moltres were the only ones unaffected by Kyogre's ancestral call. They charged at the large fin, each with a Blast Burn at the tip of their mouth, like falling meteorites aiming to evaporate the wide ocean.

Suddenly, the entire Bamboo River sunk down nearly a kilometer. A body of gigantic stature, painted with light and dark streaks of blue, floated onto the surface. The Aqua ships had retreated back many miles already, afraid to get into the line of collateral damage.

Nevertheless, the entire crew, led by Archie was kneeling on the deck, their heads buried deep into the wood, chanting out nonsensical praises.

Kyogre looked up at the Moltres striking down. She opened her mouth slowly. A soundless wave of intense frequency blasted out and crashed into the birds.

Moltres's wings snapped back into the air, the Blast Burn between their jaw extinguished in a mere second. With howls of pain and agony, they pummeled straight for the water.

That wasn't even an attack. It was a mere message. " _Too WEAK!_ "

Kyogre's head turned toward the linked envoy upstream. The water swished effortlessly with her, as if friction was inapplicable on her. The Formation's voice was low, and it penetrated the distance and shot into the Sinnoh Mountains.

" _I know you understand the language of the Sea. Tell me, mortals who have awakened me, your wish. T'is your chance. Then, we shall part! Conquer land!_ "

Archie shook with excitement and anxiety. A flush of burning coal raced through his chest. Kyogre… Kyogre was talking to him! One wish? He had no wish! He wish to conquer LAND!"

He opened his mouth, but no words came out. His strength was leaking away from him. What? He just saw Kyogre! Why was he feeling pain!?

He looked down. The top of a blade, still dripping blood, emerged from his front chest. Archie's mouth dropped. Desperately, he tried to turn his head around.

His eyes traced the back of the blade up the hand, the arm… the face of… Matori.

The blade twisted. A gush of blood splattered over the deck, and Archie fell wordlessly.

Matori had dark streaks on her face, as if power was bursting form within, too much for the mortal anatomy to handle. On the heads of every agent on the ship, there was a small black cloud that was pinning them down, neutralizing their ability to talk.

The ships around her were equally as silent. Everyone was waiting for the central ship, for Archie to make a decision.

Matori smiled and looked up at Kyogre. There was no respect in the smile- only manipulation and deceit. The smile seemed so twisted on her black-and-white-striped face, mixed with her glaring red eyes.

Why should she respect her? They were once the same! They would be the same! She needed blood!

"Kyogre!" She bowed so the Legend wouldn't see her face. "I hope you can kill all of these land-dwellers who disobeyed the rules of the SEA!"

Her voice carried far out into the river. The ships around started cheering. "KILL!"

The uniform sound carried far into the distance, quaking the heart of each Alliance member.

Kyogre roared and turned toward Johto. " _Wish granted, mortal._ "

Zero's face swiped into different colors. He slapped his flag into different signals in a panicking mood. Sweat dripped down his neck.

The arrangement of Ground Pokémon forced out a collective wall of Rock Tomb, rushing straight at the River.

Kyogre's eyes focused on the wall, not even one-tenth her body size. Her toneless voice carried into the hills. " _Pitiful!_ "

She didn't even do anything herself. The waves behind her built high up into the skies and smashed against the wall, reducing it to countless pieces that dropped like rain.

The Ground Pokémon flew back with the recoil, each coughing out blood. Some was already at the verge of death. Others, dead.

Matori raised her head back up. She licked her lips. The black cloud on the members of the central ship disappeared, and they all raised their heads at her in disbelief.

The corpse of their former leader began to dry up. Blood gathered at her feet and trailed up against gravity, concentrating finally at her head and seeping in.

She gave a deformed smile. " **Goodbye, MORTALS!** "

Matori's skull cracked open, and a dark orb shaped like a sixth of a sphere flashed out. Laughter of madness echoed through the ship.

Like a dark lightning, it zoomed towards the coast, toward the bodies of the fallen and the puddles of blood. Matori's body crashed against the deck at the same time it reached shore.

Kyogre roared again. A massive hurricane formed effortlessly in front of her and smashed against land. Countless Pokémon were thrown into the air, agents squashed into the ground. Bullets and bombs exploded in midair.

Zero could taste his bitter saliva against the dry walls of his mouth. Kyogre… numbers didn't work against her… was she really that strong!?

He thought back to the Rocket records. League records. There was nothing… nothing that detailed a Formation being defeated by anything lower.

Besides…

The thunderclouds in the sky began to break apart all of a sudden. It was early dawn, but a circular darkness hovered silently, as if it was there all along.

The darkness descended. As it dropped, light began to shine from it, brighter and brighter, until at last it turned into a glowing moon directly on top of Kyogre, pressuring the hurricane into harmless winds and forcing the Ocean Master down into the river.

Kyogre's eyes finally lit up with interest, for the first time since she was awaken. " _Cresselia! You are only a Formation on the_ moon _. You are of no match for me on Earth!_ "

The holy shape of a pink and yellow Legend came into view from within the bright sphere. " _I know, but I'm not alone!_ "

Zero's eyes lit up with hope for the first time since the start of the battle. Only Ancients could intrude the Field of a Formation. Others couldn't even get close.

That was exactly why Formations weren't afraid of numbers. They had a powerful Field around them that were solely theirs! They controlled everything within. It was like Bulbasaur's Forest many weeks ago from the League, but only a hundred times more powerful.

For Kyogre, th ancient legendary… she had pretty much converted a chunk of the ocean into her Field. In other words, if she was in the water, she could not be defeated… not even by Groudon.

Kyogre growled at Cresselia. Her fins slapped down harshly on the water surface. Enormous liquid arrows shot up into the sphere.

Instantly, the projection blew into pieces, and Cresselia shuddered back in a beam of moonlight, barely dodging the following Origin Pulse.

The attack struck far into Hoenn. It turned into a giant cloud that began pouring buckets down into a three hundred mile radius, flooding Southern Hoenn.

"Where's Mewtwo!?" Zero shouted at the Rocket Trios, who had just boarded the hill.

"He's…" Jessie sighed. "Asleep…"

"What the HELL ARE YOU SAYING!?"

"He needed to…" James coughed out unwillingly. "Find hs Path… Apparently, he's at a state of unconsciousness and he's breaking the barrier to Formation. He told us to not disturb him."

Zero's eyes twitched. He felt like he was going to have a seizure. What kind of crap did he just take command of!?

Giovanni's sturdy voice sounded behind him. "No. Don't panic. Remember. We still have many cards."

A Pokéball materialized in his hands. The Rocket Boss casted one look into the sky. "I've not called on him yet. I still don't want to. Aqua isn't good enough."

"So… Come out, Persian."

A beam of white light shot up into the air. The bright form of a feline being dashed though the air, unaffected by gravity, and headed straight for an incoming storm.

A torrent of white shot into the dark storm. Deep rumble sounded through it, and it blew into pools of unorganized water that dropped down between the two regions.

Even so, the damage was breathtaking. Most of the Pokémon were land-based. As the water flooded the area, they dashed frantically toward the hills, ignoring all previous training.

Stampedes trampled over others. Blood splashed into the air, dripped into the water. The entire battleground turned into a graveyard, into mounts of death.

Only one being was enjoying the entirety more than anything in the world. A black orb flashed through the borders, cackling with satisfaction. As he swept past, darkness descended. Blood evaporated.

The orb began to squirm as black smoke ooze from it. It didn't spread out. Instead, it concentrated on the cracked sides. The smoke began to deposit into tiny solids that attaches to the orb.

Moans of comfort and excitement sounded with a baritone dynamic. This couldn't be better! This was perfect! Finally! How delicious, how filling!  
If he sucked all of… no, even half of the battlefield dry… He could work his way back to Ancient!

He stared lustfully at the sky. At Persian and Cresselia.

If only he could feed on them… he might even…

The orb suddenly felt a devastating jerk to the side, as if an intense power was sucking it to…

Then, a firm hand grabbed onto it. The orb quaked, screaming in anger and fear. How dare it be touched!

The poisoning smoke exploded out from the orb onto the hand. The orb growled as the image of the dissolved hand appeared in its conscious.

However, the smoke suddenly wavered and disappeared. A blue flow formed on the hands and gripped into the orb tightly.

A burning anguish stabbed into the inside of the soul-orb. The blackness began to disappear, replaced by a light blue.

He was being… PURIFIED!? That wasn't possible! Nothing from this world could purify him! He was already the most Sacred...

An illusional figure stood beside an orange-haired girl, whose hand was grasping on a deformed black-and-blue sixth-sphere.

" _So this is the chaos that you detected, your majesty… I have to say, only you, the purest form, could hold on to it and baptize its evil._ "

" **NO! How did you escape from the Magma loins!?** "

Illusion bowed. Misty smirked. "It is my job, isn't it?"

"I've seen this force before. It is not even one that shall exist in our world. That's why we felt such darkness and entropy."

Illusion's form wavered. " _Death Force?_ "

Misty nodded.

The blue figure sighed. " _Well… no wonder you showed up._ "

" _The world is about to change… again!_ "

* * *

 **A/N: Clash of Titans.**


	107. Cha 106: Orange Islands 22

**Cha. 22**

Black smoke poured out of the orb, jabbing at Misty's hand. Before it could even touch her, a pure blue glow washed over it, turning it to little droplets of dew that dripped on her hands.

Her skin turned to a pure white. It felt like little needles sticking in, in a comforting way, like a massage. As the dew seeped in, a powerful aura rushed up into her veins. Her mouth opened slightly, a moan nearly escaping.

The orb, on the other hand was dissipating rapidly. More and more of it was turning into a blue gleam. The conscious within roared. " **Mortal! Release me this instant!** "

" **You shall never kill me! Even if you kill this Polar Body! I will come back! I shall tear you into pieces! I shall bare your virgin body for the world if…** "

Misty's face darkened ignominiously. She growled. Her grip loosened, and folded together. The Blue Orb on her chest glowed brightly. A torrent of massive royal hue flooded the sphere.

The construct broke into pieces, and the rest of the darkness was wiped instantly by an overpowering aura, converting it to complete blue.

A grievious, rage-filled repent screeched through the air. There was no words, but the agony and desire for vengeance trapped within was evident.

At the same time, many miles away in the heart of Hoenn, deep underground, a roar of anguish and fury echoed through the Magma base.

The broken blue on her palm melted into strains of liquid-like strands, much like webs, and began to crept up her body.

Illusion's figure glowed. " _Princess! Don't resist! This is a miracle for you!_ "

Misty did nothing. Her Blue Orb shone brighter. The broken sphere dissolved fully to a watery shade that encovered her entire body.

Brock's mouth dropped. Misty turned into a giant cocoon right before his eyes. He turned to Illusion.

"Wha…"

" _Don't worry. The spirit orb contains the soul of an ex-Formation. Her purification of it allows its power to be absorbed by even the mortal body._ "

" _When she returns,_ " Illusion's voice filled up in excitement. " _She will truly wield the power to control the Blue Orb!_ "

"So what should we do?"

" _We'll wait._ "

"How long?" Brock casted a worried glance at the battlefield. It was a wreckage.

"... I don't know, sir."

* * *

It was indeed a wreck.

A giant pump of water pushed Cresselia back thirty or so miles, her moon shattering after the pump.

Giant missiles came from miles inland from in the Johto direction. Kyogre gave an uninterested glance and waved her fins.

The clouds above formed into giant arrows that shot deep into the transcontinental weapons. A series of igniting thermonuclear cloud blew into the troposphere.

An incoming hurricane blew onto the shore and turned into a tornado. Persian dived toward it, claws forming the power of a dozen Giga Impact.

The winds disintegrated. Persian was thrown back straight into a hill, which crashed beneath his Iron Defense.

Goodshow waved his hand. A purple Pokéball even more ancient than the looks of a Master Ball floated out. The President gave a low growl.

The ball dashed up into the air and blew into purple lights that pushed back even Kyogre's Hydro Cannons. The shape of a winged creature dashed past the raging storm, which dissipated under her red trails and… rainbow.

Ho-Oh! The Legend of the Storm's End!

This Ho-Oh looked even older than Ash's. With a slant of the tail, the clouds above turned into a giant Weather Ball and she clutched in front of her chest.

Kyogre gave an annoyed sigh. She was still groggy from the long hibernation. Fighting three Ancients immediately after waking up wasn't too hard, but it was stressful.

The Weather Ball clashed against a line of Origin Pulse. Bright, seven-colored lights mirrored into the distance, like a million rainbow bridge crossing over the flooded lands.

By this point, nearly a third of Hoenn was covered in water, and six of the seven hills of Johto had collapsed, exposing it to the wide flood.

Ho-Oh's wing shook heavily. Another massive cannon of water shot towards her. She released the biggest hurl of Sacred Fire she could manage, but it proved futile as the water, after much evaporation, struck through the flame and slammed her back down into the river.

Kyogre panted slightly. Even though her attacks looked irresistible, the power needed to subdue an Ancient was incredible. All of her manipulation with the water before Cresselia first showed up combined was not worth the energy expended in each hit with her, Persian, and Ho-Oh.

Before she could make another advancement toward land, a sharp disturbance in the wind pattern crashed into her Field. There was no sound, only something traveling supersonic.

The great whale turned. From afar, a dark shadow clashed through her hurricanes like a black arrow. An immense force of death ravaged her waters… not Death Force, but the aura of death.

Yveltal! Three thick beams shot from each of his wings, ultimately forming a giant dark scythe that sliced down toward her.

A giant wall of ice-water formed in front of it. Yveltal's eyes grew a blaring red.

The black scythe smashed down with piercing confidence. Miraculously, it punctured the barrier of the Formation and dug deep into the flesh of Kyogre suicidally!

The hit on the Legend!

Kyogre' mouth roared open in an echo of pain. The scythe melted to dark energy that tried to infect her body. Her purifying blue hue lit up, washing the wound. But the most it could do was to limit the spread of darkness! She couldn't even heal!

Her eyes were painted to a deep red. For the first time, a momentous anger reached into her mind. She took a deep breath. The entire Bamboo River downsized by nearly half.

An inexplicable thickness lunged up and pierced through the air with precision. In a mere blink, it reached Yveltal and smacked him high up into the air, putting him directly out of the fight.

Before she could recover from the demanding attack, three beams of green, orange, and blue leapt down from the Death Legend. They slammed down in the forms of lightning, wind, and boulder onto her back.

Three sharp shooting pain dug into her organs. Kyogre was beyond furious! It had been how MANY years that she had been hurt THIS badly!?

Kyogre was about to pulse out a dozen Origin Pulse to wipe the three Forces of Nature from existence. She didn't care about energy anymore. She was Kyogre! Even when she was weak, nothing could hurt her, as long as she got rid of these disgusting Ancients!

Before her plan could be carried out, a series of orange and green chains formed onto her skin, like a giant cage. It contracted, choking the breath out of her, and with it, her determination to fire out the Origin Pulses.

A bulky Deoxys in his Defense Form shook uncontrollably in midair, barely able to exert himself as he tried to hold back the giant whale. Within seconds, his eyes dimmed with wear.

However, the time was enough for the Forces to turn into their Theiran Forme and dash off of the imminent fire zone.

Kyogre roared seconds after their escape. Blue and gold shone off her skin, breaking the chains back to pink psychic gleam that dissipated into the water.

The torture wasn't over.

From the south, a blast of fire descended with resolution. It wasn't just regular fire. It was the Father of all Fires, the ultimate form of flame.

The roaring fire tore through her water without any friction. It was the purest form of fire… a purity that even her long rival Groudon could not operate.

The name of the only attack significant enough in the history of Pokémon rang in her head.

V-Create! That meant…

Her eyes bulged out as she turned. Victini! He wasn't even an Ancient! He was already past Top, going into pre-Formation!

Blasts of Origin Pulse exploded from her mouth and back, but even the quantity could not power the ancestor of all Fire.

The V-create vaporized her defense efforts and bore a deep hole straight into her mouth. Kyogre released an excruciating rumble. Without her notice, three golden blades of Sacred Sword descended into her throat as well, using the clear opening burnt through by the Victini's fire.

They melted into a web of intense golden lights, full of the desire for justice and the straight will of honor. It locked up Kyogre's power from the inside, forming a golden lining that spread through he body.

The Three Forces of Nature floated into the rainy sky. The three linked hands. A grand atmosphere of three colors replaced the clouds. A commanding power resonated through the land, taking charge of Kyogre's Field as she was paralyzed from the inside.

A painful gasp escape the Lordess of the Sea. " _Victini! Swords! Forces! I SHALL HAVE YOU KNOW!_ "

" _ARCEUS CREATED YOU AS ANCIENTS! SO SUBMIT TO YOUR FATE!_ "

" _I AM KYOGRE! I WILL_ _ **NEVER**_ _BE DEFEATED BY YOU!_ "

Her eyes became dark. Her pupils faded.

She didn't care anymore. She didn't care about this world, or her health, or anything anymore. Her pride overtook her conscious, her fury controlled her soul.

A purple blast concentrated on her forehead. It was the last of her energy. If she used this last resort, she could very well fall back into a deep sleep for thousands and thousands of years. Maybe… forever.

Arceus said this was only for emergencies. This was an EMERGENCY! Her pride was being stomped into the dirt by… Ancients!

The purple glow built heavier. None of the legendaries or humans knew what it was, but from the sheer radiance, they knew it was…

Something that could destroy the entire… world. But… nothing could stop her, unless…

Giovanni sighed bitterly as he pulled out a custom-made golden Pokéball. The shape of a chinese dragon was carved over it. At the same time, Goodshow took out a Pokéball of stainless white. Over it, six flashing lights pulsated.

They exchanged dreadful glances. If they didn't summon them, the entire Alliance would be heavily slaughtered. Only the power of both could overwhelm Kyogre's final attack. But if they do…

They just exposed their most important cards under Cyrus's eyes…

But, by this point… they really didn't have a choice.

However, before they could raised the Pokéball, an eerily melodic music suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

There was no bounds for the music. It just decided to started playing on top of the water-swept lands. There was no origin, and no one knew its end.

A tranquil mood crept into the minds of everyone on the battlefield, relaxing them dangerously. Giovanni's eyes widened. He had heard this song before. It was in Domino's recording of Ash's past…

Lugia's Song!

Wait, no! Giovanni's hands trembled. This wasn't Lugia. This tune was even more empowering, more forceful, more pure, more mysterious.

It was the sound of a quiet recorder, played by a seafaring sailor. Its effect was most evident towards Water Pokémon, and especially… Kyogre.

A blinding blue light floated into the air and glided gracefully towards the whale. The sounds drilled into her ears… no, not drilled. She WANTED to listen! It was so… nostalgic.

The intense purple ball of energy on her forehead started to leak back into her body. There was only one being whom she knew could play this song.

It was his original song. It was HIS song that HE dedicated to HER. It was their song.

Her purple dimmed back to a heavy blue. She panted. The anger died down, replaced by a longing that she had been carrying for millennium.

Für Reine. For Kyogre.

When he was here, she would never be so rash. He was her soul. A blinding blue light dropped down from the air. There was no intentions of harm… only harmony and care.

It was his scent… but also mixed with something else.

Her eyes focused. It was of a girl… a orange-haired girl. The… the disappeared… Blue Orb hung on her neck! It was the scent of… ROYALTY! PURITY!

She was… transparent. The utmost form of clarity. There was not even a hint of adulteration or contamination. Even in the slimiest marsh, the marsh of humanity, she could appear serene and unscathed. She was so clear… even more than HER.

Kyogre felt a calming sense relax her mind. The glow on her head had completely disappeared. The pain within her body had gone. All she wanted to do was to sleep.

To reunite with HIM. To meet the new Princess.

The lit figure stepped daintly onto her head, right between the eyes. Kyogre's eyes relaxed. Her giant eyelid sunk. An illusion formed beside her.

It was… even with the severe deformity, she could recognize him in a heartbeat.

" _You're…_ "

" _I'm back._ " Illusion blew softly into her eyes. " _I'm with the Princess. Let's reside into the Blue Orb. I shall explain everything._ "

Kyogre nodded. A blue energy formed on her head, and it twisted into a complex symbol and tilted itself at Misty.

" _Kyogre of the Southern Seas, honor to see you, your majesty._ "

Misty sighed and looked at her tormented body. Residue of burnt marks, ever-burning fire, golden chains, pink scrapes, puddles of blood,...

Misty patted the giant creature. The Blue Orb glowed. The seemingly invincible cage on her dissolved as a distilling blue ran over her.

" _You're safe._ "

A second later, Kyogre disappeared. Misty stepped into the air, watching the numerous whirlpools form from the Bamboo River at the sudden loss of volume.

She looked like a saint, but her eyes were flashing ambivalence and fury.

It wasn't the League's fault. It wasn't Kyogre's fault EITHER! She wouldn't allow the grand Formation to be accuse of it!

Her eyes narrowed on a naval armada in the distance.

She found the scapegoat to divert the League and the Legends' anger. Without a word, she rushed toward the Aqua ships, trusting that the massive army would follow.

Indeed they did.

Brock witnessed the entire process from a faraway hill. He sighed lightly. He had a lot of catching up to do… Mist was already an Ancient… he still had a long way.

Amidst the chaos, no one noticed a flash of red in the distance in the shape of a… yet another sphere… behind Brock's built shape.

* * *

 **A/N: For those of you who don't know, Kyogre is my fourth favorite Pokémon. She is also the first legendary that I've captured many years back. Love her!**


	108. Cha 107: Orange Islands 23

**Cha. 23**

Maxie stared at the report on his hand. A horrid feeling of empathy streamed into his veins. Indeed they had been enemies, the severest of all enemies. All of him, from his values, to his beliefs, and even his looks, were the filthiest of the devil.

They had surpassed the classification of archnemisis to something else- something more… spiritual.

They wanted completely opposite things, but yet, their want is identical. Their strategies, their functions, their improvements with the observation of the other.

Your best friend is your enemy. He is who know _him_ entirely. Their bond was the strongest, diluted yet sacred.

Maxie's eyes fixed on the picture of the dead Archie.

Goodbye. There was one less person to be his equal.

* * *

"Is it ready?" Maxie asked without turning around.

He was underground, standing in front of an enormous man-made cave that zoomed deep into the volcano in front of him, and wrapped around the core.

The circumference was many miles long. Just imagine! A giant cave of momentous height- a skyscraper worth- reaching deep inside and around a bulky, turbulent volcano!

Dark red gleams accompanied by sudden brightness from the spitting lava illuminated the structure, with the sounds of Earth's stomach rumbling and digesting.

It was no more an art of man. It was the likes of God! Replacing God with MAN! Only the power of the GROUND could grant it!

Fourty years, Maxie thought soundlessly as he tracked into the grumbling center. For four decades he had prepared this…

What did the ancient formula call it? Ah, yes. This 'Array'!

The base as Hoenn's largest volcano- Mt. Frost- and the incantations using the works of God. It was the ultimate power of domination. It shall be one that roars the sky, and raise Magma to the throne.

It had only one function: To waken the true God within. Not the fake, illusional Arceus, but the saint that shall carry humanity all to salvation.

The formidable Lord. Maxie's step slowed, and he crouched down slightly. It was unholy to approach Him with a regular pace.

No one could stop him then. Not the fake Cyrus under whom he had taken a temporary shelter. Not the sacrilegious Leagues that shall suffer under His wrath. Not even Kyogre! Team Magma, His most faithful servants, had solved her for Him!

Even if Kyogre was to heal from her battle with Leagues, she could never match His power. She had lost her Blue Orb from her battle with the great Lord twenty thousand years ago. He had too, but Team Magma had recollected the divine Red Orb and locked it within its deepest chambers, waiting one day for the Lord to rearisen and consecrating it to Him.

This day shall come…

TODAY!

The cavern opened up into a wide crater of many levels. From the lowest floor to the highest, they were filled with crowds of kneeling Magma, chanting devotedly with their heads to the ground. The bottom was an endless pit of lava that extended down to the deepest mantle. At the highest floor, a chain extended out from four perpendicular sides inward which linked to a giant platform that hung on top of the center of the lava sea. A hallowed altar stood upon it.

Maxie walked over heavily to the central altar. His face was of pure kindness, much like the face of an century-old philanthropist or a blessed priest.

He stopped at the altar. There were eight others there already. They were the utmost elite of the Team, the most faithful and concentrated. A knife laid by each of their hands. Maxie closed off the last gap.

He closed his eyes.

"Magma! Today is not a day for words, but a day for prayer!"

His voice was loud and dignified, echoing through te entire underground chamber. The heat swelled up, and the magma roared, as if agreeing with his words.

"Let us welcome our Lord's return with our purest will, and let him accompany his descent with the music of our sermons!"

The cavern exploded in cries of hysteria. The sounds of the hundreds of thousands of Magma grunts spreaded through the Godlike structure shook the volcano. Within, unseen by anyone, the links to the Array began to glow.

As the structure activated, the nine blades that laid on the table shone as well. Maxie grabbed onto his. The other eight followed suit.

"Ladies and gentlemen. Today will be our awakening." Maxie's fist tightened. He raised his knife.

"Let us help His arrival with our spirit!"

Then, at the same time, the nine knives dropped deep into their owners' chests, slicing all the way through their stomach. Blood and guts splashed all over the altar, which detonated with piercing light.

The entire cavern then lit up as well. With it, the unsettling lava beneath went wild. It was not molten rock anymore. It was a forbidding torrent of insanity!

No Magma grunts got up. They stayed put on the ground, ignoring the shaking of the fellow members to their side, or the sight of their skin peeling off to the splashing lava.

No one moved, even when lava was pouring over their own body.

The magma rose, higher and higher, washing over each level. The yellow glow seemed to turn to an impossible red, consuming everything. The cavern became a sun in itself.

The ascent of the lava was unstoppable. Ultimately, it reached the highest level and washed onto the dazzling altar. Then, everything turned to a glaring white.

All of a sudden, the entire moutain exploded. Millions of tons of ash raced into the sky at once, followed by a geyser of fire and rock.

The entire Mt. Frost was no more. In its place, the silhouette of a giant bipedal beast shone against the continuous light of the eruption.

He was here. Groudon had awakened.

* * *

Lugia's face changed to one of absolute horror and looked to one direction. That… that was…

There was a similar quaking a month before too, and that was with Kyogre. When he arrived, the League and a dozen legendaries had already dealt with the situation.

But this… this was just as powerful… no! Even more so! This was…

A dreaded name came into his mind. Compared to Kyogre, Groudon was utterly more aggressive and repelling. Left alone, he could probably destroy…

Lugia couldn't track his thoughts down more. Even by being awoken for a few minutes, the entire weather pattern was already collapsing. With an overcharged Miracle Eye, he could already see the giant cloud of grey volcanic soot hanging over the entire Hoenn region.

Welp… goodbye Hoenn… first Kyogre, then this?

He heard a loud slam of the door behind him. Three figures dashed out of the house that he built for Melody -his hired personal musician- 's random visits.

A pair of blue wings extended out of Ash's back, carrying him, with Juliet and Domino in his arms, rapidly to him.

"What's going on!?" His voice sounded in a hurried manner. "We detected the disturbance in our SLEEP!"

Lugia tilted his head, then sighed in realization. They were Ancients now. The three's powers had far stretched beyond the confines of Medieval. Distance was not a barrier anymore to them. With a snap, anything on the planet could be bared in their eyes.

That was one of the powers of Ancients. Earthly intervals were barely any blockade. Ancients could get from Orange Islands to Hoenn in a matter of minutes, even for non-flight beings.

" _Groudon has been awakened._ " Lugia said plainly.

Ash's eyes bulged out. "WHAT!?"

" _You seem surprised._ " Lugia gave him a look. " _Don't you know that the Weather Duo is a pair? Of course Groudon would appear after Kyogre. It's the natural fate of things._ "

"WAIT WHAT!?" The three shouted collectively. "Kyogre woke up TOO!?"

" _Oh yeah… you guys were still in the Temple then…_ " Lugia winced.

"WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL US!?"

" _Ash fell asleep! And then you two went to sleep with him!_ " Lugia protested. " _Plus she's already subdued! I didn't think it was that important!_ "

Ash's eyes twitched. "Well, come on, what are we waiting for!? Let's get the hell to Hoenn!"

"Got it!" Domino grabbed onto each of them with a psychic strand. That was a new trick that she learned after advancing to Ancient. She could form literal objects with her mind that acted as an anatomy.

" _WAIT!_ " Lugia shouted. " _Let me fly you there. It's not going to be much longer. We'll need all of our energy if we are going to stop him. Trans-regional teleportation takes too much energy!_ "

"Okay, let's go!" Ash grabbed onto the two girls, a motion made quite natural, and flipped onto the Legend's back. With a sharp swish of the air, they charged into the sky.

* * *

Ash frowned. "How long did you say the flight was?"

" _... three minutes?_ " The Diving Pokémon coughed.

Juliet twitched and raised up her wrist, displaying a cute pink watch. She deadpanned. "It's been ten minutes already."

"Come on, Lugia!" Domino bit her lip. "If there wasn't a world disaster waiting to occur, I'm about to make a joke on how you didn't eat breakfast!"

" _This isn't my fault! We should be here by now!_ " Lugia's brow furrowed as well. This wasn't natural. They DEFINITELY should at least see land by now… even if they flew in the OPPOSITE direction!

If fact, ten minutes was nearly enough for him to circumnavigate the globe! If he went the opposite way south, he would be popping up at Kalos by now anyways! If he went west, then it's Unova!

Abruptly, Lugia slowed to a halt. " _We need to stop. There is something severely wrong._ "

Ash's voice melted into concern. For some reason, this scene seemed familiar. "Have you ever seen this before?"

Lugia fell into silence. Suddenly, Domino jumped up from his back and slapped Ash on the shoulder. Her voice shook slightly. "A… Ash! Check Dexter. Where the hell are we!?"

His Pokédex popped up a hologram of the map. "We are… in the Southern Kanto Sea, near… Shamouti Island?"

Their mouths dropped. Even an idiot knew by now that…

With a horrible feeling, Lugia powered up his Miracle Eye. Shamouti Island laid in front of him.

"Lu...Lugia?" Juliet said shakily. "Are you sure you hadn't _accidentally_ flown across the entire hemisphere?"

"NO!" Before the Legend could answer, Ash jumped up as well, knocking Domino's hand off him. The two lovers' eyes met in surprise and terror. There was only one scene that was like this…

The memory of a dark space submerged. It was the tunnel of a great tomb… an endless tunnel…

Ash shut his eyes. "Princess! Use Miracle Eye on me!"

Domino's hand rose in a powerful pink projection that shot into Ash's mind.

The normally blue horizon of Aura Sight faded. A sudden gray appeared as the essence of the Sight was changed from life to… Death.

Immediately, black smoke emerged out of the gray horizon. Within seconds, the smoke overtook the entire world. The entire world was poisoned by DEATH FORCES!

Ash snapped his eyes open. Lights of disbelief shot into the distance. The color of the sky was still as blue as yesterday, but it had decayed into pure darkness for Ash, just like in his Sight.

Domino knew from his face without any words of his that her prediction was right.

"We… we're trapped… in Death Forces."

" **Look who's a smart kitty.** " A baritone voice boomed out of space, overtaking the entire world as his own. Dark clouds condensed from nowhere, no longer needed to keep up the disguise.

From within the blackness, a lanky figure of a… **Stick** descended.

" **I have come to take revenge for your brutal killing of my companion.** " His words dug deeply into the hearts of the four beings, his sound, infused with Death, penetrating their bubble of protection.

A satanic smile appeared on his face. " **Don't even think about a miracle like with Circle. He was undercharged and weak when we first arrived. I regret not holding him back from baring us under the world's vision.** "

" **Come to think about it, good thing he died! I don't know what kind of trouble he could've gotten us into if he were to follow me!** "

" **Now, would you kill yourselves, or have me squish you?** "

* * *

 **A/N: You didn't forget about Mr. Stick, did you!? And ho, Team Magma is a bunch of lunatics.**


	109. Cha 108: Orange Islands 24

**Cha. 24**

"Are you KIDDING me!?" Lance bounced up from the comfort of his couch in the newly established headquarters of Hoenn.

It's been a month since Kyogre's initial appearance. With the help of the numerous Ancient recruits from all over the regions, the Alliance managed to contain the ugly situation of large floods and destroyed buildings, along with deaths, injuries, disaster relief…

At the middle of the month, Kyogre emerged again and sucked in all of the leftover water, before returning to Misty's Blue Orb. No one dared to question her about what was up. Those who were strong enough to were also smart enough not to.

Surprisingly, throughout the entire month, the Hoenn League did not even show its face at all. Initially, the Alliance believed that the League was sealed off by the remaining Magma rebels. The majority of Team Aqua was captured and defeated after Kyogre's surrender, being the target of rage of countless furious Allies and Ancients. _Especially_ the Ancients.

However, when Giovanni sent Zero off to tour the skies of Ever Grande City with a Moltres- Yveltal was still recovering from the enormous Origin Pulse- he found… well… nothing.

At first, Zero too thought it was an illusion on the part of Magma… or even Cyrus. But even when he set up a top-notch decipherer from Professor Oak, there was still… nothing.

The entire Ever Grande City just disappeared, as if it was shaved off the face of earth. Immediately, Giovanni linked it with some sort of spatial disorientation trick from Galactic, since there was zero way Magma had enough technology to conduct a task this powerful.

There was a certain degree of ambivalence to the result. On one hand, it was obviously a disaster and defeat on League's part, representing the 'justice' field. Of course, Giovanni did not mind one bit a League was just wiped off the planet. Instead, he was more concerned about the power of the spatial manipulation and whether the anti-distortion field Domino set up back at Rocket Headquarters was strong enough for such a force.

On the other hand, both the Kanto and Rockets were equally pleased, no matter how terrible that sounded, about the disappearance. Afterall, it was extra territory for them, and they could easily settle in with the moral justified reasoning of disaster relief during a time of anarchy, both underground and governmentally.

In their eyes, Hoenn was already theirs. Therefore, Lance was extra pissed off when he heard about…

"GROUDON!? Are you sure they're FORMATIONS!? Not just everyday Pidgeys!?"

The Blackthorne agent twitched and lowered her head. "Yes, sir. He had appeared from Mt. Frost. It is definitely not a Magma illusion."

She coughed and pointed at a window. "Champion, there's literally a dust cloud covering the entire sky of northern Hoenn coming our way."

Lance followed her finger to the balcony window. His eyes widened. An Alakazam emerged next to him. In the next second, he vanished from his room.

* * *

A bright pink light flashed in the main conference room in the new main building of the Alliance campus. Lance fell into his seat. Goodshow gave him a spare look.

Beside him, Lorelei deadpanned. "You're late."

Lance ignored her comment. "Groudon."

"Yes." Goodshow affirmed. "Satellite shows that he's still groggy from waking up. There is no movement. But just from his BEING there, volcanoes are erupting and earthquakes are magnifying. We only have barely half an hour until his Drought ability passes Slateport and reaches our Southern Hoenn."

"Can we get the Ancients again and subdue him?" Lance asked hastily.

"No shall do." Zero shook his head violently. "Yveltal is STILL healing from the battle with Kyogre. Formation attacks have a special scent that accompanies their Paths that will linger in the injuries, making it EXTREMELY hard to heal."

"Paths?" Lance tilted his head and glanced at Goodshow. He had never heard the word before.

Goodshow sighed. "Paths are the key to becoming a Formation. It is the forming of one's heart. Only then can the soul be strong enough in relative to the raw power to wield it."

"What's Kyogre's Path?" Lorelei inquired.

"No one knows… besides probably Misty." Zero shrugged. "A Formation's Path is perhaps their greatest secret, because if you know her Path, you can find a way to dissolve it. Only secrecy is the greatest protection of identity, and thus, her power source."

"So when will the Ancients heal back up?" Lance asked anxiously.

"Yveltal? Not for another three months at least." Zero glimpsed at his side. "Boss?"

"Persian needs a month as well." Giovanni said while knocking on the table. "You guys?"

"She returned to the moon to heal up. A few weeks at least." A voice popped out of the darkness. Lance jumped a bit. For the first time, he noticed three figures standing behind Giovanni, perfectly concealed by a Shadow Sneak.

"Who are YOU!?" The Champion demanded.

The trios didn't answer. Giovanni spoke for them. "My personal guards. Now, back to topic. How many more Ancients can the League afford? Obviously we learned from Kyogre that Medievals have no effect. They couldn't even penetrate their Fields."

"Very little. An old Articuno who is barely an Ancient. Old as not in powerful, but in actually elderly. A possible artificial bomb with the power of one hit of a Formation." Goodshow sighed. "You?"

"We do have some." Giovanni paused. His eyes met with Goodshow's.

The President knew precisely that he still had some. In fact, he was very surprised at how many Ancients Team Rocket could operate.

Just count the Kyogre battle. Victini, Swords of Justice, Forces of Nature, Deoxys, Yveltal, Persian, Cresselia. Eleven. Granted that most of them wouldn't come if it wasn't for Kyogre, their willingness to help with Giovanni's cause was significant enough.

It also illustrated the power of a freaking Formation. Eleven, plus his own Ho-Oh. Twelve. Barely enough to take down the great whale. If it wasn't for Misty who stabilized the the Legend at the end, maybe the entire Alliance would be wiped out.

Knowing the parallel in the Weather Duo, Groudon probably had the same magnitude of last resort, which posed a even bigger problem… that was, if they even managed to get him down to the last resort.

Ah, yes, Misty. Also an Ancient, if she was willing to step into the battle.

"What about Kyogre?" An idea popped into Lance's head. "Aren't they arch-enemies? Where's Misty? She has the position and power to sit in this room."

"Misty said Kyogre couldn't fight already. Twelve Ancients also brought a huge toll on her." Goodshow responded. "She's currently over the South Kanto Sea gathering Water Essence for Kyogre to heal quicker."  
"Can she be back in a few hours?" Lance's eyes lit up in hope. 

Zero gave him a snort. "Mr. Champion, you do know how hard it is for Formations to heal, right? The more powerful a Pokémon, the harder to damage her. However, when she is damaged, it could take decades."

Lance blushed in rage. Goodshow waved a hand to calm him. "Zero's right. Remember how many years Mew passed out for after the Battle of the Skyline? Records said five thousands years, who knows for sure?"

"Gentlemen! We're getting off topic." Giovanni said sternly. "Groudon!?"

"Ash…" Lorelei raised a hand.

"NO!" Goodshow and Giovanni shouted at the same time. "The only reason we rushed here was to prevent Ash from interrupting into this battle!"

Lorelei was taken aback. "Okay… what about… Professor Oak? Does he have something?"

"Actually, we have lost all communications with him, along with his elite team of Dr. Fuji and Dr. Akihabara." Goodshow sighed. "He said he's making something to counter Cyrus's pocket universe…"

"Where did Zero get the decipherer?"

"His assistant. Tracey. Nice lad." Zero answered.

"What about… his ranch?" Lorelei asked. "I'm sure Oak have no problem with us borrowing a few of his Pokémon to fight a Arceus damned beast ready to rape the world."

"This may sound weird…" Zero sighed. "His entire ranch has ben pulled into Professor Oak's makeshift world. Apparently, it is really good for Pokémon training in some way."

"Well, get them the hell out!"

"Impossible!" The Rochet chief strategist remarked. "Tracey said the Professor had altered the passage of time within so that it is on a completely different scale of time to quicken the pace of Pokémon training. The time it needs to send a message within could take years! Decades, even!"

Lance slammed his fist down. "What the hell are we going to do then, genius!?"

The room grew into a tense silence.

Good question. What the hell were they going to do?

* * *

Miles away from Hoenn, Shamouti Island was covered in a dark fog. Unlike the Circle's fog, this was not littered with scent of blood or traces of gore. Instead, it was a pure blinding black, so black that it was almost… sacred.

It was as if that black was only a color that this world, this Universe imposed on it. Maybe in another universe, the color wouldn't be black, but another, glorious shine.

Ash licked his lips. The four were forced back down to Shamouti, but none of them had any fears. For the trio, the recent advancement to Ancient had their confidence soaring to the sky. They were complacent- they were still treating the Stick with the utmost caution.

Their confidence was from the Realization of each's Path. It was only a natural reaction to become esteemed. In fact, it could even boost their power.

For Lugia… the Legend had seen way too much to be afraid. Being one of the oldest in the lands, born right after the Battle of Reformation twenty thousand years ago… even older than Ho-Oh and Kyurem.

As the blinding darkness rolled over them, Ash, Domino, and Juliet each shone with a potent light of their own glow that, in a psychological sense, even trumped Lugia.

The corrupting fog suddenly blew apart and rolled away, as if seeing something terrifying.

A massive blue glow swept in front of Ash, materializing into a tangling tree branch, dissipating an entire chunk of darkness. Domino's pink glow formed into a large key. As it turned, the fog burned into nothing. Juliet's psychic condensed into a giant eye that glared straight at the Stick. A visible pink strand shot through the fog, boring a long tunnel directly toward the Formation.

Lugia's form flashed with numerous pink and white. Patterns of weather formed and evaporated, cycling through rapidly. Each is different, tracing through each of the days of the last twenty thousand years that he had resided on this island.

The entire Array of Death Energy shook violently. The Stick waved with a sign of franticness, blocking Juliet's glare with a black shield.

With an evident tone of suprise, he shouted. " **Good LORD! Hell is such an interesting place!** "

" **Three early Ancients already with their Paths unfolded! A Top Ancient with his own Field! No wonder Teacher said I could find my own Concept here!** "

" _You're not finding anything here!_ " Lugia growled heavily. " _We stopped you fifty thousand years ago, and you shall never descend again!_ "

" **HA! Foolish! You are not even of age yet to know about Battle of Half-Blood, nonetheless the Battle of Skylines, not to say the Battle of Three!** " The Stick sounded in uproaring laughter. " **So what you four are special? Gifted?** "

" **You're merely ants crawling through the underground! Oh wait, your pitiful 'God' had changed even them to his own form! You…** "

" _ENOUGH!_ " Lugia's body blew into a bright light and streamed toward the Stick…

* * *

Misty wandered over the Southern Kanto Sea. The Blue Orb floated on top of her head, the waves a few dozen feet below her, occasionally splashing up to her feet.

There were two figures that floated up and down in the Blue Orb. As she walked, a small whirlpool trailed behind her. Pools of invisible Water Essence floated into the Orb, which glowed ever the slightly brighter with each step.

Suddenly, the Orb quaked violently and rushed out in a direction. Misty raised an eyebrow and broke into a dash, catching it into her hands.

"What!? What's up!?"

Illusion floated up, a giant whale below him. " _That wasn't us! The Orb just decided to go in that direction! That means that there's some sort of immense chaos that attracted even the Blue Orb!_ "

Misty's eyes hardened. "You think I can resolve it on my own?"

" _I don't…_ "

"Well, let's GO!"

Misty turned into a blue light and blended into the ocean. A second later, she was miles away.

* * *

 **A/N: Dun, Dun, DUNNGGG (Freak'n terrible onomatopoeia).**


	110. Cha 109: Orange Islands 25

**Cha. 25**

The engulfing ash cloud spread across the sky like wildfire, poisoning the blue into darkness. However, as it reached a certain spot in Hoenn, it suddenly curved around, as if intentionally avoiding something.

The eerie blank was shaped like a… treetop.

The clouds had already passed Slateport, and they kept advancing. If this rate kept going, it might even intrude into Johto in another half an hour.

And worse… the curving of the cloud suggested that… Groudon had grown past his unconscious state!

Giovanni clutched his fist. A bitter scent eroded from his mouth. Could a Formation really only be stopped by another Formation!?

He refused to believe it!

From his convertible spaceship, currently in mid-earth form, gliding on the clouds, Giovanni glared down at the giant beast in the distance, roaring at the clouds. He spun around to his fourth Elite.

004\. Short silver hair, aggressive sunglasses, tight fitting black and red dress that only protruded her strength.

Hunter J. 004 of Team Rocket. This was her master aircraft, the one containing…

"Elemental Blast charged?" Giovanni said lowly.

Hunter J nodded. A quick, heartbroken look flashed across her face. Elemental Blast…

The Elemental Blast is the ultimate attack of her entire fleet. Being most specialized in technology on the Team, trumped only by her brother, the Blast could reach up to the power of Top Formation. At the same time, the price for each shot is heavier than an entire airship! Each Blast required the destruction of eighteen different Mega Stones, each of one different Element!

Even her, the richest robber of the Home Islands, backed by the prominent Team Rocket, could barely afford it! Each Mega Stone, sold to the right person, could even get enough credit to buy an entire building in the center of Indigo Plateau! Eighteen together, she could probably build ANOTHER chief spaceship!

She looked soundlessly at the symbol of the completed charge, her heart aching that eighteen Stones were just gone in a snap. "Yes, sir."  
"Don't miss."

Hunter J's eyes winced at the word 'miss,' and her hand slammed down on a button.

The bottom of the ship lit up in a blinding glow of eighteen colors. A power out of this world tore through space, heading straight straight for a red beast.

At the same time, nine different blasts from nine other invisible ships ripped through space, all beaming towards the same target.

A little distance trailing behind them was an intercontinental ballistic missile, painted red and orange in the colors of the Kanto League, rushing toward Slateport.

Giovanni's face was emotionless. Inside, his heart was dripping blood.

Ten shots. A hundred eighty Mega Stones… GONE! Even though he forced League to take half of the burden, it was still…

PAINFUL!

When he got his hands on Cyrus, Giovanni swore he would tear his…

Groudon did not have any time to react as the first… and the tenth Elemental Blast smacked into his shell…

There are no words that could describe the explosion. For a second, the entire world- or at least the southern Home Islands- was washed over by colorful lights that made the Earth glow so bright it rivaled the sun.

The satellites orbiting the planet shook. Some of then collapsed in their centripedal orbit, pummeling straight down into the planet. Others splashed out into outer space.

Ash and dirt heavier than the combined effort of Groudon's Drought in the past half an hour soared into the atmosphere.

A popular movie- Armageddon- zoomed into Giovanni's mind. Yeah… the world's climate wouldn't be much better than the result of the crash of the meteorite.

He crossed his fingers. This was his least costly way he had to hide his ultimate cards. Hopefully…

"J! Turn on the radar… and Oak's decipherer!" Giovanni removed his eyes from the window to the screen. "Show me what's happening in the fog."  
J nodded silently and tapped a few keys on the screen. She was still grief-strickened over the loss of her Mega Stones…

An invisible wave of gamma rays penetrated into the smoke. Giovanni sat on the edge of his seat, waiting. The Rocket Trio faded out of their shadows behind him. At the same time, the six top League and Rocket officials on the ground stared just as intently.

There was a giant hole on the ground, where Slateport used to be. The hole was, well, for a lack of a better word, Groudon-shaped.

Different colors of remaining energies spread around the town, zooming on for miles and miles on end, a thousand times more corruptive than the worst nuclear bomb radiation.

Half of Hoenn was covered in this invisible radiation. Even without an expert, all of them knew at the same time: Hoenn is no more, whatever the result of the war.

Even if they could get Xerneas here, it would take decades for her to finish curing everything! This was an entire region that was polluted!

But the eleven of them all exhaled a large breath and relaxed in some degree. Why? Because at the bottom of the pit, Groudon laid, motionless.

Not surprising. There is not a single non-Cosmic being in this world who could take eleven Top Formation hits at once without defense and still not, well, on the verge of death.

Maybe Mew, but half of her wasn't even part of this world anymore…

Of course, Groudon could never die. He was the one with the earth. If land existed for a day, Groudon would live eternally.

From Kanto, two beams of light shot up, one blue, one pink, both zooming at an inconceivable speed in the direction of Hoenn, putting the sound barrier to utter shame.

The blue materialized into an elderly Articuno. However, his eyes glowed a thirsty blue. He had laid low for way too long… so long that the world had forgotten his power eight hundred years ago. He shall use his action to remind the world… by capturing Groudon!

But first… he tilted his head to the side. The pink light trailed by him, refusing to be thrown off. It materialized into the blurry form of Latias. She smirked at him, as if a formal challenge.

Articuno roared. The land below him turned to ice. Latias shrugged and teleported.

" _Cheater!_ "

" _Bite me!_ "

Only two minutes later, the two arrived at the giant hole in what was used to be Slateport. They looked straight down.

Powerful colors glared back at them, chipping away at their frozen or psychic barriers. Groudon lied at the bottom, hundreds of feet below the surface, unconscious.

The blue and pink shade darted straight into the hole. Articuno grabbed the Formation by the tail, while Latias formed a pink bubble around his head, pulling at the same time.

" _GROUDON NEEDS TO GET ON A DIET!_ " Latias panted as they ascended.

" _NOT DISAGREEING!_ "

Instead of the flying back- that would be inhumane- Latias flashed them out of the hole at once.

In the next second, a giant red beast materialized at the border of Hoenn and slammed down into the soft ground previously soaked with water.

A crowd soon gathered around, led by the elite members of the Alliance. Soon, a spaceship come to view in the air. Out of it, Giovanni, Hunter J, and the Rocket Trios descended in parachutes.

"He's out cold." A group of trainers gathered around a complex device sighed after decoding a series of diagrams. "Estimation is that he wouldn't wake up in… three years."

None of their faces had any looks of joy though, especially Giovanni and Goodshow. They had just expended nearly ALL of their reserves of Mega Stones.

Consider this: A Mega Stone was able to promote a pseudo to the ranks of Medieval. In other words, the Elemental Beams just combined the powers of the lives of two hundred Medievals into ten beams, with additional sorting of types of Mega Stones to form the most powerful ability… Even for Groudon, any effects less than passing out that would be unsuiting.

Even so, he was far from dead! However, the League and Rockets were grounded from Mega Evolution, which would severely hinder their later fight with Galactic.

There was no elements of joy… only solemnity.

* * *

A distance away from the scene, Brock watched silently. Suddenly, a tremedous tremble rocked through his body. Mysteriously, he felt his blood boiling and seeping out, like he was punctured with a thousand needles, or being put in a ten-g pressure room!

His head tilted sideways to a direction in the hills. Something there was summoning him- he could detect it!

No! It wasn't summoning him! It was dashing towards him directly! It was a red glow… red… sphere! As it neared, his blood boiled harder!

It wasn't the one doing the summoning! He was!

It looked so familiar… just like… Misty's…

It crashed straight into his chest with force. Instinctively, Brock's hand flew up and clamped it in his fist.

A potent pulsing quaked in his hands. His arm shook. The Red Orb drilled out of his grasp and flew into the air.

A brownish-red fire spiked up from within. A gruff voice echoed out. " _Salutations, Knight of this Era._ "

" _I've never been the courteous Genie or being in the past… I think my personality is restricted by the Red Orb that I am the conscious of…_ "

" _Anyways, Knight! Thank Arceus that Groudon is somehow knocked out by you crazy humans! I hadn't shown my face for dozens of centuries on land! Now, I finally don't have to worry about being captured and used by the damn savage!_ "

Brock's jaw recovered quickly. This was the same thing that happened to Misty… He _knew_ traveling with Ash would deposit on HIM something insane too!

"Wait! Genie? Are you like the soul of the…"

" _Blue Orb? Indeed! Call me Dust._ " The translucent flame wavered. " _Yes, I've been following you and the Princess of the Ocean around for a month now. However, I couldn't risk letting out my scent. Even the slightest disturbance of my resonance could wake up Groudon and lure him to me…_ "

"So you showed up now since…" Brock looked at the passed out giant in the splashy mud.

" _Yep! My intuition with letting Team Magma captured me worked perfectly. At first, logic said that it was way too haphazardly close to Groudon, but it all ended up leading me to you!_ "

"Do you do the same thing as Misty's Water Orb?"

The flame on the Red Orb boosted up to an exaggerated length, as if provoked by a force of anarchy. " _HELL NO! Don't EVER compare me to that soft piece of trash!_ "

" _I'm the epiphany of power! The Blue Orb merely heals and purify! They say water forces through everything, but that's only with freaking decades for the waves to erode the coast!_ "

" _ME!? I can punch through the mountains in one hit!_ " Dust coughed and looked at Brock. " _Granted that you can take in ALL of my power. Then you'll become a Cosmic!_ "

Brock rubbed his hands together in anticipation. "How do I take all of your power."

"... _Become a Formation._ "

"..." The newly pronounced Knight had no response.

"Anyways, I digress!" He said in fits of coughs. "What do we do about Groudon?"

" _Easy fix, since you are here._ " Dust smirked. " _I just need some Blood of Chivalry from you, and I can just tweak that into a bit of a trick._ "

"Wha…" Brock opened his mouth. Blood? This didn't sound good…

"AHH!" He jumped up in surprise as a rock spike formed out of the Orb and dug into his shoulder. Blood poured out onto the construct, which didn't let a single drop fall to waste.

" _Perfect!_ " Dust said, ignoring Brock's glare. " _Now, just a little bit of this… and that…_ "

The Red Orb flashed in multiple shades of crimson. An unknown and mythical symbol floated onto its surface.

It immediately grabbed all of Brock's attention, deflating his original annoyance. Without any residue of power, it already connotated magical senses.

He reached out with a hand…

" _Don't touch!_ " Dust jumped back frantically. " _This isn't for you!_ "

Before Brock could respond, the Red Orb darted off, blurring into a red light, directly for Groudon's body.

Even though it was a penetrating scarlet, none of the Legends or humans on the field seemed to see it. It melted past Latias's psychic barrier and into the Formation's body without any obstruction.

The Land Lord shook violently after it entered. A massive wave of power swept through his body, powering his bodily organs, forcing the injuries to close up, even if they were not even close to healing.

Shocks poked at the Continent Legend's neurons. Groudon's eyes snapped open. Latias's shield broke instantly to pieces, and Articuno, who was perched on top of him, was slung back aggressively. A vibrating disposition blazed stronger and stronger.

The device blaring at him shattered in millions of pieces. Latias yelped and teleported everyone back miles, and she was ready to keep going at any times. Groudon might look bulky, but distance on land was more of a joke to him than any other beings.

But before anyone could even start questioning his abrupt awakening, the Land Lord crouched down in pain, gripping his head.

Under the glow of the sun, a gripping yellow was written all over his body, like a controlling incantation that chained his physique.

Brock's jaw slammed down. That was the symbol Dust drew on the Red Orb… with HIS blood!

Before he could think further, Groudon twisted his head over in his direction and took a giant step, the yellow lines fading slightly.

The enormous eyes of the red Formation stared down at Brock. The people around him ran away in extreme fear, but Brock didn't move. He knew this was supposed to be for him.

" _YOU'RE TOO WEAK! HOW CAN A KNIGHT BE THIS DAMN WEAK! YOU'RE WORSE THAN A RATTATA!_ " Groudon roared into the sky. But even so, he carefully avoid screaming into Brock's ears. If he had did so, the Pewter Leader might have his body blown apart by the sound waves alone.

The disappearing yellow chains rushed back in, more powerful than ever. Groudon fell back down in pain. " _I GET IT, DUST! GET THE HELL OUT OF ME!_ "

A Red Orb, tiny compared to the large Formation, dived out of him and headed for Brock, who snatched it in midair.

Dust's figure popped up. " _If you need to force Groudon to do something and restrict him, just chant your wish or restriction with the Red Orb in your hand."_

The magical incantation that Brock saw before appeared. " _Chant until you see this appear. If Groudon won't follow, then, well… let's just going to say he will have a headache._ "

Dust dusted his hands. " _Problem solved._ "

Brock shook his head. These beings were just… one more horrible than the last.

But afterall, this was perhaps the only way to deal with such a rebellious and violent Formation like Groudon.

* * *

 **A/N: Not a fight scene.**


	111. Cha 110: Orange Islands 26

**Cha. 26**

The giant dark cloud twisted and fumbled on top of Shamouti. The entire inner coast was completely trapped in black smoke. Only the center had a sphere of clearance the size of a small house, lit up by four strands of energy: one blue, two pink, and one gray.

On the outer edge, the blackness sometimes clashed with a tremendous rain cloud flowing from the top. Or, it might stomp into a scarlet cage and dissipate under the bars. On another occasion, a mirror formed in midair, shining a strand of floating light onto the cloud. Magically, the dashing cloud stopped and circled away, as if its original mission _forgotten_.

The most significant was an enormous eye that randomly appeared on the sphere, blasting off penetrating beams that tore through the black cloud with ease.

Domino's voice rang out in mockery. "We could go on like this for ever, Stick figure! Do you mind playing some music for us?"

She wasn't wrong. The four, all of them as Ancients, could regenerate nearly as fast as their energy expended vaporizing the smoke. An Ancient practically had already reached the top of the world. Energy flowed as quickly through them as a hurricane went through land. It was nearly impossible for them to run out of power, unless they were competing against beings of their own level.

In the group's case, the expenditure was even less because of their Paths. When their scent was infused in an attack, it not only became a competition of power, but a competition of will.

That was why Formations were able to destroy Ancients easily. Top Formation's power did _not_ have a exponential difference from Top Ancients. However, the power of Ancients were like a massive, dispersed iron ore, while Formations crafted their attacks into reinforced steel and sliced through everything.

Lugia's Field that he Realized from observing twenty thousand years of weather did not even require energy. It was an eternal cycle as long as he stood. While not strong enough to oppose Stick's completed Field, it was enough to fend off the darkness when concentrated down to a small area.

They had been at a stalemate for nearly three days now. Even the Stick did not believe that they could fend off for this long! He had never seen anything like it at his Universe. Four Ancients against an elite Array? Insane!

After hearing Domino's jab, he finally decided to step in. But even if he was to crush them, the Stick's mood was completely ruined.

His original plan was to arrive on the scene like a God, trap them in the Array, and watch them die as he leaned back. Effect achieved!

Now, his tranquility was thoroughly destroyed, no longer in the mood to act with superiority. A gigantic, smoke-filled fist the size of half of Shamouti condensed in the air and lashed out.

Unlike with Circle, there was no sudden white light that streamed out of a spatial crack. There was not a single hint of the Soul of the Universe.

Why? As the power of the Formation shot into the air, the Dark Array quivered and stopped all of the resonance from vibrating outwards. With the Array in place, the Stick could release his full burn for a short time, until the Array collapsed.

But that small of an interval was enough for them to finish the battle. Long, drawn-out battles were only fought by Cosmics altering the entire realm.

The fist thundered to the middle of the island. Ash growled and raised his arms. A torrent of Aura materialized into a oversized staff and crashed with the fist, splitting it in half!

The Stick was thrown back, shocked from his head to toes. Sure, he wasn't on full burn yet, but… did he just break MY attack?

Ash blinked rapidly. He was prepared to be launched back and have an intimate relationship with the ground. Even Mega Lucario failed against Circle, and this figure before him was clearly stronger.

Could he be… stronger than Lucario!?

Ash had no time to think. The black clouds around him formed hundreds of invisible needles that dashed towards him.

The Aura Guardian's eyes narrowed. Size was never proportional to power. The needles were only more dangerous, their force concentrated on a tiny point that could puncture everything.

But they had their weaknesses as well. Ash stomped his feet on the ground, and a developing tone of command blasted from him. A wild blue poured out into a whirlpool, with him being the eye.

It wasn't a Protect shield. Instead, it was a miniature tornado that pulled everything into its pattern of cycle, while not touching the center at all. The black needles were led aside from their course and collapsed back to black dust after contacting Ash's Aura infused with Forget.

The Stick's brow furrowed deeply. This group was much more difficult than he originally predicted. The reflexive exchange of Aura, manipulation of energy, the perfect control, identification of the situation…

Even isolated, they could stand on their own… These were not normal Ancients!

When he tried to deform the needles into something bigger, like throwing axes, he suddenly detected that… his strand of thought on the controlling smoke had faded.

The Stick did a double take. How did his psychic just fail like that!? An amateur psychic could say that it disappeared as he let go of the thought, but remember! He was a Formation!

Domino knew exactly what he was thinking. When she and Juliet tested their powers against Ash's, they all had the same problem.

Ash's Path of Forgetting deleted any connection they had on their thoughts, and by one matter or another, they couldn't never get their powers to him unless they start a conflict of Paths, which never happened.

The battle of Paths involved no energy, but it was a hundred times worse than the deadliest fight. The battle would go on until one lost, and no one could interfere with it. The loser's Path would fall apart, and his mental state would descend into hysteria and eventually an eternal coma.

The Stick, being the age-old being he was- figured out the same logic in a matter of seconds. When he did, his eyes bulged out in shock and… fear.

The Path of Forgetting!? No one had Realized that Path for the past millions of years in his Universe. Legend had it that it stood as one of the three Ultimates, but no one had actually seen any of them.

His eyes settled into determination… to kill. A Realizer of the Path of Forgetting was destined to become a Cosmic. If the Stick let him go today, his death would be right around the horizon when Ash advanced into Cosmic.

In fact, he didn't even need to become Cosmic. Even at Formation, he could kill the Stick! Formations were a battle of Paths. The stronger and more unique it was, the more powerful!

Didn't the last time Circle see him, he was still a Medieval? So… they crossed a giant barrier that would usually take thousands of years in a matter of… weeks!?

The Stick shuddered at the thought. If they kept up this trend… if he would've delayed coming for them for another year or so… HE might be the one running away.

With the murderous thoughts in mind, Stick lashed out again with another torrent of psychic, overpowering Ash's Aura. Even with his supreme Path, his pool of energy was still small compared to the dark figure.

However, Ash never stood alone. Domino stepped to his side just as the Stick released a wave of black powder. The lovers linked hands. A countering wave of blue and pink glow rushed back at the incoming attack, and the two took four unison steps back, but they were not thrown backwards.

A giant eye emerged from the sky. A sharp red gleam pierced through the waging fog, heading straight for Stick. His hand lit in a translucent glow- which was intended for the duo- and was forced to divert his follow-up attack upwards.

The two beams clashed. The eye snapped close, as if hurt by the recoil of it, but Stick's figure shook as well, stumbling back a step.

As his seemingly unstoppable disposition faltered, Lugia darted towards him. The Legend's Field cancelled out with his, and the Ancient was able to get past his shattered defenses to launch a smashing Aeroblast onto his physique.

The attack was timed perfectly. It was the singular moment during which the Stick was backing up, his energy at the lowest power and his form weak. The attack connected head-on, pushing him back miles into the distance. The entire Array shook.

The four could not believe their eyes. Somehow, they were… winning! Formations were really not scary if their Paths were neutralized!

The Stick's figure halted in midair. His face darkened into the bottom of a pan. This had gone on for long enough!

The smoke of the Array started to condense. Ash's face grew more solemn. He knew he was about to be faced with a deadly attack.

However, the four could do not to stop him from charging. Sure, if they cooperated, they could barely get a hit on if he was complacent and close. However, with this great of a distance, it was impossible.

The smoke shrunk quicker and quicker, and it finally turned into the shape of a trident in the Stick's hand. His hand reached out and snatched it out of the air. His face melted into a cold smile.

A sense of danger never before experienced dawned on the four. Lugia roared and extended his Field to the maximum. Hurricanes, whirlpools, and thunderstorms surrounded Shamouti Island. But even so, he did not feel a strand of protection or relief.

A forty feet tall Aura shadow zoomed into the air above Ash. Two torrents of pink rose as well, twisting together to form the shape of a staff. The Aura shadow stepped forward and grabbed the staff with magnificent strength. The surrounding cycles of weather made it look like a god on earth.

The Stick's arm pulsed back, lingered there for a second, and sliced through the air at a blurring speed, launching the trident through the air.

A trail of darkness ripped through the clear sky, now with the smoke completely gone, making it look as if even light was spliced in two.

The Aura shadow roared and slammed down with staff onto the flying trident. The two made contact. Time lost its meaning.

All colors seemed to have been vaporized, leaving only the image of the two in contact, like an immortal statue.

The two remained in this state for a long time, or a short time. Then, the clock started ticking again, and the staff cracked. The breaks divided into bigger holes, filling up the entire construct.

Little by little, pink flew off and was swallowed by space. The cracks extended down to the shadow's grip, and the entire staff disintegrated.

The cracks did not stop there. It flowed up the body of the blue silhouette, like the pink weapon was connected with it, not an individual weapon.

In a blink, the shadow was poisoned by infinite crevices that one wave from the river of Time could break it.

However, time never got the chance. At the same moment, the black trident punctured the chest of the shadow.

The remaining thunderclouds and storms fell apart under the striking blade. It marched straight for the four.

Ash's eyes bulged out in exertion. Aura Spheres rushed out like rain, mixed with countless Psybeams and Psycho Cuts. Aeroblast flew into the sky without care.

All of them struck against the solid trident without any effect. It continued on without any fault, as if there was nothing that could ever stop it.

Domino growled weakly. Her will roared for her to keep blasting out attacks, but her heart deep down already sealed her fate. There was nothing they could do.

They were wrong. Formations were still beyond scary. They had their Paths, but those weren't it. They still had immense power… at least this one did… as a Top Formation.

The trident popped Lugia's Field like a bubble. There was nothing between the trident, and their physical body.

Nothing would survive. Not the four, not Shamouti Island.

Then, _it_ appeared. It wasn't there before, but now it was. No one saw how it came. It just appeared.

It was a bright glow of pure blue, without a single flaw of defection, sharply contrasting the arriving black trident.

The two connected. A black light swept across half of the island. On the other half, an inpenetrable blue.

The stalemate did not last. The black light spread out into liquefying smoke, which was pushed back dramatically by the blue hue. In an instant, the black was gone, and the entire island was covered in a calming blue. The skies were clear, and no hints of the Array remained.

The pure color condensed back down to its original shape… A Blue Orb.

It all happened so fast that Ash only reacted after it was all over. When he laid eyes on the orb, a sense of familiarity overwhelmed him. This was…

A light flashed out of the orb. As if from the door to another world, a orange-haired girl walked out of the light and smirked at Ash.

"Save your butt again, Ash."

"MISTY!" Surprise flooded him. Why was she here!? How was she here! Ash's own Aura wavered picking up on the energy dripping off her form. "When did you become an Ancient!? What is…"

Before he could continue blubbering on, a roar of immense astonishment exploded from the distance.

" **RELIC?** "

The five snapped their attention back to him, but the Stick was staring at the bright blue orb with amazement and… greed. " **And… a Cosmic Relic…** "

" **What the hell is wrong with this Universe!?** " He stretched his hands out toward the sky. " **How can a Cosmic Relic be held in the hands of an Ancient!? This is… STUPID!** "

"What's a Relic?" Ash turned to Lugia, the knowledgeable elder of the group.

Lugia furrowed his brow. " _I… don't know. I've never heard of it before._ "

" _A Relic is one of most powerful weapon in the world._ " A cool soprano voice rang. Her voice was somewhat strained, carried over a long distance. " _A God Relic could reform the Universe… like Arceus's Plates._ "

The group snapped their heads toward the ocean. Even the Stick turned his attention toward it. He could feel an incredible prescence surfacing.

From the coast of Shamouti, a giant fin cut through the water. An even more gigantuous body of a grand whale surface, revealing Kyogre's full glory.

" _I apologize for being late, Chosen. We went around the radius of Shamouti setting up a even bigger Array for this intruder._ "

The clouds suddenly turned into a royal blue, and pouring rain started to wash down.

Kyogre smirked. " _I haven't tasted the scent of Death in such a long time…_ "

* * *

 **A/N: The concept of Relic is important, and it will be explained in detail.**


	112. Cha 111: Orange Islands 27

**Cha. 27**

" _The concept of Relic didn't appear until_ they _came a hundred thousand years ago._ " Kyogre's voice was quiet, but it was only the cotton that hid a dignified thorn in her tone.

The Stick took a deep breath. " **You're the blue whale that legends spoke of.** "

The controller of the Ocean ignored him " _If you still hadn't figured it out, Chosen Ones, he is from the a separate Universe distinct from ours._ "

" _There is no pokemon in theirs. It is a place of men, of selfish brutes ravaging the world._ "

" **We seek for power! That's why we advance!** " The Stick growled. " **You're ten times older than me, and yet you're still a Formation.** "

Kyogre's eyes sharpened. " _You seek INDIVIDUAL power! I am a Formation, but my power is only a strand of the harmony of this world, so even Cosmics can't touch me!_

" _This Universe has_ rules _, the same rules that sent your Alliance rolling back hundred thousand years ago, fifty thousand years ago, and all of the other wars!_ "

" **Universe!? This is only a collection of a few realms!** " Stick's face reddened in shame and anger. " **You know fully well that we would have wiped this puny realm off the face of the Continuum!** "

" **We had hundreds of Cosmics knocking at your doorstep! Hundreds! That meant hundreds of realms! That's what a true Universe shall be!** "  
Kyogre sneered. " _And then, then what happened?_ "

Smoke zoomed off the trembling Stick. The Legend continued without pause. " _Arceus sent your entire Alliance flailing back, leading your God in a coma. The Unown Lord who betrayed us was forever sealed in a stone, and the passageway was destroyed!_ "

" **And they reopened!** " Stick howled. " **All you have is Arceus, but even he is not eternal! Nothing is! His seal on the realms is breaking loose! After he weakens, there would be nothing that could stop us!** "

" _Us?_ " Kyogre chuckled. " _You mean YOUR institution? Your entire Universe is in anarchy. You could barely manage yourselves after swallowing the majority of the Continuum._ "

" _Too many ethnic groups? Too many separate powers!?_ " Kyogre knew she had predicted right after seeing his seizuring face. " _Didn't think about that when your fathers were thirsting for resources, huh?_ "

The Legend smirked at the Chosens. " _Their Universe is one many times larger than ours, but so much more chaotic._ "

" _But still… they came up with insane, mammoth tools, and they are Relics._ "

" _Relics are made of rare, powerful materials infused with Qi, which is the essence of their world. It is like the Array of our Universe, but they had shrunken it down to a small scale, like a weapon._ "

" _The Relics are divided like the levels of power: Medieval, Ancient, Formation, Cosmics, and the nonexistent God-level Relics._ "

" _Some Relics are powerful in regards to force. For example, a Relic in the shape of a blade could directly add its power onto the owner. A lot of the times, the Relics are even more powerful than the owner, which makes sense. Why else would it be made if the weapon and trainer have the same potency?_ "

Under the Stick's immense glare, a flash of shock splashed in his eyes. He had always thought the Pokemon Hell to be isolated, without any communication with the outside, after Arceus had shut off the passes.

No, that wasn't true. They, or at least Kyogre, knew much more than they let on.

" _However, Force Relics are not the sole use, even though it is the main design. Some are able to be absorbed and power up the owner, but like how a greatly enhanced Mega Stone. Others could be used to affect the beings around you, either casting an area of positive effects on allies or negative on enemies._ "

" _The most mysterious of all are the ones that combines all of these effects into one. They form a world within their own, like a planet all to itself. Those are the ultimate Relics. They stand out in each level. Nothing in the same rank could stop them._ "

" _An ultimate Ancient Relic could destroyed ten of the same level non-ultimate with ease. It could even skip a level and challenge the Formations. So, a trainer holding an ultimate Ancient Relic could even fight a Formation being, which is unprecedented!_ "

A jet of water shot out and pointed at Misty's Blue Orb. " _That, is an ultimate Formation Relic… which could match a Cosmic Relic._ "

She casted a glance towards the Death figure. " _That's why he first thought it as a Cosmic._ "

The Stick's voice lowered. " **So what? Either way, she's an Ancient. She could never use its full power! Ancients could only use Ancient Relics!** "

" _That's why I'm here._ " Kyogre smiled coldly. " _She can't. I can!_ "

The Stick hollered into the air. " **She'll never voluntarily give you something that precious!** "

Kyogre laughed sharply, cutting him off. Extending a fin, she smiled at Misty. " _May I, Princess?_ "

Misty did not hesitate even a blink before throwing it over. The Stick's eyes widened and stared at the redhead in disbelief. Kyogre shook her head. " _This is just… sad. Now do you know why our harmony will always overpower your deformed society!?_ "

" **SHUT UP! You think you're the only one with a Relic!?** " Stick's hand reached into midair. A black hyperspace hole opened, leading to an unknown. From within, a black battleaxe floated outwards.

" _A pre-Formation Relic?_ " Kyogre raised an eyebrow. " _Let's see how much power you dared to put out before the Soul strikes you down!_ "

The Stick glowered and slammed his axe down. A powerful black ripple tore through the air faster and more striking than the smoke trident.

Misty's Blue Orb flew into the air. A surreal illusion of a water world distilled onto the surroundings. The black ripple dove into it… without as much as a splash.

It was the last time the world saw it.

From the top of the water world, the shape of a controlling Illusion submerged. The water started to bubble and power up even more tremendously.

" **A GENIE!?** "

" _Ah yes, forgot to tell you._ " Kyogre looked at the backside of the flowing illusion with a mix of sadness, pride, and acceptance. " _This is not only a ultimate Formation Relic, but also an awakened Relic._ "

Awakened Relics meant exactly how it was interpretted. The conscious within had come to life. The Relic was a Relic in the hands of a trainer, but a being that could fight separately.

The more insane advantage: No longer did the balance of power between trainer and Relic existed! Trainers could wield an awakened Relic as long as the conscious cooperated and their own body could handle the influx of power.

On the other hand, if the conscious refused to cooperate, like in the hands of an enemy, it turned to a slab of stone that could not be manipulated.

Conscious. Simple yet powerful, like an additional layer of tough rules.

The Stick's face could mirror a dying corpse. How did the tide turn so rapidly? He could've sworn he was the one in control merely a few minutes ago!

No! Don't panic! He had been through countless battles! He was an expert! He would make it out alive. There was no doubt! Even Circle's Soul Candle was lit. There was no _possible_ way he could die before Circle!

His grip on his battleaxe tightened, loosened, then tightened. He lowered his head. Kyogre stared at him intently.

After a few seconds, the Stick raised his head again. His face was distorted in misery and… a deep reluctance. He stared at his Relic axe for a long time, and he looked back at Kyogre with a penetrating scowl.

Kyogre hummed. " _Let me guess… you're block my next movements temporarily with the axe, and then you will try to soar out and escape?_ "

The dark figure looked at her silently.

" _Too bad I've already thought about that, squire!_ " Kyogre motioned to the sky. " _If you can break through my Array, which is founded on the base of the entire Orange Archipelago, borrowing from even Arceus's Array, in one move…_ "

" _Then I'll surrender right here._ " The Stick crouched down. Kyogre smirked. She had him trapped… Maybe Cosmics could… and maybe not. Her Array alone at most powerful, while the Original One's could wipe out an entire realm at full force.

A solemn voice broke out of the Stick. " **Sure… sure, you think you're so learned!** "

" **But you're missing one very important concept of Relics, KY-O-GRE!** "

The Stick threw his axe into the air. A blinding darkness pulsed out from within, and a blaring power threatened to roar out. It was not the power of Formation anymore. It was much past it… past even Top Formation…

Kyogre's face twisted into horror and surprise as a hidden thought submerged. She cried into the air, and the Blue Orb made no further efforts to stop Stick.

Instead, it zoomed backwards to cover herself and pulled Ash, Domino, Juliet, and Lugia into the bubble. Within an instant, the giant world shrunk back down to the size of an orb that offered maximum protection.

A piercing boom of a deafening detonation raced across the surface of the ocean. Hundreds of miles inland, the thunderous clap still roared.

The Blue Orb was pummeled into the water. However, even so, its surface was barely scathed… unlike Shamouti Island.

The entire island had disappeared under the self-destruction of the battleaxe Relic. A mushroom cloud of power rushed up and connected with Kyogre's Array.

The proclaimed invincible barrier trembled under the pressure of the explosion. Within three seconds, cracks started forming. By the end of the three, the clear blue sky broke into pieces, revealing the true sky outside… a muddy grey.

There was no doubt that the explosion could blow apart the Array and anything around it. The Relic was of pre-Formation level. The sudden detonation was the release of a normal pre-Formation's glorious life into one single moment.

The destruction was… unbearable. Even a Cosmic couldn't deal a hit this suppressing. What was more striking… the Soul would never intervene if the explosion was caused by self destruction.

The thing possibly capable of ruining the world was gone forever. There was nothing for the Soul to repress. Why should it care if the world had been blown apart!? He was the Soul, not a babysitter!

From the cloud of the eruption, the Stick's figure darted out in a wild frenzy. His entire figure was tattered like an old rag. Strips of his condensation hund from his body, which was replaced with a transparent light instead of the solid darkness.

He had to face the power of the explosion to get to the side of the destroyed Array. He needed every blink he could get, even if it meant trudging impossibly through the insane explosion. If he didn't… Kyogre could easily catch up to him and bring him down.

It didn't matter that it was his Relic, or that it was him who initiated the explosion. It was like a mortal throwing a grenade. Once it was out of his hand, its power was out of his control as well.

But either way… he could see freedom.

The Blue Orb shook in the air, full of fury. However, none of them could get out against the forces of the residue explosion pressuring against them. All they could do was to look at the Stick slide out of their closing hand.

Suddenly, faster than anyone could react, a yellow light flashed out of the Blue Orb and into the sky.

The remaining power of the detonation seemed to have no effect against it, as the yellow beam ascended without any signs of friction.

It was faster than even the quickest thought. This was a beam of light itself… a beam of lightning!

The grand yellow smashed into the Stick's deteriorated form with the power of a Formation. Like a meteorite, the two plunged into the ocean together.

In the next instant, a massive wave of current lit up the entire Southern Kanto Sea. It kept up for nearly two minutes before the glaring yellow finally disappeared.

The Blue Orb spat everyone back out and looked at the scene with jaws dropping. Even Kyogre shook from the torrentuous electricity. In fact, a sense of fear that didn't even exist when she was facing off Stick formed.

Suddenly, the surface of the water broke, and a full black orb zoomed out and dashed at an immense speed into the distance.

Ash instinctively raised his hand, glowering with Aura threatening to pulse out, trying to stop it. Kyogre stopped him with a small Water Gun.

" _No use. No attacks could catch up. A soul without the body is way too fast…_ "

Before she could finish, an unstoppable beam of lightning propelled out from the sea and raced into the distance at the speed of light itself.

It was so fast it encircled the orb a dozen times before it could go any further. In the distance, a globe of pure electricity lit up the shores of Pallet Town, right next to Professor Oak's ranch.

When it faded, the orb was tangled in chains of yellow, with a very smug Pikachu floating above it.

* * *

When Ash arrived at the coast a minute later, Pikachu pounced into his chest.

" _ASH!_ "

"Pikachu!"

The two might both be so much more powerful than before Pikachu fell into unconsciousness, but the two's bond was as immortal as before.

Ash looked at his starter with a proud glance. "Formation!? You're my first Formation Pokemon!"

" _Why am I not surprised?_ " Pikachu laughed without the least bit of humility. " _Not bad yourself, Ash! Ancient already? I need to get the team training their butts off! What had this world come to!? They can't let their trainers be stronger than them!_ "

Ash laughed along with the yellow mouse. He hadn't had this good of a day since the slaughter of the six islands.

He was with Pikachu now.

"Hey, so you found your Path?"

" _Yeap!_ " Pikachu tilted his head skyward. " _The Path of Surrealism. In the maze of consciousness, I Realized the true meaning of real and fake._ "

" _A dead end may be a open path, while an open path may be a dead end… which would become open yet again!_ " Pikachu took a look at his beloved trainer. " _Now, I'm able to convert both my physical form and energy temporarily to an illusion unaffected by physics._ "

" _It's actually how I got through the waves of explosion when woke up three minutes ago._ " Pikachu's tail wagged happily. " _Sorry, I'm ranting. You won't understand my Path. You haven't gotten to that level yet._ "

Ash smirked. A blue glow pulsed up in his hands with his distinct scent of Forget. Pikachu did a double take. " _Wait, WHAT!?_ "

"Wrong prediction, Pika." The Chosen smiled. "I did actually Realize my Path of Forgetting. It's how I got into Ancient."

" _I feel like I just missed a giant chunk of adventure by going to sleep._ " Pikachu rubbed his head against Ash's arm passionately. " _You're filling me in on EVERYTHING!_ "

" _And you're going to start by telling me…_ " Pikachu patted the constricted soul-orb below him, ears bounced from side to side. " _Who the hell were you fighting!? Why was his scent so similar to the humanoid we battled at Bronton Island!?_ "

* * *

 **A/N: Return of Pikachu. You really think I'm going to let Kyogre have all of the thunder? Heck no! xD**


	113. Cha 112: Orange Islands 28

**Cha. 28**

Kyogre hummed with slight displeasure. She could count the bare times that she was ignored over the last millennium when she was directly in front of someone's face. Misty, linked telepathically with her, smirked and coughed.

Pikachu and Ash were pulled out of their own world and turned to the group, laughing awkwardly.

The five gave an universal eye roll. Misty spoke up. "Pikachu, meet Kyogre."

" _The great Lord of the Ocean?_ " Pikachu smiled up at her, a challenging look flashing across his eyes dangerously.

Ash detected the flash immediately. His heart quaked slightly and squeezed his starter. Pikachu pouted at him and sighed. " _Pleasure to meet you, ma'am._ "

Kyogre's face twitched. " _Ma'am? Am I that really that old!?_ "

The group gave her some very loud looks. Even Lugia cringed. Kyogre looked down and muttered. " _Okay fine… don't answer that…_ "

Their laughter was interrupted by an abrupt shake under Pikachu. There was a small spot that had penetrated Pikachu's electric chains and was threatening to snake out.

Pikachu glared and sparked. The entire orb lit up in a bright yellow, followed by an indignant cry.

It quaked harder. A torrent of explosive energy threatened to pour out. Kyogre's eyes narrowed. " _Trying to self combust again!?_ "

When the Stick blew up his axe and almost escaped, she was beyond furious. Never had a prey reached out of her grasp! Fortunately, her pride was saved by Pikachu jumping out.

Seeing him try the same process again, she was furious. Her size shrunk dramatically to the size of a normal human and dashed ashore, her power only stronger than ever.

The Blue Orb fell from Misty's hand onto the golden cross on her forehead. A single drop of water resembling half of her expansive power materialized and flew onto Pikachu's lightning chains.

Upon contact, the yellow lightning turned so bright it became invisible. Pikachu's mouth opened in excitement and surprise. Like Grass could boost Fire, Water enhanced Electric to an immense degree. Pikachu cried out in exhilaration as Kyogre's power fused with the Blue Orb temporarily soared his level deep into the Formation ranks.

With a deathly shriek, the black orb became purely yellow, which faded down to a pure water, liberated by Water and Lightning, the two most cleansing force in the eighteen.

Stick of Death Force. Dead… how ironic.

* * *

Unbeknownst to the beings, an unconscious collection of brain waves floated out of the orb. This was no longer 'Stick,' but purely just telepathic waves floating through the air.

In its view, the world was made of a deep gray, with passing black streaks. One dashed extremely close to its presence- however distance was measured in that state. If even one made contact, the entire collection would be diminished in a snap.

It glided through the air without aim. If it kept up, it would eventually be hit by one and disintegrate.

However, before another streak passed by, a sudden force jerked it commandingly in a direction. The brain waves, though massive in stature, could do nothing against it, since there was no motivation to anyways.

In a blink, the waves were sucked through a colorful pathway, past mysterious numbers on… the side of a tunnel, and into…

The coast of Pallet Sea? It was identical with the real Pallet Sea… only that a giant lab floated in midair against gravity, and dozens of Pokémon was dashing around, spurring up Ancient level powers… and some even Formation.

That was its last sight. Before the waves could do anything else, the colors rushed out of the tunnels and ate into it,..

* * *

Oak did a double take as the monitor of the lab flashed in giant red lights. Dr. Fuji and Dr. Akihabara materialized in the lab at the same time.

"What's going on!?"

Professor Oak placed his hands down onto a few keys. A map of the experiemental satellites popped up. A few scans later, an image set showed up.

All three of their jaws dropped at the same time. No one said a word… mostly because the situation was, well, incomprehensible.

The chart showed the even virtual world expanding outward at a ridiculous rate that trumped even the speed of light. It had already went past the furthest barrier of the earthly solar system, reaching deep into the unknown space, and showed no signs of stopping.

"Wha…"

"Did you activate the other servers!?"

"NO! Did you!?"

"NO!"

Before long, the extent of the realm had already went past even the total radius that the world formerly expanded to even when all one hundred servers were on.

Oak's eyes froze in disbelief at his center screen. "Guys… we'll still running on… one server."

Fuji snatched a chair over and slammed his hands down at a side keyboard, typing furiously. "I'm linking up with Tracey right now. This must be an external issue… which isn't a bad one, to be fair."

Communications from the outside into the servers were extremely difficult because of the alteration of time, but it was as easy to taping a button trying to send it back out, as long as the three chief scientists reverted the passing of time back in parallel with reality.

Tracey's face popped up on the monitor a few seconds later. "Professors! How's…"

"Tracey! What's going on!?" Oak yelled.

The lab assistant tilted his head and held up a half-drawing of an unfinished Leaf portrait. "I'm planning my anniversary present?"

"Nevermind that!" Oak shouted with streaks of panic. "Check the server controls to the one we're using!"

Tracey finally came to realization that something was seriously wrong. He popped out of his chair and dived into the main screen of the setup.

A few seconds later, he looked up with an eerie face of… annoyance.

"Come on, Docs! This isn't funny. We're still half a year until April Fools!"

Professor Oak wanted to rip his hair out of his head. "What are you TALKING abou!? What does the controls say!?"

"..." Tracey sighed. "That everything is completely normal, with the power usage decreasing with hundredfold so that you could play a trick on me?"

The three scientists blinked. The artist shook his head. He never knew that scientists were such good actors. Didn't comic books always feature them as robotic nerds?

"Set up the evacuation system. We're heading out." Dr. Akihabara threw down one last sentence before the connection stopped.

Tracey went to scratch his head, but nonetheless complied and rolled on his chair over to the center lever.

* * *

After a blinding flash, the entire digital world's population was kicked out into reality. Most Pokémon materialized in the ranch, while Oak, Fuji, and Akihabara appeared in the lab.

Sparing only an unconcentrated glance to a waving Tracey, the three rushed at the controls panel. Tracey's hand stopped in midair and awkwardly went to his head.

"Lunatics…"

His initial awe of the Kanto Professor had long melted into a more playful relationship through the repetitive antics of the last timeline. He still respected them, no doubt, but his feelings are less controlling and fearful, but rather a familial love.

The three researchers nearly collapsed in disbelief. Oak's finger shuddered as he pointed. "Are we… are we under… the influence of morphine!?"

"Morphine don't cause illusion. You mean LSD." Dr. Fuji muttered. "I… don't… think so?"

"Slap me."

 _*PL CK!_

"Not that HARD!"

Tracey held his head in confusion. Okay, the three weren't playing a trick on him… their attention span was never this focused unless it was about science. "What's going on, Docs?"

Akihabara pointed a shaky finger to the monitor. "The thing is operating at a hundredth of the power that it had… and it was expanding like crazy when we were still inside."

Tracey coughed as realization struck him. "WAIT… so what you're saying is that its power demand was suddenly cut by ninety-nine PERCENT!?"

The three scientists nodded collectively. Tracey fell off his chair.

Before the three could recover from the miraculous amazement, a green light flashed into the lab. Celebi's transparent figure condensed. " _The Chosen Triad had come… and the Princess of the Ocean had seemed to finally awakened her powers._ "

None of her heard her, too busy staring at the computer. She sighed. " _I just looked back in time, and I think I might have found the solution to your conundrum._ "

Their trance was immediately broken. Oak spun around and grabbed onto the Time Traveler with might. "WHAT!?"

" _You're hurting me!_ " Celebi pouted.

"Stop bullcrapping! You're a Formation, and I'm not in the digital world, so I'm a mortal." Oak shouted with anxiety. "I'm going to start tickling you if you don't SPILL!"

" _Okay, okay!_ " Celebi laughed and danced out of his hands. " _To understand everything, I need to start with the topic of the Death Universe…_ "

* * *

" _Yeah, so that's about everything that had happened while we're in the digital world, says my past timelines._ " Celebi paused.

" _So when Pikachu destroyed the Soul Orb, its unconscious soul floated out, and I saw it through the time-frames that it floated into the digital world and it started its sudden advancements._ "

" _That gave me an idea. Remember how we were so puzzled about how the digital expanded the FIRST time?_ " Celebi stopped again with dramatic effects, earning her daggers from the Professors.

" _Apparently, I looked back and saw the soul of the first Death Figure Ash and them killed floated into the system, but it was only a sixth. This time, it was a complete soul!_ "

" _Also, I realize that the unconscious soul couldn't be seen with visual eyes, or even Aura and psychic. It's a nonexistent concept that could only been seen through the eyes of other Concepts, which I did by flipping back time._ "

" _That's why none of us saw what happened last time, and I didn't look back._ "

"Wait!" Oak waved his hands frantically. "You're saying that these souls could… power up and upgrade the virtual universe!?

" _Theoretically…_ "

Literal beams of light shone out of the eyes of the three scientists. Millions of ideas popped up.

Celebi sighed. " _Can you three crazy psychos put your thoughts to the side first and come with me to greet the group?_ "

"Of course! Of course!" Fuji rubbed his hands with a wide smile. "We need to _borrow_ that orb anyways!"

* * *

With a flash by the coast, Celebi and the four humans appeared in the center of the gathering of the Chosens, already mingling with their Pokémon that had just come out from the virtual world.

Kyogre detected the powerful scent instantly. Her eyes met with Celebi's, and the Water Legend's flickered with surprise. " _Celebi? When did you become a Formation?_ "

" _It was either nine years ago or one year ago._ " The Time Traveler did not respond for a while. " _Whenever Dialga's Concept started to flow into me…_ "

" _What's your…_ " Kyogre hesitated and stopped. " _Sorry, didn't mean to intrude._ "

" _My Path?_ " Celebi shrugged. " _It's fine if you know. The Path of Perception… condensed from my millions of years of experience watching the timelines._ "

" _What does that do?_ "

Celebi tossed a look to Ash. " _You'll see soon… knowing how much chaos comes with each Chosen._ "

* * *

 **A/N: We're nearing the end of the Orange Islands Arc, my friends!**


	114. Cha 113: Orange Islands 29

**Cha. 29**

Oak pulled the white orb out of the MRI with care.

"Anything?" A voice behind him echoed.

"Nope… just enough energy to power this entire world for a few years." Professor turned around to Fuji. "All stored in this little, easily combustible sphere."

Dr. Fuji coughed. "That was once held in Pikachu's hands."

"Yep…"

"But no soul?"

"Well, I don't exactly know 'soul' looks like, but there is no remnants of waves, just a giant pool of energy without any controls."

" _Why are you scientists so skeptic?_ " An exasperated Celebi flew down from the ceiling. " _I already said that the soul was consumed by the servers._ "

Oak an Fuji ignored her and continued to stare at the orb. Celebi rolled her eyes and teleported in a bucket of ice cream. " _If you really want to see something, you might want to get another orb with a real soul inside to compare._ "

"Where would we find THAT?" The Kanto Professor's head snapped up.

" _That's for you to figure out. My job is to keep calm and sort out timelines._ "

* * *

"You need a soul?" Ash repeated after his mentor.

Professor Oak nodded vigorously. "Yep! Do you have one!?"

Pikachu held his head. It was only a few hours after his awakening and weirdness are already exploding.

"Ummm… I… what!?" Ash pointed to the ranch. "A soul? Don't we all theoretically have one?"

Dr. Fuji sighed. "What Sam is saying is do you have another orb like Pikachu's one that contains a soul that was not disintegrated."

"Prof! Who do you think I am, a satanic servant!?" Ash blinked rapidly. "I just go around carrying people's souls!?"

"Of course not, Ash my boy!" Professor Oak patted his shoulder. "But seriously, all kidding aside, do you know anywhere where there is a similar structure like your orb?"

" _You're out of luck. That orb was the remains of a Death Creature that traveled from another Universe._ " Kyogre, who was lying on the beach in her shrunken form, was in the process of making a pond for herself. " _He's probably the one and only._ "

"Wait! I just thought of something!" Domino shouted. "He's NOT the one and only!"

Ash widened his eyes in realization as well. "That's right! Remember the slaughter at the six islands? The murderer was also a Death Figure!"

"And his soul orb splitted into six pieces!" Juliet added. "When we destroyed his physical body on Bronton Island, four of the six pieces also exploded. There are still two hanging around this world somewhere!"

Domino snapped her finger. "So we just need to find the other two…"

"Actually… one." Misty interjected and scratched her head. "I might have… eaten one."

The jaws of the humans and Pokémon fell. Misty coughed. "With the help of the Blue Orb… that's how I suddenly become an Ancient."

"So one left?" Oak concluded. "Any ideas where that might be?"

"Easy." Misty held up her orb. "If there's a way to project the senses of the Blue Orb across the world, Illusion can easily locate an impurity as strong as the scent of Death."

"Got it." The regional Professor turned back to the lab. "Time to make an enormous microphone…"

* * *

Groudon huffed. " _Just because you're a Genie doesn't mean I can't hit you!_ "

The Red Orb Genie, Dust, sneered. " _Really? I freaking dare you._ "

The Lord of the Land roared and swiped at the giant holograph that stemmed out of the orb, which passed right through.

Dust shook his head. " _Big, dumb idiot._ "

Brock rubbed the brim of his nose. "Can we not be mature and…"

" _NO!_ "

" _HELL NO!_ "

Brock sighed. Of course Misty got the calmer Legend…

" _Look who hid from me for millennium!_ "

" _That was before Brock came!_ " Dust shot back. " _Each time I run from you, I lose so much energy! Then I fall asleep for centuries!_ "

" _You could've just let me use you!_ "

" _And then you pass out from your flirting with Kyogre and leave me uncharged anyways!_ "

" _IT'S A FREAKING BATTLE!_ "

" _Yeah, one to build sexual tension probably…_ " Dust gave him a instigating look. " _The amount of tension built up in the last hundred thousand years could probably rival Regigigas's sperm count…_ "

"Jesus LORD! Why did Ash have to teach me Pokémon!?" Brock yelled into the air. "Also isn't Regigigas a ROBOT!?"

" _Not after he became Formation. Any Formation being could turn into human._ " Groudon answered. " _We just never do because it's pointless._ "

" _Wasn't that your plan for that date with Kyogre sixty thousand years ago?_ "

" _YOU MEAN THE WAR OF CONTINENTAL SHIFT!?_ "

" _Precisely._ "

"We're here… Thank Arceus." Brock muttered and jumped down from Groudon's back. The Red Orb glowed as a red barrier formed around the teen, keeping him afloat.

Below him was the remains of Mt. Frost, out of which Groudon popped after being summoned. The lava had stopped, consciously by Groudon. Even though his arrival was marked by disaster, it was simple enough for him to regulate its power as well.

" _Yep… this was the place where I first smelled the scent that Dust described._ " Groudon said. " _I didn't think much about it, since I was still groggy from waking up. Plus, it disappeared soon after._ "

" _Of course you didn't think._ " Dust snorted. " _When did you?_ "

" _SHUT UP YOU LUMP OF TURD!_ "

" _Look who's talking!?_ "

"PEOPLE! PLEASE!"

Groudon and Dust each backed down a bit at Brock's command. Groudon continued. " _Of course, now I remember that it's the Death scent that we faced a hundred thousand years ago._ "

" _You were there for that war as well, Dust._ "

" _It wasn't just a hundred thousand years ago._ " For the first time, the Red Orb was solemn. " _It was fought on all timelines. I remember Cosmic powers opening time sequences to other timelines, like the one fifty thousand years ago._ "

" _Yeah… the one who just popped out of nowhere and blew apart the solar system?_ " The Legend closed his eyes, showing a rare emotion. " _Good thing we have Celebi to modify the entire history._ "

Brock blinked rapidly at the immense weight of the information that just got dumped onto him. But before he could react, the two beings were done with reminiscing.

Dust's giant illusion pointed to a south-eastern direction. " _Even though everything stinks with your horrid breath, the scent definitely went this way._ "

Groudon said nothing and changed direction. He could disagree with Dust on most things, but his ability to detect Death is universally agreed upon. Brock landed back onto his head.

The giant stomped on, each step crossing dozens of miles by the second.

* * *

He could feel the underground cavern shake. He could feel even more strongly the seeking strand that had locked onto his being, and the legendary power behind that strand.

It was a power that even he, at his peak, could not win against. In this form… he'll probably be turned to a pancake, soul and all.

Marauder gave a bitter smile and sat down. His skull exploded open, and a sixth of a black orb zoomed out towards the opening of the cavern.

On the black orb was a clear red dot. The vast power of land and rocks poured out from the single mark.

It raced towards the sea at a lightning pace. From the many records detailing the Great War, he knew that only one being of the Pokémon world possessed this signature scent: Groudon.

Groudon hates water. He could only be safe there.

The orb raced on. Groudon chased on.

* * *

Misty was sipping on her piña colada when her Blue Orb suddenly popped out of her chest and started vibrating like crazy.

Illusion materialized and looked into the distance. His voice was stern. " _Death incoming._ "

At the same time, Kyogre picked up her head from her pool, which had now turned into a river that flowed into the Pallet Sea. " _Welp… we won't need that microphone now…_ "

Her eyes traveled deeper into the distance. She couldn't see that far, but the presence behind the Death Scent, presumably chasing it, was an even more stimulating smell that had accompanied her since birth and every single major event in her life… including her first period…

That was an awkward…

The blue whale dived through the river back into the ocean. In an instant, she expanded back up to her gigantuous size. The water around her began to bubble up as dark clouds started to form.

Pouring rain and sharp winds emerged from the distance. But instead of aiming it at the disposition of her counterpart, her attention was focused on a black dot that was dashing around in her Aqua-sense.

For only the fourth time since their birth, Kyogre manipulated the winds into a pattern that only the Weather Trios could recognize. She hadn't used this encryption for a hundred thousand years… and she never wanted to.

It was the symbol of a peace treaty between Land, Sea, and Sky, which never happened unless there was something that required the cooperation of all three Formations…

Now THAT, was scary.

With a flash, Misty hopped onto Kyogre's back. At this distance, she could also feel the incoming presences, albeit a step behind the two.

Ash, Pikachu, Domino, and Juliet also stormed out of the lab. Lugia descended from the clouds and perched next to Kyogre. The entire coast of Pallet was ovreflowed with hidden power waiting to detonate.

Surely enough, the quaking of the mountains just over the town boomed. A giant red foot hopped across them, followed by another foot. Then, Groudon's giant stature was in full display. The winds behind him roared in the same format as Kyogre.

In front of him, there was an invisible black orb dashing for the sea. However, in the eyes of the Ancients, Formations, and technological geniuses, the foreign energy was like a firefly in pure darkness.

It halted with a screech at Pallet Town. By now, even with its reduced power, it could sense the mighty beings waiting for him by the shore… an alliance even stronger than the one chasing him.

A desperate cry echoed through Pallet Town. Another stomp struck down behind the orb. He could smell Groudon's breath on him.

By the coast, Kyogre smirked. " _Groudon and I never cooperate… but when we do, there is nothing on this planet that could escape Land and Sea!_ "

The orb quivered. After a second of hesitation, it released a scream and dashed straight upwards for the clouds.

Kyogre raised an eyebrow. Groudon raised an eyebrow. Upwards? That was even worse than choosing between them two!

A golden beam of light decimated the clouds and formed an irresistable shining cage around the dark orb. A green, snake-like dragon followed a blink after and wrapped itself around the cage.

The dragon was a magnificent creature, its aura trumping even that of Groudon and Kyogre. Just by being there, it was like a sturdy pillar that held up the world- unable to be ignored.

Its voice roared over the mountains and waters. " _WOW! I didn't think I'll live to see the day you two lovebirds actually working together after the War!_ "

" _SHUT UP RAYQUAZA!_ " Precipice Blades and Origin Pulses filled the air at once.

The Sky Lord's laughter boomed through Pallet. " _Usually I charge for my service, but I'll waver it seeing that the world isn't under destruction with you two meeting!_ "

" _Fancy meeting you, Chosen! Chosen Queen! Dukess! Princess! Knight! Chosen's mentor! Almost the entire Royal house is here!_ "

Rayquaza's form threw the golden cage entrapping the black orb downwards. " _Anyways, I'll leave you to your peace! Giovanni asked me to not come down from the Sky Tower until he calls! Good luck with Cyrus!_ "

The green form dashed upwards, faster than the arrival of the attacks, and ascented.

The golden cage slowed as it reached the ground, eventually becoming a floating container just above Professor Oak, who reached up and grabbed it.

The golden bars had materialized from energy into a solid form, a demonstration of one of the hardest tricks of the Formation level. The dark orb within struggled furiously.

However, it was unable to do anything, not even self-combust. Professor Oak and Dr. Fuji bowed towards the clouds and turned to the direction of the lab, trusting that the "Royals" would take care of everything.

* * *

Two Formations, both alike in dignity,

In fair Pallet, where we lay our scene.

From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,

Where ocean waves make landheld sticks unclean.

From forth the fatal loins of these two foes,

A pair of star-crossed lovers destroyed the world.

Not really, since the world had turned to Ash,

Princess and Knight both promising cake.

The fearful passage of their death-marked love,

And the continuance of the temptation of cake,

Which, but through their peace, could be gained,

Is now the shortcutted traffic of our stage.

The which if you with patient ears attend,

What here shall miss, too bad, go imagine it all.

* * *

 **A/N: Thus concludes, Sign of Times, Arc II, Orange Islands.**


	115. Cha 114: Orange Islands 30

**Cha. 30: Orange Islands Summary**

Okay, so a lot of things happened in the past month! The goal was one chapter a day, and Arc II lasted for a month precisely. The following Arcs are planned to be longer, lasting for two months each- 60 chapters.

My goal is to finish Sign of Times before I head off to college, which will begin a new journey of stress and excitement.

That being said, I covered a lot of material in the Orange Islands Arc. Mainly, it was the start of the transition from Nintendo Pokémon to a world that I envision.

Yes, there was materials cover in the Kanto Arc, but it was more like loose concepts that were just thrown in. Orange Archipelagos explained a lot of the materials, which I highly recommend that you make sure you grasp, for that they will be really important in the next Arcs.

Of course, I will also go back to review and edit some of the Kanto and Orange Islands chapters to make ideas less confusing. I know that a lot of my writing is really abstract, but bear with me, please.

 ***Path**

 ***Relics**

 ***Rankings**

 ***Digital World**

***Concepts**

 ***Death Universe**

In the next few Arcs, they will all clash in one giant bolt of fireworks. So, look forward to that!

A little summary of Orange Islands just as a review:

We started the new arc with the arrival of Circle and Stick, two originally-Top-Formations from the Death Universe. Circle is an energy manipulator, and Stick is a psychic. Stick floated into the ocean to meditate to regenerate the powers lost during the travel, while Circle massacred six islands to obtain life forces.

When Ash and co. heard news, they rushed into the scene and fought Circle, while Stick was on another errand. A major battle broke out, ending in Circle's physical form destroyed and two pieces of his soul escaping. Pikachu and Mewtwo each got part of his soul and went into a slumber to Realize their Paths to Formation.

A part of his soul was released into the world, and it was later absorbed by Professor Oak's digital world servers. By some mysterious functions, it boosted the technology to an inconceivable magnitude that could create a virtual reality part of the Continuum that extended to the moon.

As the Circle's orb escaped, it possessed Rocket elite and spy in Magma- Marauder, who later also infested another Rocket elite and Aqua spy- Matori. With their body, Circle instigated a war between the Legion of Team Magma and Aqua of Hoenn and the Alliance of Kanto League and Team Rocket to gain blood essences to heal.

Circle did so by capturing and killing a massive amount of Aqua and Magma spies that the Alliance sent into the Legion, their identifications gained from Marauder and Matori's memory. In the process, Circle captures Misty and Brock in the Magma Labyrinth.

Misty awakened the Blue Orb, a Cosmic level Relic that Kyogre used to undergo Primal Reversion, and her soul as the Princess of the Ocean. She smashed out of the Labyrinth, and saved Brock.

Unbeknownst to them, the Red Orb, the other Cosmic Relic Groudon used to Primal Reverse, collected by Team Magma for Groudon's summoning, was trailing them out because of Brock's identity as the Knight of Foundation.

When the duo escaped, they found themselves in the middle of a giant war that had broken out between Team Aqua and the Alliance. Aqua had summoned Kyogre from the Bamboo River, and she was wrecking havoc across the land.

With the help of Ancients across the globe, Misty calmed and defeated Kyogre, taking her into the Blue Orb. In the process, she killed one of Circle's remaining two soul orbs and became an Ancient herself.

Meanwhile, Ash and co. had fallen trap to the Abyss, a powerful ruins encased in the Temple of the Sea. Within, they Realized their own Paths, and they became Ancients after a few months.

The war in Hoenn escalated to a peak in the several months, and Team Magma had no choice but to sacrifice a majority of the Team to release Groudon. Giovanni revealed an ultra-technology developed in Rocket that blasted Groudon to unconsciousness, proving for the first time that human technology could match the power of Formation Pokémon.

Brock intervened and, with the help of the Red Orb, tamed Groudon and pulled him away from a match to the death with the Alliance.

When Ash and co. came out of the Abyss, they detected the beginning of Grouodn's rise. However, on their way to helping the Alliance, they were trapped by an Array made by Stick, who sought revenge for Circle's alleged death.

Through a tough fight, they were cornered and were about to be killed by him when Kyogre showed up with Misty, having tasted the scent of an impurity. With her help and the power of the Blue Orb, Stick's physical form was destroyed.

When his soul was about to escape, Pikachu awakened as a Formation and dashed after it, catching it by Professor Oak's lab and chaining it in electricity. When its soul was evaporated, it turned to unconscious brain waves that was absorbed by Oak's servers, giving it yet another giant boost, this time so wide Oak could simulate a galaxy without much energy.

Oak was inspired to experiment with the orb. With the help of Groudon, Kyogre, and Rayquaza, Circle's last soul orb was cornered and captured, thus ending the first invasion of the Death Universe in the Pokémon Universe. Kanto reached the end of its war with Hoenn, and will be turning its head toward Sinnoh.

Concluding, Arc II, Orange Archipelago, Sign of Times.

* * *

Okay, so I don't actually have too much emotions to spill as I finish this arc. Afterall, it has just been a month. However, I am a bit sad because I had two really big scenes that I didn't get to write in because of the thirty-day time constraint I gave myself.

For example, there was going to be a giant Array scene and a war with Hoenn. I hope I can tweak that into the Johto Arc starting next week.

But besides that, I think the Arc did go very well. I threw in all of the preparatory information I planned for. Maybe some of them have to be explained with more analogies and details, as I had mentioned before, but I feel that the overall value was entertaining.

There will be a poll set up on my home page. Please take two minutes to look at it. The poll is to rate my clarity of the new concepts (Relics, Array, etc.) from 1 to 5, with 1 being easily misunderstood and 5 being you fully grasp what I am saying.

Again, thank you all for reading! Please advertise Sign of Times to your friends and fellow readers! I hope to see this family grow and prosper in the upcoming future!

I'm going to spend the next few days writing out an outline for the upcoming sixty chapters! See you all next week!

Best,

Your favorite Crator.


	116. Cha 115: Johto 1

**Johto 1**

Cynthia frowned. In front of her was piles upon piles of documents, all of which entailing the same issue that had swept across the Home Islands: the colonization of Hoenn in the hands of the Kanto-Rocket Alliance.

It was a completely new course of politics she had to deal with, especially with the emergence of Rocket as a world power. It was the first time since the Imperial Era that a non-democratic organization was unveiled in the eyes of the people as a republic.

However, there was nothing any standard League government could do about it. Not to address the superior power that it had demonstrated- Ancients and weapons of mass destructions- the leadership and governance in itself could match any established League.

In short, the new Rocket League of Hoenn could match- and in some cases, surpassed regions like Unova or Orre- the current Leagues from power to stability. All it required was public support, which skyrocketed during after its chivalrous fight against the Hoenn team.

For the experts, they could clearly see the Rockets' efforts in taking over Hoenn. However, to the public, all they were doing in spending their own resources to maintain a collapsing area.

The League could do nothing to sway public support. It wasn't a strategem. It was a schemeless act of openness.

Cynthia rubbed her forehead and placed down the final report. She could not believe _he_ had actually fulfilled his end of the challenge taking the darker path. She beated him by fifteen years, but that was only because she took the more morally pleasing side.

Champion… she thought in amusement. She had taken the Championship for sixteen years. It took one year to unify the last administration into a work of her own.

After that… it was cruising for the next one and a half decade. Sometimes, the mighty woman thought, it did get quite lonesome, standing at the top of the peak.

Shaking her head, Cynthia tossed the thoughts out of her mind. She reached to a lamp that had stayed with her for twenty years, and closed it.

With her Pokébelt still on, she leapt into her queen-sized bed, not at all feeling the spheres next to her uncomfortable.

The moon lit up the floor dimly through the pale window, and the Sinnoh Champion closed her eyes.

* * *

Giovanni took a gulp of his coffee. His mug never left the room. It was a sign of weakness to use foreign substances to supply his body with chemicals. There were only a handful of people who had witnessed him with coffee.

It was the same policy with alcohol. The Rocket Boss had never broken his sober-oath after getting drunk at nine and whipped by Madame Boss.

A knock sounded at the door. Giovanni didn't answer. After three seconds, however, the lock twisted, and Zero entered with… another stack of paper.

The Elite, trembling slightly as he walked- even after being purified by Xerneas's Heal Block- had in his arms a hill of papers, which were piled onto Giovanni's desk, already filled with the white terror.

Even with as deep of a tolerance as the Boss, Giovanni still let out a heavy groan. Zero grinned. "Having fun leading, m'Lord?"  
The Boss, face cold, growled and gave him a look of death. Zero smirked. "Would you like some help?"

Giovanni huffed and took half of the stack and dumped it onto the other side of his desk. "I was about to send Persian out at you…"

"Well, I'm glad he's healed." Zero pulled over a chair and started running his hand through the sheets. "Bust seriously, how much more work is there?"

"So freaking much…" Giovanni muttered. "In Team Rocket, all we needed to care about is power and economy. Now, we have to deal with nitty-gritty crumbs like the damn age of the retirement pension!"

"I'm trying to organize all of this with a crappy course of introduction to philosophy that I failed!"

"Damn…" Zero scratched his head. "Now that I think about it, we never really had civil management personnel, do we?"

"Of course not! We never needed them!"

"Got it! I'm going to go arrange for the employment…" Zero made a gesture toward the door.

Giovanni cried and picked up an appearing remote. With a click, the door… disappeared. A wall reappeared in its path.

Zero turned around and deadpanned. "Did you really just use the _teleporter_ on a door?"

"Yep! Now get your elite ass over here and start processing these papers!" Giovanni jumped up and stretched. "Now… I need a nap…"

* * *

In the Veiltorn Forest right out of Veilstone City, a mysterious dark fog emerged. It came from nowhere, but it spread like wildfire, covering the entire woods in a matter of minutes.

No one noticed, especially because it was midnight. The fog shifted upwards. In a few blinks, the darkness soared as high as the clouds, or maybe much beyond.

For a quick second, the entire space thereon shifted, as it distorted by a foreign force. At the same time, a dark meteorite shot down at an immense speed countless times past the sound barrier.

However, the shockwave was hidden by the curtain painted on the space around the forest, trapping any motion within.

In a mere second, the dark meteor crashed from above the clouds, or many times further, down to the forest, but within a single disturbance to anything around.

A few moments later, the fog squirmed out of existence, disturbing not the trees, not the satellites, not even Rayquaza.

* * *

In his self-imposed sleep, otherwise known as Aura subduction, Ash felt a sudden kick from the bunk below him, followed by a quaking sound that dug deep into his mind.

The Ketchum boy sighed internally in his dream, which was shattered to pieces by the thundering sound.

If he didn't want to wake willingly, or his body sensed a threat or summoning from the outside, not even pistols shooting at him could wake him up. The bullets would be crushed before radius, like a radius of Aura was protecting him.

Only a similar Ancient-level power could penetrate through his spell, and such power seemed obvious, even in his dreamlike state.

Therefore, the great Chosen One had to force himself back to consciousness, because he knew if he didn't, the thundering would just go on, and on, and on…

However, before he could do anything, a sudden bolt of electricity enough to electrocute Moltres jerked through his body.

Ash sat up abruptly, yelling, fully awake. However, his body was paralyzed, and the sudden movement made him roll over… and not to the side of the wall.

The teen watched helplessly as he made sweet impact with the ground. Nevertheless, it comforted him that, a second later, his girlfriend, with hair sticking on their ends and one leg still maintained at a kicking position, landed sideways next to him.

A yellow mouse jumped down and hovered in between them. " _You people have no respect for sleeping Pokémon!_ "

"Hey! What did I do wrong!?" Ash shouted. He had enough resistance to Pikachu's special electricity that he could still talk, nonetheless paralyzed.

" _You failed to take charge of your woman!_ " Pikachu retorted and pointed to Zorua. " _See how calm Zo is… ZORUA!?_ "

Ash and Domino both pinned their eyes toward the said spot, right beside Domino's pillow. Below the sleeping Zorua, who had somehow slept through the electrocution, was a puddle of wetness.

The Chosen King and Queen looked at each other and burst out in laugher. A coat of respective blue and pink washed down their figure and cleansed the remaining Electroweb.

Domino sniggered. "Nice job taking care of your woman, Pikachu!"

Ash held up a hand, which the blonde high-fived. Pikachu's eyes twitched. Ash and Domino laughed and dashed out of the room at the same time, each forming a contortion of Protect and Light Screens behind, off of which Pikachu's angry Thunderbolts deflected.

The two's voice carried from the stairs. "Not it!"

* * *

Kyogre stared at land from the sea.

Groudon stared at the sea from land.

Next to them were all of the Pokémon on Oak's ranch. Every one of them dwarfed in comparison to the two colossal beings, even Dragonite and the Giants.

They watched the two long-warring Formations intently. With a firm nod, as if betting on his entire reservoir of courage, Groudon finally picked up his left foot.

At the same time Kyogre raised her left fin. Then, the two simultaneously dropped their anatomy onto the opposing terrain forcefully, splashing up dirt on water.

The Pokémon around them cheered loudly. Mewtwo descended from the clouds and clapped uproaringly. " _Finally! The first step to a health psychology!_ "

Seeping from his veins were the same air of power as the two Formations.

Groudon and Kyogre took a look at each other wordlessly, and then at the purple cat hovering above them.

" _This calls for a celebration._ " Groudon remarked.

" _Agreed._ " The great whale confirmed.

Precipice Blades and Origin Pulses filled the air at once, shaving the air of Psystrikes and Light Screens.

* * *

When the alarms started flashing in the room, Cynthia snapped out of her groggy state. All of her Pokéballs were glowing at an immense heat, which could happen only in one situation: danger, and very close, very upsized danger.

A series of rapid knocking sounded from her door. She lowered her head. From the start of the alarms to the knocking, barely ten seconds had passed.

This was an utmost emergency… one that she had never dealt with in two decades.

Before she could react, a Pokéball opened and a Lucario materialized in front of her. The power of a Top Ancient waved off, and blue Aura with stripes of white flared up.

He stood before Cynthia and closed his hand around the doorknob. " _Please stand back, Cynthia. There's something insane and horrible coming._ "

The Champion did not protest. No matter how much she wanted to live and die with her Pokémon, she knew that Sinnoh would collapse if she was hurt. Thus, she must maintain her distance even if that meant going against her willingness to stand by her Lucario.

The door opened. Luckily, there was no intruders who stumbled in, only Lucian, her Top Elite and adviser. However, the normal calm on the psychic's face was now stripped. Instead, it was replaced by a panic that Cynthia had never seen on the man's face… ever.

He cried as he held out a laptop in front of him. "No time to explain! Cynthia! Put your code in there for the activation of the emergency system."  
"Emergency system!? Which one?" Cynthia snatched it over and placed it in her lap, after sitting down.

"Code 9! Full force field around Lily of the Valley." Lucian's voice was shaking.

"NINE!?" Cynthia raised her head at him, shocked. Code nine was the top notch security system. She knew this was bad, but… this bad!?

Code nine had never been activated since the creation of it… Cynthia had read about its powers, but no one in history had ever seen the entirety being powered.

"Good Arceus! Why Code nine!?"

"Because…" Lucian looked the Champion dead in the eye. "There is about a thousand Genesect outside of the walls of Lily of the Valley."

* * *

 **A/N: Let's start with some epic battles.**


	117. Cha 116: Johto 2

**Johto 2**

Cynthia's face changed color rapidly, from her pearly white to a sharp red and then a dark green. Genesect? Wasn't that the robot-Bug Medieval that Unova just invented? Why were they at her footsteps? And a THOUSAND!?

Thoughts raced rapidly. It couldn't be Unova. Someone else…

A name that had repeated constantly in a series of letters with the leaders of Rocket-Hoenn and Kanto popped up. Her eyes dilated.

Team Galactic.

Her pinky hit the _enter_ key swiftly on the laptop, inputting her password.

"How long does it take for the defense to be raised?" Cynthia questioned. Her hands were gripping tightly on her pokeballs.

"A hour." Lucian spoke gravely. "Level Nine is an ancient Array, so it will take a while for the elements to gather up."

"But when it does…" The Head of Elites said unsurly, "It could stop even a Formation for weeks."

Cynthia frowned. It was a hour too long.

A bulky Gallade materialized beside her. The Champion exchanged a look with her Pokémon and gripped on to him.

An Espeon appeared next to Lucian, and both teleported out of the room.

Lily of the Valley was a old city, dating back to the ending of the Imperial Era, when it was still a small fort guarding the Sinnoh Mountains from Opposition intruders.

The walls had stood firm for thousands of years, somehow intact with a magical spell on them, as well as technological renovations.

Cynthia and Lucian stood on the walls of the city. Their faces were sickened with worry.

The city laid right outside of a ravine, with its back to a series of hills. That meant there was little fighting room for either side for strategic maneuvers. However, it was clearly worse for the Sinnoh League because of their inferior firepower.

In the olden days, the battle would had taken place in the ravine, with the defending troops lining against the edge with a killer advantage. It was almost impossible for invading troops to break through.

But, the Genesects were skilled enough to delay detection until it passed the haphazardous landscape. Also, unlike the war times of the Imperial Era, the current politics were of relative peace… all the way until the eruption of Galactic. So, no one really thought of the peril until the arrival of the Genesect army.

Below, the three Elites of Sinnoh were right at the battlefield, with their own Pokémon trying desperately to hold them off. League Pokémon flooded into the field as others fell.

The air was filled with Flying Types, spearheaded by Gliscors and Staraptors. They dropped just as quickly as the land troops were. From the air, Genesects projected down from the top of the ravine into the air formations, shooting Techno Blast from all sides.

One thousand Genesect… Cynthia knew the situation would be terrible, but it was another story seeing the massacre.

The battle might seemed like a stalemate, but that was at the cost of the entire Sinnoh Pokémon reservoir. At the current rate of casualties and mortalities, it would be a serious question if they could even hold off until the initiation of the Array!

A dozen of Pokémon are dropping each second. If they weren't recalled, they might be permanently damaged… or even die. Afterall, most of them, at max, were only, third stage Pokémon. The Genesects they were facing were Medieval Legendaries.

Each legendary could fight ten third-stage, and Genesect could especially damage more because of the robotic calculations and hardened exterior.

For a rapid moment, Cynthia was glad that they were fighting in front of the ravine. It only allowed so many Pokémon to clash at the same time. If this was a plains, and one thousand Medievals swarmed up at the same time, her defense would collapse in seconds.

She wasn't prepared for war, and especially not a final-class battle like this one. It was the blitzcrieg- lightning war- tactic her opponent was using. The goal is to penetrate her defenses without care to their own casualties with insane speed- probably to avoid the alliances of other Leagues to help her.

As long as Sinnoh could hold them until the Array lit, she would be able to stand for weeks without falling. Then, her enemies _must_ withdraw.

The key… her eyes focused… was to buy another fifty seven minutes.

Mind set, Cynthia let out a mad cry and leapt off the city wall. Lucario appeared beneath her and landed first, while taking her into a safe landing. Garchomp, Gallade, Spiritomb, Milotic, Altaria, Roserade, and Empoleon all shot out at the same time.

From around her, eight powerful airs of energy shot into the sky, as apparent as eight tunnels of smoke, each symbolizing the power of an Ancient.

Two especially were much sturdier than the others, rising out of Lucario and Garchomp. They had both surpassed Top Ancient and had marched into the ranks of pre-Formation.

Only two steps left- Path and Field- and they would have another horizon revealed before them. In fact, their raw power could even match a Formation, though they were much more to Formation than power.

At any rate, the eight charged into the flights of Genesects like sharpened arrows, immediately dashing holes through their ranks.

* * *

Lucario was covered in a blue bubble of Aura. A Genesect appeared in front of him. Growling deeply, the Honor Pokémon lashed out with a Force Palm faster than even the robot's control interface could register, and landed directly on his chest.

With a cackling groan, his chest sunk down like wasted metal, and he flew straight back into the crowd, neutralized.

A Bone Rush staff appeared in his hand. Whipping around, he smashed it down onto another one sneaking up behind him and reduced it to a clump of purple garbage.

Seven giant Aura Spheres rose out of his head and slammed against the ones beside him, wrecking them just as completely.

His staff speared into the ground. Lucario panted slightly. Even for him, instantly destroying nine Medievals wasn't easy, but he needed to clear some room out of the battlefield.

However, he wasn't left alone to his rest for even a second before more Genesects rushed back in with their Bug Buzz or Fury Cutters.

Roaring, the Aura Pokémon raised his weapon again.

* * *

Milotic twitched. As an Ancient, she could go anywhere, no longer restricted to the water. Nevertheless, her body was much more used to the sea or lakes, and not fighting on dry ground.

She acted like a stationary turret, shooting out Hyper Beams around her. Her original intention was to create a puddle big enough for her greater mobility, but the Genesect seemed to figure that out as well.

Each Hydro Pump was evaporated by collections of Fire Blasts, which only turned it into massive steam explosions that affected the League Pokémon. The Genesects saw with their machinery eyes and radars, so the fog barrier was useless to their sight.

Hence, Milotic just fired in place. Her count of destroyed Medievals was around twenty- perhaps the least of her peers. But, all the others were land-based…

Her thoughts were pulled back as she felt an agony tear through her back. She turned wildly and saw a Genesect standing in close proximity, with the remnants of a Techno Blaster dripping from his mouth.

She dropped her eyes to her back. Her expression changed into deep madness. The beautiful pink scales lining up her behind was now wrinkled and burnt, which would take weeks to heal!

That was the first time in the last thirty minutes of battle that she was hit! Milotic cried and released a beam double the size of the previous and blasted the Genesect deep into a nearly hill.

However, two more Fury Cutters sliced into her flesh. Blood stained the ground. Milotic pulsed out waves of Water Gun to push them back. Meanwhile, a Zap Cannon drew right past her ducking head.

Her line of fire was waning. Even for an Ancient, repetitive Hyper Beams had worn her down dramatically. She had only entered the level a few weeks ago, and her power was barely stabilized.

Two Techno Blast came for her, and she spurred out two coordinating Hydro Cannons to push them apart. Then, a sudden third penetrated her defenses and headed straight for her chest.

It was timed so well that it came at the gap of her release and recharge. There was nothing she could do!

She watched helplessly as the beam came closer… until an unexpected purple beam connected with it and stomped it into the ground. Seconds later, the attacking Genesect was returned to waste.

A mighty Garchomp flew over her head. " _Milotic! Go unite with Roserade to your west and back out of the battlefield! You've done enough!_ "

Milotic blocked an incoming Solar Beam with a water shield less than a fifth of her original power. Garchomp was right. She knew it wouldn't be long until she reached her strain point. As her training partner, Roserade was most likely at the same point as well.

" _What about YOU!?_ " Her clean voice raced through the air.

" _I can last for longer!_ " He spoke without turning his head. " **Someone** _needs to suppress this bloody army of robots!_ "

Milotic bit her lip and turned her head to the west. She hated when he out-heroed everyone else, even when he was doing it for the good of all.

* * *

Cynthia's eyes were bloodshot from staring at the battlefield. In a raspy voice, she addressed Lucian. "What much… longer!?"

"Fourteen minutes."

Around the city, there was a clear shade of colors that had materialized out of nowhere. The Array was definitely assembling… only too SLOWLY!

The three other Elites had gathered around them. Besides each of their master Pokémon, the rest were already out of the fight, along with two thirds of the Sinnoh Pokémon.

Most of them were not mortally wounded, but badly enough to put them out of the fight for a long period.

On the side of the Genesect, barely three hundred had gone down. Normal Pokémon had to sacrifice immensely to take down one, and the power of the Ancient wore out after the first few waves of destructive exchange, and then their powers were balanced by the entire Genesect Army as the Ancients tired.

Cynthia gritted her teeth. Milotic, Roserade, Gallade, Altaria, and Spiritomb had all Returned themselves.

Garchomp was patrolling the entire battlefield, never stopping at one point, trying to save as many Pokémon as possible.

Lucario was deep into the Genesect ranks, waving his arms madly, Aura spitting off, damaging as many as possible. On his own body, even with the steel workings, bleeding cuts, burns, and reopened scars turned him into a blood-drenched sculpture.

Empoleon was running through the field, saving his strength and never going into straight contact with the Genesects. Instead, his job was to bring as many of the injured Pokémon back with the tremendous speed of Ancients.

But even so, his energy was largely burned from trying to counter stray beams, keeping his velocity at a constant sonic level, and bombing off lost Genesects.

The Sinnoh League was not looking good. Most of its pillar forces had been disarmed. If there was no Ancients on the field to support the normal Pokémon, they would fall apart in less than a minute.

Imagine the sight of a hundred robots firing at once. That was the likely probability if there was not powerful Pokémon constantly going into the heart of the opposing army and disrupting its flow, like Lucario.

Cynthia peered at her watch again. Eleven minutes… it was time.

The League had casted their reservoirs of Pokémon and Ancients, but they still had one more trick up their sleeves.

The city doors snapped open. A hundred three-stage Pokémon rushed out of the gate, every one with shining lights lighting up from their bodies.

As they charged into the field, their anatomy shook into their Mega Form. Together, a cloud of gripping disposition made the air tremble.

The new force was like an unstoppable cannon ball shooting into the army. At once, they smashed through the opening forces and destroyed nearly fifty Genesect at once.

Unfortunately, their success was not maintained. After a rapid minute, the Genesects regrouped and pounded back with equal fury, tearing the battle into another stalemate.

The Megas dropped much slower than the normals, since each of the could match a pseudo Legend or even a Medieval.

The glow of the Array's essence became stronger and stronger. Cynthia's eyes shone. Five more minutes.

If this worked… her name would be forever inscribed into the history books of the region. She would arrange a retaliation mission against whomever did this- Galactic probably- and unite the Home Islands to dig out its deepest roots from the Mountains, ridding the region of this plague that had bothered it for decades!

The shade of the essence turned into a viscous, liquid state that covered the city like a dome. When the sunlight hit it, it casted a light purple onto the ground of the Lily of the Valley.

"In ancient times, this Array had a tenth level." Lucian had on a small smile. "With that, it could even attack voluntarily with materialized Element Cannons and whatnot."

"Too bad though," He sighed. "The mechnisms for that had long disappeared."

Cynthia, half hearing what he had said, half concentrating on the field, muttered. "Two minutes…"

She grabbed the megaphone next to her and shouted. "All Sinnoh fighters! Retreat!"

"Mega Flight, hold the line as you return! Steadily! Ancients! Hold off for a little longer until it is too late for them to put through their concentrated firings!"

The third-stage Pokémon rushed back into the opened doors, going through the solidifying Array without trouble.

The Mega army trudged back, with more defensive moves like Ice Shield than attacks. The Ancients still crisscrossed the fields, wringing out their last drops of energy before the end.

"One minute left." Cynthia took a deep breath.

The rear of the Megas had begun to enter the city. The Ancients tore themselves apart from the Genesects, now reduced down to five hundred- half of its original count. On a tall peak on the top of the ravine, a pair of eyes behind a pair of binoculars watched the entire process.

Lucario and Garchomp stayed at the frontmost, one in the air and one on the ground.

The Essences of the Array had largely frozen. The last of the Megas had came back, each falling out of the Mega Evolution with strain.

"Ten… nine…" The Sinnoh Champion's hands were in a tight bundle. The Ancients entered. Lucario and Garchomp each shot out a

"Three… two…"

Lucario fired thirty Aura Spheres at the same time toward the Genesects, while Garchomp unleashed a torrent of Hyper Beams that eradicated the front of the robot lines.

"One…"

The two pre-Formations dived into the Array right as the purple ice behind them finally solidified, enclosing the Lily of the Valley in a giant semisphere from all sides.

"Zero!" Cynthia's shoulder fell back. The entire team of Sinnoh officials gathered at the walls took a unified breath of relief.

"We succeeded."

* * *

On the ravine, the binoculars dropped, revealing the red eyes behind them. The man was masked, saved for his mouth and his eyes.

His mouth was at an intriguing smirk.

"Success? How naive!"

* * *

 **A/N: One thousand Genesects? Crator! That's insane!**

 **Not really… Remember that this is a world where people can create an universe… not much else is more insane.**


	118. Cha 117: Johto 3

**Johto 3**

The purple dome around Lily of the Valley grew thicker and more dominant as the seconds passed. Even the sun above had lost its normal penetrating quality and had turned into a gentle ball of aurora on the city, as if it was converted to be part of the Array too.

The light started to form cracks through its build. The cracks weren't signs of deterioration, but of the animations of strength.

The patterns formed into those on the shells of a turtle. Lucian saw them and pointed. "Turtle shells. They're among the strongest of defense in ancient Arraygistics."

"How strong are they really?" Aaron, the Bug Elite asked. "I know the books said that the Array is…"

"We're about to find out!" Cynthia interrupted, her eyes trained on the field.

Below them, the Genesects had finished gathering into an ideal attack structure. There were still half a thousand left, and they had managed to squeeze in two hundred in the small flatground before the city.

Their cannons lit up at the same time with dark brown lights of their signature Techno Blast. Then, at once, two hundred massive beams of rockets covered the sky, blocking all sight from the city.

The entire gathering of League officials felt their hearts at their throats. This was the moment of truth…

 _BABBOOM!_

The assault and defense connected. The purple dome turned into a blinding white that lit up the city. For half a minute, all that the Sinnohians could see and hear was indecipherable rumbling and disorder.

Lucario placed a hand onto Cynthia's back, pulsing over a small strand of his leftover Aura. The Champion's eyes were the first to clear.

Her eyes flashed with brilliancy and hope as the first sight that came to her was the Array shield, still standing firm without a scratch. The turtle shells were still intact as ever, like nothing had happened.

Beyond the defense, the Genesects were shuffling around into a new formation, with newer Medievals replacing the firsts.

Only five minutes passed before a second torrent of attacks were released, slamming against the shield yet again.

Fruitless. The shield did not even shake. It only burned up in colorful lights that powered through the troposphere.

And the third, fourth…

* * *

The initial battle was finished as the sun rose. Now, it was setting under the mountains. Red streaks painted the skies, which were darkened to a myriad of brown by the light scheme. Cynthia was still standing by the walls, eyes glued to the shield.

It had been hours of unstopping bombardment, but the shield was just as persistent as the offense.

"Holy Arceus! How long could they keep going for!?" Lucian's voice sounded behind her.

The Champion turned to see the Elite come back with packaged dinner. The other three Elites had left to regulate the instability and pass on new orders and adaptations.

Most of them were made up on the fly, since nothing for the past thousands of years had come _close_ to what was happening.

"They're robots. They're designed to go on forever." Cynthia deadpanned. "What I'm more worried about is the Array."

"Don't worry about it." Lucian handed over the box of food. "I went to do some research in the afternoon, and found some ancient sources in the deepest cabinets."

"The name of the Array is 'Ionic Array.'" Lucian shuffled around in his box of dinner packages and pulled out a stack of papers. "In fact, here they are."

Cynthia took them over. The front was a stained yellow, and the smell typical of ancient documents drifted out. It was the latest copy of the first draft, and even so it was probably already fifty or so years old.

She began reading aloud. " _Ionic Array_ was created in the end of the Imperial Era at the Ravine of Mouthpass to protect it from the invasion of the Hellsonic tribe."

She frowned and quickly scanned down the rest of the page, and her eyes caught onto a weighty word. She quickly went back and reread the paragraph.

"... The Array was thrice attacked by the tribe's mascot, Volcanion. The first two lasted for two weeks, until the Alliance sent down Sky Forces…"

Volcanion. Cynthia took a deep breath. He was a Formation Legend and the older brother of Heatran. However, the perfect combination of water and fire had boosted him far from his younger sibling's Ancient ranks into the Formation ranking.

In other words… this Array was able to withstand the bombardment of a Formation for… two weeks!?

She exchanged a shocked glance with Lucian. "So this Array… really had withstood a battle with a Formation!"

Lucian pointed to the stack of manuscripts. "Read on. When the Array was smashed open by Volcanion, it took five weeks."

Cynthia's eyes flashed even brighter and flipped the page. "The Array was damaged near the conclusion of the war when the Hellsonic tribe seeked an escape from…"

"Volcanion flooded the depression with water and lava simultaneously, creating steam eruptions… worth today's NUCLEAR BOMBARDMENTS!?"

"That was wrote six decades ago." Lucian pointed out. "That was only the beginning of the nuclear age, so it was not as advanced though."

"STILL!" Cynthia gasped. "How did the Array recharge? There was no way the transportation was quick enough millennium ago!"

"Don't need it." The Elite waved a hand and took the scripts over from her hands. "If you go on… ah yes! Page thirty-seven is the start of the instructions for the Array. You can read it if you're interested."

"Basically, a quick summary is that the Array is automatic. It works by absorbing the attacking energy and uses it through some very complicated Arraygistic mechanisms to filter out waste essences, while pumping in more."

"Simply put, the Array is taking the energy from the planet itself." Lucian handed back the papers. "There is no way to run out of power. Thousands of years ago, Volcanion broke through finally not by burning out the reservoir, but through some rituals of the Hellsonic that was vaguely detailed."

Cynthia's jaw remained dropped. A while later, she finally comprehended the complexity of the Array's functions.

"In that case… who the HELL said that ancient people are under-modernized!?" She exclaimed loudly. "Their technology is… good lord… how many times more superior than ours!?"

"A lot…" Lucian looked back her eyes to the field behind them. There was yet another blinding flash as hundreds of beams connected. His eyes had gotten used to the flash, but his heart still pounded as he saw it. "Let's hope the Ionic Array will really get us through this."

* * *

Bertha, the Ground Elite of Sinnoh, placed down the phone and breathed heavily. She sat motionlessly, thoughts and possibilities running through her head. A few minutes later, she stood up abruptly, as if made up her mind.

A dangerous glint sparked across her eyes, soon hidden by her closed eyelids. Her body shook, but her hand was steady as she gripped onto the handle of her door.

When she reopened her eyes, she was back to the wave of tranquility.

* * *

Cynthia took the podium. Below her were Aaron and Flint, along with the entirety of the Sinnoh Gym Leaders who had teleported here through the secret teleportation mechanisms established from their respective Cities.

Normally, the Array, by blocking all essences, stopped teleportation as well. However, Lucian had figured out a way to adjust the frequency to whitelist certain teleporting waves, to allow allies to come into the Lily of the Valley.

The Gym Leaders were notified just after the beginning of the attack, and mobilizing was not an easy task.

But they came, at last, bringing dozens of Pokémon each as reinforcements, totalling around a thousand and a half more, allowing the fighting League forces to rise back up to the three thousands.

The two Elites were sent with some to the walls for surveillance, but the shield still stood firm, without any signs of destruction.

Cynthia opened her arms. "Needless to say, as you have now know, this is among the most serious situation we had ever faced since the creation of this city."

"Now, the Array will hold them for a while, for there's really no telling exactly how long it will hold them for." She paused. "While the history records are not pessimistic, there may be fragments of exaggerations that were built up through the years."

"Therefore, we cannot lay our hopes completely upon the Ionic Array. I call this meeting to brainstorm possible strategies we could use to hold them off until a twist."

Aaron of the Bug Elite raised his hand. Cynthia motioned him to stand up. The young man hopped onto the stage and took the microphone.

"I have been in constant contact with our allies around the Home Islands, and responses were different in optimism."

"Kalos and Unova both agreed to come, but their distance made it hard for any useful help until the third week. Kanto and Johto had just fought a war of themselves. While, they're still mobilized, Lance had delayed his arrival for another week for their forces to rehabilitate and equipment to be fixed."

"The new Hoenn government has responded kindly to our requests, but its leader has agreed to come only with Kanto's departure." Aaron sighed. "That being said, the latest for any aid would be after seven days."

"Seven days?" A voice popped out from the audience, and its speaker was revealed to be Reggie, Gym Leader of Veilstone City. "Could the defense last that long?"

"According to the records, yes." Cynthia confirmed. "However, it is always wise to make some plans for faults, however unlikely they are."

The room fell silent. No one spoke… mainly because there really wasn't any good plans for, well, fighting against five hundred Medieval Legends when most of their own heavy-hitters had fallen.

* * *

On the walls, Lucian was rambling on about the background and construct of the Ionic Array again, but Bertha was not listening.

She stared off into space, her pupils unconcentrated. She knew everything he was saying… in fact, she had known about it ever since her father taught her it when she was ten years old.

She was now sixty, and every word was still burned in her mind. The entire design, the mechanics, the engineering…

Why? No one had ever known this, but she was the descendant of the hidden line of Baxters… the first engineers of the Ionic Array.

For thousands of years, the line had remained intact, passing down knowledge from generations and generations.

The first Baxter- an Arraygistic prodigy- drafted the Array, but it was never put into action due to cost. It required eight well crafted Artifacts as the base of the power source, which then materialized into the shield.

It wasn't until the fourth Baxter met the prime minister of the Alliance that the Array was commissioned to be built as the ultimate defense.

Even then, there were immense opposition. It was an insanely strong Array, but it also costed bankfuls, especially for its time.

Against all, however, the Alliance Minister still chose it after hearing the words of an ancient Absol: " _The Baxter's might shall be the end of the city's plight._ "

From a young age, each descendent was taught the ins and outs of the entire Array. By ten, each son and daughter of the generation could recite the entire handbook backwards if commanded. The trend continued for millennium.

Bertha bit her wrinkled lip. Lucian continued without noticing her distracted trance.

* * *

" _It's what you want, isn't it?" He had said fifty years ago._

 _She was twenty, at the prime of her beauty and hunger for recognition. Therefore, she nodded._

" _Anything," She said. Anything for the beauty and power that he promised._

* * *

She had power. She had immense power, as the second Elite. He had given her the most powerful starter anyone could request.

As for beauty? He would not give her eternal beauty until she had proved her usefulness.

For fifty years, he had not needed her help, but a letter would come each decade reminding her of the virtues of patience, as well as his own appearance.

Bertha had gotten a letter just a month ago. He was still as handsome in the photo as the first year she saw him, unchanged. She had no doubts that he possessed the secrets to immortality.

This time, though, unlike the first four, was a request and a promise… the promise to such immortality if she followed his orders.

She would rise up past her current position to even greater power, along with the conversion of beauty. After he conquered Sinnoh, he said, he would put her on the public throne with the glory and lights.

All she needed to do…

* * *

Bertha Baxter of Sinnoh League laid her eyes on the shell-patterned Array that covered the city. Her sight then trailed down past it onto the gentle neck of the Head Elite in front of her.

She had made up her mind. The sixty years of attachment to the City, the decades of serving the Sinnoh League, her friendship with the officials, her morals that she thought had taken over any shadows…

They had all tortured her for the countless nights. But torture was good. It made her sturder, more immune to the attack of her conscience. She was numb.

Numbness was also good. It meant she could finally achieve her dream.

A knife appeared out of nowhere, clutched in her hand. Her right hand did not at all shake. Then, with the precision and speed unseen on any ordinary woman of sixty, she leapt forward and sunk the decisive blade into Lucian's neck.

She jumped back instantaneously, as fast as she had arrived. The squirting fountain of blood did not drip a single drop onto her. In her white dress, she stood beside the city wall like a lily out of a muddy valley.

Bertha's eyes shone as brilliant as the stars. She already felt younger. It was really not so bad once she got past her internal torture. Afterall, it was beauty she was bargaining for. Of course she had to trade _something_ in return!

Lucian managed to turn his head at her. His eyes seemed so shocked… so… intriguing, she thought. He fell on his own puddle of blood, splashing the red liquid up at her. Bertha frowned and quickly hopped away.

From her breast pocket, she dug up a remote with eight buttons. With a quick snap of her fingers, she smashed down on all eight swiftly.

Immediately, eight giant booms united into one giant calamitous noise that deafened the city.

The distinctive sound of something shattering rang across the skies.

* * *

From the hills, the red eyes behind the binoculars flashed. The mouth, uncovered by the mask, formed a satisfied smile.

A few miles from him, the giant purple dome covering the Lily of the Valley was fading. The turtle shells were cracking into dusts and dissipating, and the purple gleam was vaporizing as quickly as the first ray of dawn penetrating the night fog.

Five hundred additional Genesect turned from the corner of the ravine to join the current army of robots.

* * *

 **A/N: Santa Claus is coming… to town! Oh wait… that's not Santa…**


	119. Cha 118: Johto 4

**Johto 4**

The auditorium rumbled. A sharp shooting pain surged through Cynthia's head. Instinctively, she knew that something had gone very wrong.

Outside of the building, the purple hue that was painted across everything for the past days melted. In a few seconds, the sky returned to their normal blue… an ugly blue.

The Sinnoh Champion leapt down from the stage and straight for the door. The sounds of explosions rang through the air.

She opened the door and froze. From afar, dark smoke formed vertical tunnels through the clouds. Immediately, a Staraptor appeared under her, carrying her up to the sky.

The Array was completely gone, as if the first few days were just the figment of their imagination. The northern wall was completely gone. Remnants of it had the residue of a lime green energy leaking off.

Platoons of robot bugs marched in uniformly, with their flights extending all the way back to the ravine endlessly. They were like bulldozers ramming through everything in front, without any resistance.

There was no one in the outer buildings. Cynthia had gathered all citizens in refuge centers at the heart of the city on the first day. Nevertheless, with their pace, it was only a matter of hours before they made it to the core.

Her hands shook. She had eight Master Balls on her, but only two were lit. The other six had all returned to a hibernative state to heal their wound.

The Sinnoh League was stretching its limits. All of Pokémon of the Elites above Medieval level had been used in the first battle, and healing them would take at least another week.

With a last glint of hope, Cynthia peered into the distance. There was no movements to the eastern or southern border. No allies.

She did not notice that her lip had started to bleed profusely as she sunk her teeth in. The League had one more weapon… but that was a kamikaze action.

The fire of might was burning in her heart, but she knew it was not enough to suffice. There was no way the League could hold them off, no matter how hard they tried.

Merely an hour of fighting a few days ago had reduced the Sinnoh troops by two-thirds. It was impossible to defend the city, especially after they had lost the terrain advantage. Now, the entire army of Genesects could swarm up and overpower the League.

She had no tactics at all. She knew what she must do, but nothing else.

When she landed, Bertha and Lucian still had not returned. She looked onto the walls with a burning flame in her eyes.

Her loyal Elites had probably fought on at the front lines after the Array mysteriously disappeared. If they had not returned, that meant…

Cynthia whispered to herself to award both of them with medals of honor once Sinnoh won the war. But this was not the moment to mourn.

She breathed hard. Aaron still had his Medieval Vespiquen, but all she could do after the first battle was to shoot out distracting Combees. Flint's Magmortor was long burned out, and his Infernape barely touched Medieval, but was mostly a Top pseudo.

A bitter smile drew itself across Cynthia's face. Sinnoh was known as the land of the ancient Legends. The Creation Trios resided here, along with the Lake Trios, and so many other Top Ancients. But the League had no contact with any of them.

Sinnoh had sat in peace for way too long. They had lost their sense of danger.

Team Galactic had been in no way threatening, and all their moves were quite subtle. The League had long thought that they had the region firmly under their controls, besides the northern mountains. How wrong they were!

She waved her hand. The Gym Leaders behind her all gripped their Pokéballs.

"We're fighting in the city park beyond the center." She said firmly. It was only a mile away from the citizens' refuge. There could be no retreating. There was no room for retreats.

She chose it for the exact reason. If conditions permitted retreats, people will retreat. When they start to back off, they would never stop.

It was also the only open area she could find. A fight in the crowded streets would be disasterous. With everyone clumped together, concerns of accuracy was disregarded completely. Hits WOULD land. Since the Genesects hit a lot harder, the consequence was easily foreseen.

* * *

When the Genesects approached, the troops were already waiting for them. Their size was nearly three times as big as the robot army, but the invisible torrent of energies above their heads dimmed dramatically, but in quality and quantity.

The Genesects' faces were plain and indifferent. They raised their cannons.

Cynthia pointed simultaneously and cried. "FIRE!"

The rain of Techno Blast clashed with a swirl of Hyper Beams, Flamethrowers, Thunder…

Mud splashed into the air, covering up the sun. Cynthia's eyes were as stern as ever. That was only the first attack… and half the Pokémon were already laying down, recharging.

A helpless sigh hung around her mouth. Half of the current army was Gym Pokémon, and they fell even another level when compared to Leagues.

The Genesects did not give them the time to rest. As the mud began to settle down, revealing the ruined park with fields pummeled with holes and burn marks, the Genesects attacked again uniformly.

The League's response was scattered and far from the first strike. Beams shot out from random positions, forming into a loose total that struck the robots' advances.

The beam wars lasted for two seconds, before the Techno Blast tore through. It retained its menacing structure of a dark green cloud that pummeled into the League ranks.

More uncoordinated beams flew out and was absorbed uselessly against the Blasts. Cynthia's Lucario was standing by her, eyes expanded to double their normal size, blue aura blaring up in a shaky Protect that barely lasted until the end of the Blasts.

She looked around her. Already, half a thousand Pokémon had fallen. More was trembling as they stood, the fire of the fight wiped out.

There was no use talking about morale. It wasn't even an unfair battle. It was just a doubtless massacre.

The bitter taste of her lips from new and dried blood was overwhelming. There was nothing Cynthia could do. She had no saved cards. She had nothing.

Not even the greatest strategist could sway the battle. Under the pressures of raw power, intellect seemed to fade.

The ranks of the Pokémon could perhaps last another few strikes… a few minutes? From a distance, she could see Pokémon from the hospital at the southern side fly out, shaking in midair, injured but still courageous.

Everyone was at their limits, and they planned to fight past the limits and to their deaths. It was their duty.

The Champion's eyes hardened, thirty years of memory conformed into one blaze of determination.

If the city was to fall, she would die with it!

* * *

It was fifteen minutes. They had stood longer than anyone had thought, but it was their end. The Genesects were only a hundred feet away. Cynthia could see the yellow of their mechanical eyes.

Pokémon and trainers had fallen all around her. Her own Garchomp and Lucario had been injured to a mortal point. Disregarding their angry protests, Cynthia forcefully withdrew them and locked their Pokéball in suspended animation with a timer of three days, along with the other six.

She knew at once that she had deeply hurt their honor. In fact, they might never forgive her, but it was meaningless. This was going to be her last day anyways. She would do anything to keep them safe.

Today was the fourth day since the night of the attack. Kanto and Hoenn would come after three days. With their preparation, the Genesects would be useless. Her Pokémon would burst out of their balls, which would then self-destruct, based on her programming.

They would survived after her death…

Cynthia closed her eyes. She had not been a great leader. She had nothing prepared against this. She had failed the trust of millions of Sinnohians, thousands of residents of Lily of the Valley.

At least, at the end of her life, she could be a good trainer.

With her eyes closed, she did not see the daring stare of a man behind her.

* * *

Aaron of the Sinnoh League was ranked fourth in the Elite sequence. He was the first Elite the winners of each year's Conference face, and usually the last as well.

His grandfather was the previous Champion of Sinnoh, grasping the throne for nearly fifty years. Under him, Sinnoh had welcomed a rare era of power for the first time in hundreds of years. It was recognized as the head of the Home Islands. Not even Kanto could match its force, though the Oak administration came close to him.

However, the Kanto Champion resigned during Kanto's rise, which halted it from catching up.

Hence, Aaron's life was infused in Pokémon. His wallpaper was of the Flying species. His first words were taught by reading the Pokémon Manuel. He started the true arts of battling when he was five.

However, he had never been truly interested in battling. When his grandfather assigned books to him, he would always hide comics within. He had a great friendship with his starter, a Togepi, but he never pushed her too hard in training.

His grandfather never noticed. Being the busy man he was, he was always occupied, besides the Saturday afternoons during which he was free.

It continued until Aaron was seven. It was a fateful day when his grandfather brought back with him a petite, blonde teenage girl. She looked as old as his sister, who was in high school.

The first time he saw her, she was engaged in a passionate discussion with his grandfather about some mechanics of Fire Type moves. His grandfather was equally zealous, motioning wildly with his hands.

When little Aaron ran up to him, he stroke his head gently and pointed to the girl. Her name was Cynthia.

He liked the name a lot. It reminded him of cherries, and he loved cherries. He also loved her flowing blonde hair that extended down her back. Her black dress was very pretty too.

She had dinner with them that night. On the table, the discussion was still about battle mechanics, while switching from Fire Types to Steel.

Aaron wanted to get in the conversation, but, suddenly, he found everything she said to be… foreign! It was nothing like his grandfather had taught.

When she parted with them the night, Aaron did not begin his usual Saturday-night binge of video games. Instead, he rushed up to his room and dug out the books on Fire and Steel Types.

She did not come the following week. Or the next. Or the one after. After three week had passed, Aaron finally approached his grandfather on a Friday night, inquiring where the "girl like my sister" was.

The Sinnoh Champion answered that she was coming tomorrow, and then returned to is papers.

Aaron immediately ran up to his room with enthusiasm and ran through his notes on Fire and Steel Types. The night that followed was restless.

The following Saturday afternoon, she did show up against, this time dressed in a sapphire blue. Aaron loved blue just as much as black.

She nodded and smiled at him, but her attention was pinned on the Champion, who was waiting for her at a table.

Aaron sat down right next to them, anxious for the upcoming conversation that he had prepared weeks for. However, when the girl, Cynthia, spoke, his excitement was shattered.

This time, it wasn't Fire or Steel. It was Ghost. Aaron had nothing to say.

She left that evening with as much grace as she had arrived. Aaron stared at her shadow, and he ran back to his room and dug out the books of Ghosts.

Next week was Water. The following two weeks, she was absent. Then, it was Grass. Then, Ground.

It wasn't until five months later when the topic cycled back to Fire. When Aaron was listening to one of her questions, he quickly raised her hand and commented before his grandfather could speak.

It was a very difficult question, but Aaron remembered reading about its solution, and it had been stuck in his mind for weeks. When he finished his reciting, his grandfather looked at him with pride and smiled. "Very good."

However, Aaron's attention was trained on the girl next to him. She looked at him with surprise and some sort of… admiration? His eight-year-old heart fluttered.

His grandfather resigned next year right before the Conference. He did not leave any opinion on his successor though. Consequently, the four Elites fought over the position with might right as the Conference was being conducted.

In that Conference, a blonde girl in a beautiful black dress soared through the competition like an unexpected falcon, defeating all of her opponents with less than two Pokémon.

Her semifinal battle took two, and her final took three.

Two weeks later, she faced off against the fourth Elite. Victory. Third Elite. Victory. Both only took four of her Pokémon.

The Second Elite. Victory. Five Pokémon against six. When she faced off against the Head Elite, she finally used all six. Her master Pokémon was an unevolved Gible who slammed the opposite Registeel to unconsciousness in ten minutes.

She became the youngest Sinnoh Champion in the past four hundred years. That night, she paid her final visit to his house. She petted his hair and let him hold her hand for a while, laughing just like his older sister, but different.

He had rarely seen her for the next year, besides on TV giving speeches or whatnot. There was a distance, and he hated the distance.

When Aaron turned ten, he entered the Conference. Victory. The Final battle took him five Pokémon.

He went up against the Fourth Elite and won. The Third Elite and he ended in a tie, but he was unable to advance because of League rules. But still, he had won the privilege to have dinner with the League Elites, and her.

Two years later, with his grandfather's influence, he managed to penetrate the barriers and replace the retiring Fourth Elite as the new Elite. He was the youngest Elite for the past hundreds of years, but 'Elite' was still a way off from 'Champion.'

She was always his older sister, older by seven years. After he became Elite, he could see her constantly and had asked her to League dances.

She was equally joyful to see him, but there was still a distance, separated by age.

A decade and a half passed. And then, the Genesects attacked.

* * *

Cynthia was always the stronger one, the more decisive, more skilled, better at everything.

This was the only moment she was vulnerable, since the moment he saw her. It was his chance. He would be the strand of strength she need. He would be the brave one. He would… prove himself.

He was no longer her younger brother. He was a man.

Vespiquen knew the plan. He had whispered it to her when the first clash of the battle occurred. He immediately knew that all hopes were gone.

The Bug Pokémon released a torrent of strings from her mouth and struck onto Cynthia's body. The Champion turned around in shock, but she couldn't even struggle as the strings bounded tighter around her.

"WHAT ARE YOU…" She couldn't even finished as Aaron's Espeon materialized next to them. Before anyone could react, a pink glow flashed on her and Aaron. Both disappeared.

Cynthia found herself emerge in a closed room. She recognized the room. It was one of the top secret foundations of the League. In front of her was the… long-distanced teleporter.

No one could teleport out because of the Genesects' disturbing rays, conflicting with the Essences. However, this teleporter had no such problem, because it relied on technology.

Her eyes widened. He WAS NOT going to do this!

Aaron looked at her with a soft glance. Cynthia met his eyes, but her heart pumped iron blood into her system. "LET ME GO! YOU WILL NOT…"

Aaron held up a hand to her mouth and covered it gently. "Cyn, please, listen."

He felt a sharp pain as she bit down hard. He did not let go. He could feel blood pouring out, but he would bleed for her.

Cynthia jerked her head around trying to push the hand out of her way. Where was Lucario!? Garchomp!?

Then, she remembered that she had put all of them in suspended motion. Her eyes dimmed to tears and murmured, with his hand still in her mouth.

"Cynthia, you can't die here." Aaron breathed softly. "Think about it. If we all perish here, who will lead the region? Would you want Kanto to take over and make it a colony, just like Johto and Hoenn?"

Cynthia's eyes flooded with tears. She bit down harder. Aaron's voice was steady, as if the hand wasn't his. "Please, Cyn. Lucian and Bertha had gone away. Flint is laying unconscious. I'll stand by here until the City falls. You must not die here."

The teleporter lit up in a blue hue, finally finished activating. Espeon raised Cynthia's up in a pink light. The strings on her dissolved.

As soon as her bounds were gone, she immediately started struggling against the light. It was no use. She was still a human. Seeing her efforts fruitless, and the teleporter coming closer behind her, the Champion broke down.

Her eyes were bloodshot from the desperateness and anger. Sobs blew out. It was the first time she had cried since her mother left her. She stared at Aaron. "Please…"

Little drops of his blood seeped down from her lip, mixed with her own. Her black dress was disheveled, and her blonde hair untidy.

She was still as beautiful as the fateful day he saw her eighteen years ago. "I love you, Cynthia."

Her body touched the blue light of the long-ranged teleporter. First her arm, then her entire anatomy. Aaron watched as she was frozen in place, then dissipated.

He didn't know where she had gone, but wherever it was, it would be safer than here.

He nodded to Espeon. The teleporter shut off. Then, he disappeared in a flash of pink.

* * *

 **A/N: Oh, how interesting are human emotions.  
**


	120. Cha 119: Johto 5

**Johto 5**

As the blue light of the teleporter surged over her, Cynthia felt her body dissipating, as if on the verge of death.

She was not afraid. In fact, all she wanted to do was simply die. Die with her beloved City. She welcomed death. She hoped the teleporter will malfunction, simply disintegrate her into dust.

Cynthia immediately regretted her wish. If it malfunctioned, then her Pokémon would die with her. Instantly, the internal struggle of choosing between the lives of her Pokémon or accompanying Lily of the Valley to hell overwhelmed her.

Before her mind could make a decision, the machine acted first. Her body completely melted, but her conscious still remained as brightly as ever.

Darkness enclosed on her, and Cynthia felt herself being stretched across miles and miles.

The tunnel went on forever. There was no telling of how much time had passed, until she was spat out into a ball of light.

The Champion landed harshly onto the ground. Her last thought was how open the grass fields were, before passing out.

She laid for hours, until a blue-haired girl turned the corner.

* * *

The streaks of dusk were like smears of blood on the northern skies. The sun, an ancient symbol of hope, had descended beyond the mountains.

The Lily of the Valley laid waste before the ravine. The corpses of humans and Pokémon alike lined the streets. Red and brown mixed into a horrid paint.

The citizens of the city were being escorted out forcefully into a long line that limped into the hills. Flying Genesects guarded the surroundings without any fault.

An young boy in the line was about to enter the ravine. His eyes darted rapidly left to right. Suddenly, he leapt from the line and started dashing madly toward the setting sun.

Two Genesects moved at once. A pair of Fury Cutters descended upon him. After the lime green energy washed through, only traces of jam remained.

Deep into the ravine, a woman dressed in white knelt before a standing man with a mask. His eyes were pure red, as if stained with the blood of the thousands that had died because of him.

His hand was on her head. They had been in this position for the past hours.

Finally, just as the sun disappeared below the horizon, the masked man removed his hand. The woman raised her head.

She was Bertha… and not her.

Her face was glowing a pearly white, free of any wrinkles. Her hair had turned from white into a graceful red. Her eyes too. It had transformed to a striking scarlet not dissimilar to the man's.

She stood up. She was no longer a woman of sixty, but instead a beautiful figure at a lady's prime. In fact, she even passed some of the most alluring women of recent times: Ivy of the Islands, Clair of Blackthorn, the Mossdeep Twins…

Bertha looked deeply into the man's eyes. She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him. After a few seconds, she knelt back down and kissed his boots.

The man's eyes trailed from her into the distant mountains. He raised his hand and gave out a silent command.

A Genesect floated out mysteriously out of his shadow and disappeared. The citizens of the City had all been unloaded into his machines. It was time to evacuate.

The Genesect Army backed into the ravine swiftly. When it emerged from the other side, each robot was carrying a sealed box on its back effortlessly.

There was no signs of the citizens anywhere.

When the Kanto and Hoenn alliance arrived three days later, Zero and Lance stared at nothing but the abandoned wreckage of what was once the grand capital of Sinnoh.

* * *

The sound of glass shattering echoed endlessly in the Veilstone Gym. A lanky trainer with purple hair had in his hands two vases. A second later, both impacted the ground.

His eyes were bloodshot. His pupils had almost shrunk into nothing. A dark aura surrounded him, one that he did not even notice.

Around him were shreds of paper torn into pieces that could not be destroyed further. An hour before, it contained the names of the missing citizens of Lily of the Valley, as well as the confirmed dead of all found bodies.

Dead. Two Elites. Lucian and Flint.

Missing in action. Bertha. Missing in action. Aaron.

Missing in action. Cynthia.

Dead. Thirty-two Gym Leaders. Missing in Action. One. It was a name Paul did not recognize.

Not his brother.

The sound of the vases breaking roared through the night. No one could hear him. He had no servants, no maids. He and his brother lived together, alone, for the past decade and a half.

They were a pair. Now, there was one.

Paul's hands searched uncontrollably on the shelves, looking for more things to smash. When he found none, he roared.

His howl lasted for a whole minute, which then deformed into the strained chords of an scratchy flute.

He raised his fist and smashed into the shelf. He couldn't feel the physical pain. His mind was too occupied.

His hair stood on its ends. There was an unquenching fire in his mind, threatening to burn through conscious thought for eternity.

He had lost the only thing in this world who would control him, who would restrain him, who would be his big brother.

He need not care any longer.

Paul's eyes transformed fully into white as the fire within burned through his last stand of logic. Out of nowhere, an abrupt sigh filled the air.

The temperature within the room decreased instantaneously by twenty degrees. An icy voice entered Paul's mind, digging deep into the flame of rage and denial.

It was an icicle that brought the coldness of sense.

" **Are humans all this infused by their emotions?** " The voice paused. " **I'm disappointed.** "

* * *

Cynthia woke up with an agonizing headache. Her fists immediately clenched. But there was somthing between her palm and her fingers.

She brought it to her face. It was… a stuffed… doll. The doll was wearing a silky black dress and has long flowing blonde hair.

Wait! Why did the doll look familiar!?

The Champion sat up rapidly. A surge of dizziness poured into her mind. Staring into space for a few seconds, waiting for her sight to focus.

She was in a room, decorated with a fluffy pink. She was directly facing a poster… no… posters… of… the same girl as the doll?

Wait, no! That was no doll. And the one directly in front was not a poster. It was a mirror.

Cynthia blinked rapidly. More of the room came into her sight. She was laying on a soft bed with frilly, flowery blankets. There was an opened makeup container on a desk.

The bathroom door flipped opened and a blue-haired girl stumbled out. Their eyes met. There was a brief silence of two seconds.

Then immediately, the girl rushed forward and sat onto the bed. Her eyes opened widely and stared at her. Her mouth quivered, but no words came out, as if she had a million things to say, but none could be formed into sentences.

Cynthia smiled a little. Even with her raging headache, she could guess what had happened. "Hi. I'm…"

"CYNTHIA! You're Champion Cynthia!" The girl blurted out. "Wait, no! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to cut you off! I'm your biggest fan! No, I'm rambling. Shut up Dawn! Stop talking…"

A slight glance of amusement flashed across the Champion's eyes. She reached forward and placed a hand on the girl's shoulders. The blunette stopped talking and stared at her with even bigger eyes.

Cynthia smiled more. It hurt to smile, but she would be stronger than steel to protect her people, especially this immensely cute girl.

"You're name is Dawn?" She asked softly.

The girl nodded rapidly with zeal. Cynthia sighed. "You're going to have to talk if we're going to be friends."

"Friends!?" Dawn shrieked. "You're offering to be my friend!?"

"Yeah, of course." Cynthia took Dawn's hand. "You saved my life."

Dawn bounced up from the bed, almost going through the roof, and raced through the bedroom door.

A second later, she could hear a loud cry through the house.

"MOM! GUESS WHAT!? CYNTHIA JUST OFFERED TO BE MY FRIEND!"

* * *

Paul's sight turned from red back to pink, then the normal colors. The transformation was so fast, so forceful, it was not the works of his mind, but something else.

He suddenly found a dark figure in front of him, inches from his face. The face was barely visible, but from what was showing was the most perfect skin Paul had ever seen, as if out of this world.

For a second, all of his emotions were swept away by the mix of shock and admiration. Paul stepped back, startled.

The figure peered at him up and down, as if examining the utility of a tool. Something pressured Paul's ability to speak. It was a feeling that only Reggie had given him.

" **Tell me, where is this place?** "

Paul's mouth opened involuntarily. "Veilstone City. This is Sinnoh."

" **Sinnoh? So… is this… Earth?** "

"Yes." Paul blinked. "Who… who are you?"

" **I'm a visitor.** " The voice was leveled. " **I'll ask the questions from now on.** **Why were you so upset?** "

A pang shot through his heart as a sudden reminder. A defiant emotion pulsed through his head. "Why would I tell you!?"

" **Because I just saved your mind from burning into dust.** " The tone was still unchanged, even when defied. " **Isn't it only polite for you to answer a few inquiries?** "

Paul found nothing to counter the figure. Not even his rebellious senses could strike up. His eyes glowed slightly crimson again.

The black figure humphed and placed a hand on his shoulders. Paul did not find the urge to resist.

A calming black shade extended up to his eyes. The red died down. There was another grunt. " **Be glad that I like you. Learn to operate your emotions. The next time you lose control, I will not spend my Aura trying to save you again.** "

A coldness flashed across Paul's heart, but he liked the coldness. Warmth and cold were separated only by a thin line anyways.

Instinct told him something, and he listened.

The purple-haired trainer knelt down, touching his forehead to the floor. "Teach me."

" **Why should I?** " A muffled laugh came from within the cloak. The question was not what do you mean, or what are you doing.

"Because you like me." Paul followed his intuition.

The figure was silent for a full minute. Paul knelt on the floor, unmoving.

" **Hmmm, maybe this world is interesting.** " Another laugh burst out of the cloak. " **Answer me, why do you want me to I teach you?** "

"I must revenge my brother." His answer was simple.

The figure's smooth disposition wavered for the shortest of moments. Obviously, that was not the expected answer. But… short and curt. Not a bad answer.

" **From now on, I will be called Sythe.** " The figure said. " **You will be my follower. If I tell you to jump off a cliff, you will do so. Is that understood?** "

"Yes, Sythe."

" **Your training starts tomorrow. Now, go fix us some food. You don't want your mentor starving on my first day, right?** "

* * *

Cynthia had looked at the woman's eyes through her entire recount of the last three days. Apparently, she had fainted for three days.

The woman's name was Johanna, and she was the mother of the blunette girl who brought her home after finding her laying on field.

The doctor of the Town was called to the center cities with an arriving group of troops that were heading for the capital.

The reinforcements had come, the mother said. Cynthia's face was emotionless.

All eight of her Pokéball had lit back up from the suspended animation, but none of them emerged.

Cynthia didn't blame them. She had no idea how they felt until she was put in the same situation. She had forcefully locked them up and put them in 'safety', just like how _she_ wanted, without a regard to their own feelings.

She thought she was doing the right thing. It wasn't until Aaron did the same thing to her that she understood how heartless she really was. It made sense her Pokémon were facing her.

She was despicable. She wasn't a Champion. She was merely a failed trainer and a failed leader.

But as much as a failure she was, she still had to get back to the Lily of the Valley. She had to represent the honor of Sinnoh. She had put back in place the rules and circulation of the region. She had to redeem herself.

She looked at her Pokéballs. She didn't expect anyone to jump out and teleport her. Cynthia was going to do this by herself. Even if she had to walk back, she must!

* * *

"I'm leaving." She said to Dawn.

The girl's eyes bulged opened. "But… you can't!"

Cynthia looked at her gently.

Dawn stuttered but continued. "You really can't! You're not completely healed yet!"

"I have to go back to the capital." She breathed softly. "I promise, when I'm done with everything, I'll come back to visit you here at Twinleaf."

Dawn lowered at her and stared at her bedsheets. They were filled with the cherry-smell of the Champion. "When are you leaving?"

"Now."

"But… but it's… it's night!" Dawn snapped her head up, finding a seemingly good excuse to hold her back another few hours. "No need to hurry!"

Cynthia smiled bitterly. "It's going to be a long walk back. There's a pretty big need to hurry."

"What!? You're going to walk?" She yelled. "What about your Pokémon!?"

"They're… going through some difficulties with me." Cynthia's voice trailed off.

Dawn fell silent. The older woman extended her arms. "Do you want you last hug?"

The blunette stepped back. "No!"

"This isn't going to be the 'last hug.'" Dawn proclaimed. "I'm going with you!"

Cynthia shook her head. "You can't go with me."

"I can teleport you there!" Dawn shouted, holding onto a sudden leverage that she found for herself.

The Champion raised an eyebrow. "How? You don't have a single Pokémon."

"I have a very good friend!" Dawn cried and pointed to the window. "He is definitely a strong enough psychic to teleport you."

"Oh? Is he a Pokémon?" Cynthia's eyes focused. If he was willing to teleport her, she would really save so much time.

A mental voice suddenly rang out in their heads. " _The current Champion of Sinnoh, Dawn was talking about me._ "

The two females whipped their heads around. A tiny Pokémon with two tails and four pink extensions from her head floated silently behind them.

" _I was wondering how long it would take for Dawn to mention me._ " He smirked at the bluenette. " _You held back for three days, exactly like what Uxie said… no wonder he is the Legend of Knowledge._ "

Cynthia's jaw fell. "MESPRIT!?"

" _Yes, Champion. My sincere apologies for our lack of actions. We did not receive word after the city had fallen. The Great Lakes are extremely unstable these days._ "

" _Would you like me to teleport you and Dawn to your capital?_ " He asked lightly.

* * *

 **A/N: Enjoy!**


	121. Cha 120: Ultra Beast 1

**Ultra Beast 1**

 **A/N: This is the start of the third Movie in Sign of Times! Yes, Ultra Beasts, but not just Nintendo beasts, but the personification of something deeper!**

 **To Chessmasteroftheuniverse: Happy early birthday! One year older, one year smarter! Everyone go wish Mr. Chess Master a happy birthday!**

 **And now, without further ado, I present, the Ultra.**

* * *

" _MOM! I can't leave you and Dad!" May shouted at her mother. "You said it's our job to stick together as family!"_

 _Around her was a wreckage. Her home, the Petalburg Gym, had been brought down by the giant flood for three weeks._

 _It wasn't just the Petalburg Gym, or even the City. The entirety of southern Hoenn was reduced to waste by the immense flood, which_ they _said was the result of a great war between Pokémon._

 _I HATE Pokémon! May had said._

 _For three weeks, they were trapped in a small underground shelter Norman's father had built decades ago. Ever since Norman became Gym Leader, the Maple family had not much seen it._

 _The floods were to as high as the top of the Gym building, which was four stories tall. It did not help that Petalburg laid in a depression and was touching the Johto border, right under where the great war was occurring._

 _For twenty days, they were trapped in the basement. Norman did not even has his Pokémon with him._

 _For twenty days, they lived off canned foods that were packed nearly ten years ago. They had no taste- merely circles and squares with a muddy brown that required persistent bites and chewing._

 _As a Gym Leader, Norman couldn't hide like the others, or at least those who could. Each hour before a meal, he hopped onto the radio and broadcasted improv speeches to the City._

 _They weren't very informational, but were rather motivational in their intent. Ultimately, though, they were of little conventional use. There were no rescue efforts going on. Everyone was either trapped, or trapped._

 _Three days could make a man go insane in solitary confinement. Twenty, even with people, were not much better._

 _Finally, there was a change today. A radio call directed at Norman broke through his lunch speech, claiming to be from the Johto rescue efforts._

 _Well, at least something good did come out of being close to the borders._

 _When her basement door was opened, there was no water outside, but instead three men. They led them up to the top floor of the Gym._

 _It was not because they drained the entire City, but because they had Ground Pokémon build a giant square wall around the Gym that prevented more water from pouring in while draining the water with Grass Types._

 _It was an extremely ineffective method to deal with floods, but not much could be done when half of Hoenn was flooded under thirty feet of water._

 _The rescuers immediately went into discussion with the Gym Leader. Her parents then decided to stay back, being the Head of the City, to aid with the flood._

 _On the other hand, May and Max would be sent over to Johto to refugee camps until the situation is safe for them to return._

 _Caroline watched her daughter rage softly. After May had calmed down enough for words to be comprehended, she said one sentence._

" _May, honey, if you stay," The woman placed a hand on her shoulder, "Max would have to go to Johto alone._

 _She always knew how to get her._

* * *

May and Max Maple had arrived at the camp for a month now. They said that a powerful Pokémon had come and drained the water of the Southern Hoenn in a day.

However, the destruction of the cities still remained to be cleaned up, along with damage that was still left untotalled.

Her parents had requested that they keep to the camp, however. She would like to think that it was because of Max.

Max was seven. Even though he was a genius, he was still too vulnerable to be under those conditions. The prolonged camp was definitely not because of her. No way. She was a woman. She could take care of herself and help her parents!

But instead of being back at Petalburg, she now laid on a bed in a wood cabin. Next to her was her brother's bed. The cabin was very small and had barely more room after fitting two beds. A sharp change from the Gym.

It was clearly built not long ago, especially since the tree stumps were still visibly around the lodgings.

The door opened and closed. Light footsteps sounded. May's eyes were attached to the ceiling.

"May… how long do you think we'll be here for?" A small voice sounded.

May's eyes trailed along the ceiling, down the wall, to the small window leading to the outside world. A weak ray of moonlight shone in.

The brunette breathed out heavily. "Maybe… another week?"

"No, seriously." Her younger brother sat down on her bed and pushed her face towards him. Max looked at her in those giant glasses, not at all dimming the clarity of his eyes.

May held his hand. "Another month, then?"

Max closed his eyes and lied down next to her. May scooched over a little to make room. Her left arm hung off. The bed was not big enough for the both of them.

"Too long," He said.

"Then two weeks?"

"Unrealistic."

May wanted to facepalm. She thought she had gotten used to the weird logic that Max had developed after being transported to Johto. Wrong.

"Then, three weeks?"

"Too perfect of a number."

"Max, do you think I'm pretty?"

"Of course, sis." Max opened his eyes and gave her a confused look.

"Then why don't you just shut up and look at me." May sat up and sighed. "I know you're dying of boredom…"

"Dying of boredom!?" Max sat up with her. "This isn't boredom! This is TORTURE! I need my parts to finish my robot…"

May covered his mouth. "Okay, okay, okay. Too loud."

Under the moonlight, his frowning face was painted a pale white. Max's body relaxed slightly, and leaned into his sister, burying his head into her hair. "May?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

"I love you too, little bro."

Then, the door to the cabin slammed opened.

* * *

The Maple siblings snapped their heads to the door. The silhouette of a figure walked in. He had bulky arms, and in his hands… a rifle.

He placed his rifle on his shoulder and began to clap slowly. His voice was menacing and low. "Impressive. That was almost better than the play I saw last Monday."

The two froze. A second later, both began to shriek at the top of their lungs.

The figure was unmoved. "By all means, keep screaming. Everyone else is sleeping… I made sure."

"Who are YOU!" May cried and jumped off the bed, while using one hand to push her brother to the corner.

The man did not answer her question. Instead, he continued as if her shouts were the wind. "I don't understand why Master said this is a hard place to break into. Everyone who is capable are at the borders."

"I don't know why he chose you specifically, but quit your yelling and listen!" He suddenly lunged forward and snatched May by the hair, slapping her violently across the face.

Pain and horror crashed against May's heart, but she bit her tongue hard, choking back a scream. A timid line of blood dripped down from her lip. The area where he had slapped her was already swelling up in a grueling red.

A sob from the corner drew the man's attention. Max was shrunken back like a frightened kitten, with tears pouring down his face.

The man glared at him. He shrunk back more and brought his hands to his mouth.

"We can do this the easy way, or the hard…"

Before he could finish, May suddenly tore away from him, ripping away a chunk of her hair in the process. She gave no care to her bleeding scalp and lunged for the rifle on his shoulder, while tackling him in the process.

The man, leaning half on the wall did not anticipate such a fierce attack by the seemingly harmless girl at all. May slammed against him, and for all his muscles, lost his balance and fell backwards.

Using the recoil, May steadied herself and seized the rifle that was dangling precariously on his shoulders over, while the man fall over.

She twisted the gun around. A cold aura descended upon her. She felt like she was being overtaken by someone else.

Her fingers snapped down on the safety and raised it at the man. Her hands were steady. She had never touched a gun before in her life, but the motion seemed more than natural.

The man felt a unprecedented horror. He didn't understand. Why was he on the ground, with a rifle pointed at him?

The years of training came to mind. His teacher had said that if someone dared to point a rifle this close at him, there was a chance he could swing it away fast enough before she could react…

 _BANG!_

The man laid on the ground, motionless. Below his head was a puddle of blood. In his left hand was a tuft of brown hair.

May turned around and smirked at her little brother. "Don't worry, Maxy. I'm here."

Deep within her eyes, five glints of yellow, purple, red, green, and blue shone simultaneously.

Max couldn't speak. A second later, May passed out on the bed.

* * *

Mount Silver was truly a mysterious place. From the oldest myths to the newest legends, they all had some sort of connection with the peak.

Since the last century, when modern technology skyrocketed, men had explored the mountain more than all others had in the last era combined.

Satellites had mapped out regions, and geological equipment had long determined what was in those mysterious caves.

Or so they thought.

The Maple siblings stood beneath Mt. Silver. Max clung onto his sister. A chilly wind blew down from the height and washed over the two. He shivered.

May looked at her brother lovingly. She hugged him tighter. "Cold?"

Max nodded. Her chest felt so warm. It was less overbearing as his mother's, but Max felt even more comfortable.

May's hand, rubbing his back, glowed into five colors. An invisible sheen formed around the brunet boy.

"Better?" May released him and held onto his hand.

A cleansing warmth coarsed through his veins. He did not feel this good even after he and May stole and drank Norman's wine.

He nodded vigorously and looked up at the peak, hidden in the clouds. The unrevealed top was covered in white. "Why are we coming here again?"

"I don't know. I feel something summoning me here." May shook her head and tightened her grasp. "Just trust me."

"I'll always trust you, sis." Max tilted his head to look at her.

* * *

Ash spun to his right to dodge Professor Oak's punch, while sidestepping with force, trying to trip the old man.

The scientist launched himself off the ground and thirty feet into the air, getting away from the Guardian, while displacing a series of energy beams to his advantage.

The teen rolled away with a boost of Aura, leaving the ground behind him pummelled. A second later though, it squirmed and materialized back to the original shape.

Neither men paid attention to it. Rather, they watched each other intently, one from the ground, one in the air.

"And TIME!" A shout sounded. Domino stepped right out of an inverted space and waved two white flag.

Ash and Oak relaxed their posture and descended down to the ground. Oak chuckled and patted the teen on the shoulder. "Pretty, good, my boy! That was mid-Ancient setting."

Ash gave a wide smirk. "Training here is so good! My Aura capacity hasn't expanded yet, but my Path has grown double."

"Speaking of Path," Domino interrupted. "How is Dragonite doing?"

"He is still among the furthest of all in the Formation process." Oak confirmed. "Mewtwo visited a few days ago and he only managed to defeat Dragonite after hours of battling."

"After the Rockets get settle down soon, we'll have to switch our eyes to Sinnoh." Ash turned to his girlfriend. "How're Giovanni managing Hoenn?"

"Nonstop complaining." Domino rolled his eyes. "I'm so glad I'm with you. Or else, I'll be in Hoenn signing a legal document that allows singing in the bathroom."

Ash smirked and pulled her to him, asking jokingly. "Is that all I'm good for?"

"Yep!" Domino stuck her tongue out perkily and bounced away.

* * *

 **A/N: The couple finally appeared! What are they doing!? Flirting! Why am I not surprised?**


	122. Cha 121: Ultra Beast 2

**Ultra Beast 2**

Mt. Silver had laid barren in solitude for centuries. Afterall, it was just a harsh mountain that no one but a madman would venture upon.

It was this fateful night when a beam of five colors suddenly burst out into the Home Islands. It was so bright that even an astronomer in Kalos could see it vividly.

For the citizens of Johto, the five colors were like a new sky, separating the region into five distinct shades of yellow, purple, blue, red, and green.

Mt. Silver cracked. A horrid line split down the center, from due north to due south. The entire eastern range turned into a pure white, and the western an absorbing black.

The combined aura formed into a powerful air that soared into the sky.

From his dwellings on the Sky Tower, Rayquaza did a double take at the protruding beam. It was still hundreds of miles from him, but it contained an energy that even he could not afford to tamper with.

Five shadows, each of a gruesome beast, filled the clouds. As if sensing his sight, all five turned around to stare at the dragon.

Upon being stared at, Rayquaza's hair stood on their ends. A cold sensation ripped deep into his veins. This was a power that no one had ever given him, besides the disappeared Creation Trios.

He was supposed to be the strongest, ruling Legend of the realm. Who were these…

Each single one was at least as potent as him, or likely more so. Though they weren't Cosmics…

Suddenly, the sky split apart. a pure, white hand reached out of an inverted space and grabbed after the beam.

 _The SOUL!_

The five beasts' attention was immediately switched away from Rayquaza onto the new profound threat. The five roared at the same time.

The beam crashed into the Soul with brute force.

Space rippled and shatter like glass. A giant emptiness of calamity formed, like a black hole sucking everything inward in the high air.

Rayquaza himself felt his Sky Tower beginning to shift in the direction. Roaring, he pumped Dragon energy without a thought into the tower.

The Sky Tower minimized in size and darted away to the south. Little people knew that his Sky Tower was actually a Formation Relic that was linked entirely with the sky.

But even with the sky as his advantageous territory, he could do nothing about the clash of the two titans.

The five-colored crashed against the Soul, again and again. Abruptly, the five separated into five different beams separating into distinct directions.

The white crashed again in the center. For a second, Rayquaza had the illusion of the hand of a giant grasping at the pounding sky.

It was the final blow. The five beams condensed together and grasped it straight in its palm. With a tossing motion, the hand flung the Soul straight back into the black split from where it came from.

A furious roar originated from within the spatial gap. An immense white surged from within to form a giant ball of brightness and struck at near light speed onto the hand.

The five colors exploded in midair. The entire beam dissipated, but its remnants still vibrated into the air and the five colored sky of Johto.

The illusion of the five beasts roared at the sky, as if mocking the Soul, and dived back down to Mt. Silver.

* * *

It was only an hour before Ash, Domino, and Juliet appeared at the border of Indigo Plateau. From the distance, which was barely fifty miles from the mountain, they could see the changed structure of the peak.

From within, a terrifying air of power and mysteriousness pounded at their minds. Even Pikachu sparked in slight fear.

They were at the lands between Kanto and Johto. A few more miles, they would be stepping into the region… under the eerie green light scheme.

For the past hour, there were no reports of the light being actually harmful, but all of them could sense a deep danger from within, as if the entire Johto region had came alive.

Ash's hand curled around Domino's. Around their belts were all of their Pokémon at or above Ancient ranks. Pikachu, sitting on Ash's shoulder, touched tails with Zorua, on her trainer's head. Juliet adjusted her tight cap, which had an eye symbol on it.

With the next flash, the trios disappeared.

* * *

When the three flashed into existence, they did not find themselves near the base of Mt. Silver, which was where they planned to teleport.

Instead, it was one giant plain. Wild grass spurred out of the flat land, which stretched on until the end of sight.

None of them freaked out. After the many occasions through which they had been, a developing immunity to surprises had formed.

A pink energy flowed out of Juliet's head and formed into a giant eye, which soared into the air. After it levitated to about cloud level, it peered down at the ground.

Before the trios, another sheet of pink formed, showing what the eye saw. It wasn't an infinite plain. To its west was a massive ocean, and to its east an expansive mountain range. Its south was an endless marsh, and its north a tall volcano that dug deep into the sky.

Mount Silver was not in any shape within the land.

Juliet frowned. "This is bad. My Path of Vision should have cleared all illusions around us. There're only two explanations for this."

"One: We're not actually in Johto anymore. Something has teleported us during our own teleportation to a land that is not part of Earth… because the Home Islands does NOT have a terrain like this."

"Or Two: The being that had trapped us in this illusion is far greater than simple Formation rankings…"  
"So equally bad." Ash concluded with an increasingly gloomy face.

Suddenly, a massive green wave swept down from the high air, striking the Eye. Without any resistance, it shattered into pieces.

Juliet's face contorted into agony. Clutching her head, she dropped to the ground instantly. Before the Ash and Domino could do anything, the green dropped onto them.

Ash roared and pulsed out a wave of Aura, while Domino lash out with a Psycho Cut. Pikachu began sparking like the beginning of an apocalypse. Zorua glowed a deep dark.

By illusion, or some force, all of their attacks passed through without an effect!

The wave glanced onto them and passed right through. A slight light scheme lingered on their bodies and then dissipated, as if nothing had happened.

Ash blinked. He turned to Domino and saw her looking back with an equally puzzled face.

"How are you doing?" His gaze drifted to the two Pokémon. "Are you guys hurt?"

"Nope." The Elite frowned, followed by nods from the Pokémon.

They blinked again. Ash quickly crouched down to check on Juliet.

Unlike them, she still laid on the ground, unconscious. Domino knelt down beside him. "Why is she… is it because she actually pulsed out her Path and _it_ got damaged?"

Ash fell into deep silence. Pikachu shook his head. " _A Path is like your soul. It may be the case. Try waking her up with some stimulation._ "

Domino nodded and held on to her hand. She concentrated.

A second later, the blonde snapped her head up at them with a frantic glow in her eyes. Ash could see the shaking of her hands.

"I… I…" Domino stuttered. "I don't… have my psychic!"

"WHAT!?"

Ash's eyebrows shot to his forehead. He immediately opened his palm. A blue glow surfaced.

Before he could take a breath, it sparked and blew out. Ash's eyes widened. Pikachu's tail stiffened, and his face turned to the same horror. Ash grabbed onto his Pokéballs. They were all out cold. Their lights were all off. Ash pressed the front button... nothing.

Zorua frowned. " _Why do you all look petrified?_ "

Pikachu hopped over and touched her with an ear. His head was immediately thrown back. Zorua's mouth dropped open and quickly held onto her mate. " _Pika! What happened!?_ "

Before she could do anything else, her coat blurred… blurred like someone had literally taken bleach to her fur. Her eyes lost their cyan scheme and turned to a pale white.

Pikachu shrieked. Zorua suddenly tossed him back hard onto the ground. Her fur turned from a colorless grey rapidly into a startling green.

The trainers took a shocked step backwards. Within seconds, the transformation is done. Zorua picked her head up at them and glowered.

Her pupils had completely disappeared. She peered at them lifelessly. She opened her mouth, and a soundless mourn blurted out. Two lines of blood dripped down.

She stared at them for a few seconds. The rocks below her feet cracked. Wordlessly, Zorua turned around and hopped away at nearly sound speed.

No one dared speak.

* * *

Her image melted into the sunset. Domino had on a blank face on. Ash did nothing but hold her. He knew that her immediate reaction to any pain that she had no way of dealing is to completely shut off. He could only lend his warmth.

In his left arm was Pikachu, with his eyes closed. His cheek pouches had been diluted into a dark pink instead of the normal scarlet. Ash didn't speak either.

He knew how it was like losing his mate. Last Christmas was an one buried deeply.

Simply, he pointed into the distance… the direction after which the fox had disappeared. Domino stared at it, without any reflections in her eyes. They were a pool of dead water. Pikachu nodded.

Ash crouched down and managed to fling the unconscious Juliet onto his back. Someone had to take charge here.

* * *

The moon hung high over the plains. It had been hours since the company had walked. It was an endless stride.

Ash did not know what to expect. However, he knew he had to pace on. He had been in worse conditions. He must not stop. He must not look back.

The moon was a green crescent. Domino's head lowered beneath her shoulders. She still did not speak. Pikachu had fallen asleep in Ash's arms. Juliet still did not stir.

A fog had emerged from the distance where they first came from. Intuition told Ash that it was not something he wanted to be engulfed in… at least not without powers.

But he really couldn't quicken his pace anymore! Even with so much experience as a traveler- eight years worth- he was closing on his limits.

"Light." A voice came from his left. Ash tilted to see Domino staring to the west of his path.

Ash stopped. She said her first word. That meant he had to change his unending course too.

There was indeed lights. They were close, barely a mile or so. They weren't plentiful, so definitely not a large settlement.

* * *

As he approach, Ash began to make out what the light Domino saw was.

There was a row of wooden walls, barricades, lining across the middle of the grass. Ash was wrong. It was actually a giant settlement. The lights were only blocked by the wood.

The light from afar was actually the bright fires from above the walls, lighting up the nearby for a quarter of a mile.

Suddenly, a whistle pierced through the air. Ash froze. Domino frowned and continued walking. Two steps later, an arrow arrived a foot away from her.

Ash quickly pulled her back. Cupping his hands to his mouth, he roared. "We come in peace!"  
His yell faded within a few hundred feet. The teen sighed. The defects of being powerless was becoming more and more influential.

First, he had never felt this tired after he traveled to this timeline. Hunger and thirst all were pounding at him for the last hours, luring him to drop down. Ash missed being able to clutch his hand and having a deep blue flare up.

Unconsciously, he took a step forward too. Another arrow arrived beneath his boot.

They could do nothing.

Abruptly, shouts sounded from the large walls, though he could not make it out. After a few minutes, one of the walls opened, and a dozen of riders flushed out.

They came at them at lightning speed. As they came closer, Ash saw that they were riding on… a creature he had never seen before. The men- they were all males- had on full leather, each with a longsword in a sheath at their waist.

The blades were so extended that it could match his staff, which was trapped in his aura-enhanced pocket, unable to be retrieved without powers.

Within a minute, they dashed before the two. One, evidently the leader by his frontal position, jumped off and walked at them.

Ash walked forward too. "Hello! Can we borrow a night at your town? My friend here passed out on our journey…"

The leader made a stop sign and tilted his head. From his mouth, words spewed out as well.

Ash's brow furrowed… because he could not understand a single word!

The leader, seeing his predicament, turned to his gang and shouted. The riders all clumped together, and discussion broke out.

Soon, they separated again and all shook their heads. Another one jumped off his horse and walked next to the leader. With difficult gestures, he pointed at the barricaded fort, and back at Ash, and at them.

Ash held his head. He was never good at guessing games. Domino suddenly piped up beside him and acted out another series of similar gestures.

The men, all of a sudden, started to nod. The leader and the other rider turned around and hopped onto the same horse. Then, the dozen of men looked at Ash expectantly.

Ash blinked. Domino sighed and walked toward the lone horse. Ash caught up quickly and whispered. "What's going on?"

"We're going to their fort." She said. "They thought we were someone else, which was why they were firing at us. Good thing they weren't sure."

"How did you get all of THAT from your signs!?"

"Sign language is universal… or at least their gestures are." Domino said without turning around. She placed one foot on a saddle, and rotated her body on with ease. Then she waved at Ash.

The teen first delivered Juliet up to her, and swung his legs up, struggling a little, but finally got on. Ash had ridden Ponytas before, but this creature was much bigger… even than a Rapidash. Their shapes were similar, but this species was much… calmer.

All of the men looked at Ash weirdly. One of them said something, and the rest burst into laughter.

The leader strode forward and slammed a hand on his shoulder, chuckling. Then, he held out his thumb and Domino.

The twelve slowly started back to the fort. Domino followed their lead. Ash, clutching onto her waist, with Juliet lying on his lap. "What were they laughing about?"

The blonde looked at her clueless boyfriend. "Don't worry about it, Ashy."

* * *

 **A/N: Number Two! I promise, it'll get more exciting! The plot has been laid.**


	123. Cha 122: Ultra Beast 3

**Ultra Beast 3**

When the riders crossed through the door, Ash could see that the scenery inside was much more different from the endless grass outside.

Men stood guard on the top of the walls, Inside, it was a great town. Ash wouldn't call it exactly a city, but it wasn't far from it.

People buzzed around, even at night. Shops and small booths lied around, some closed, some still functioning. It would only be ten times more excited during day time.

The riders walked down the street, and Domino guided her horse to follow them. As they scuffled down the paths, the people scurried out of the way, with a tone of respect.

Ash watched curiously as they passed the street into a different neighborhood. This one was much less populated, since it was a housing district.

Buildings were rare. Most of them actually lived in giant tents that could fit a family of four or five spaciously. It was a tradition he had never been contact with before.

Well… obviously… where the hell even is this place!?

The riders turned a couple of corners, making Ash lose his direction quickly. Silently, his hold on Domino's waist tightened.

Even without powers, she knew his thoughts exactly. "Don't worry."

Before long, the riders stopped. The leader hopped off his horse and motioned the duo to jump off as well.

Domino slid off and took Juliet from Ash, who almost tripped in the process. He muttered to himself. "I hate being unpowered."

The leader waved his hands and gestured to a giant tent, and then at Juliet. Domino frowned and approached it. Eyeing the man, who nodded, she flipped open the cloth and entered.

Inside was a large empty space with a dozen beds and an old man sitting on a futon with his eyes closed.

The leader entered after Ash and Domino and bowed to the waist. The eleven others stayed out.

He spoke in their language, all while keeping his head down. After a minute, the elder raised his head.

His eyes… they were the brightest lights Ash had ever seen! They were like striking sun melting away any troubles in their paths. His aura took on a dominating hold, even when he smiled.

The next most grasping feature was… a long beard that covered his face. It was snow white and linked up to his eyebrows. Only with its slight diminishing so could a man not be blinded by staring into his eyes.

However, his anatomy was no match for soul. The ancient man stood up limply and struggled to wobble over to them. The leader quickly rushed forward and held on to him, like an obedient grandson.

The old man waved his hands and pointed at the two foreigners. They exchanged quick words, and the young rider turned around and gestured at them, and at their mouths. Then, he made… speaking gestures.

Domino frowned. This was the first time she did not know what he meant. Ash looked at her questioningly. "Do you know what he's saying?"

Suddenly, the man jumped up with energy and pointed at Ash. The two stared at him in profound confusion.

The old man shook his head and placed a limb on his shoulder. The leader immediately stopped jumping and bowed.

The elder opened his mouth. Ash and Domino saw nothing, but they could feel from their intuition and powerful wave of sound echoing through the tent.

Their jaws dropped immensely as his mouth blurred, as if half smudged away. Then, a sweet tone filled their ears.

Sweet because it was a language they could understand!

"Welcome, foreigners. Do not be startled. I was one of you once too." The old man's eyes grew even brighter, so shining that both of them lowered their heads.

"Sir, you speak…"

"No. This is an illusion." He smiled. "It's a small trick that I can do… an inborn talent, you could say."

"Inborn… talent?"

"Yes. It is a very rare thing among us. Somehow, some of us have special abilities… I guess. Mine is to communicate with everything in this world that has a soul."

The old man chuckled. "Probably the most useless of all. Our tribe leader's ability is to weave plants into any shapes, grass into wood, and so on. In fact, he built this entire city."

He coughed. "I digress. Roulin brought you here probably because of the girl. What happened to her?"

Ash and Domino quickly realize that he was referring to Juliet. Ash gently placed her down on a nearby bed. However, no words came out of his mouth.

What was he going to say? They were from another world? She was using her powers to peer at the geography, and the sky struck her down?

Before he could talk though, the elder walked over to her and placed a hand on her forehead.

Domino and Ash exchanged glances and scooched closer. The leader- Roulin- stepped forward and pulled them back. He made a be-quiet gesture and shook his head, then he started walking out of the tent, followed by the couple.

* * *

An hour passed in the tent. Half of the riders had left to retrieve food, which they had all recognized to be a burden, especially the two Chosens after walking for a day.

The leader and his leftover men sat straight in front of the area before it. Ash's eyes were wandering around the sky, while Domino's was trained on the opening of the tent.

"The stars are different." Ash poked her. "It's not like anything on Earth… or even the galaxy around."

"What do you mean?" Domino asked in deep concern.

"Remember the Bubble? Remember how we woke up to infinite rays of starlights? The scene is encarved in my memory. My Path of Forget had specifically prevented me from forgetting that."

"This is not like any stars on Earth… or…" Ash took a deep breath. He had a solemn, scary thought he dare not say.

"We are not in another universe." Domino shook her head. "No way. My woman intuition is telling me something else."

"No, not just universe." Ash silenced himself. "Remember how this entire reality is Arceus's memory? If the stars don't match the true reality in the Bubble…"

Domino's eyes widened in shock, which descended soon into horror.

Before she could speak, the cloth of the tent flung open, and the old man stumbled out.

The leader quickly got up with a handkerchief, reaching for his forehead to wipe off sweat. He nodded.

"Your friend should be well now. She's going to wake up soon." He held up his hand. "Just a few herbs shall suffice. She's a healthy lady!"

"Thank you!" The duo rushed to him. "Thank you so much!"

"No problem. It's my job as a doctor." He smiled. "I believe Roulin wants to take you to meet the Governor? He invited me along for a ride… probably to translate."

Roulin turned to him and started a long communication. Soon, the six missing riders came back with a large carriage behind, drawn by the same creatures.

"What are they?" Ash pointed at the giant Rapidash-like animals.

"They?" The old man snapped his fingers at Roulin's, which trudged over. "Why? They're called horses! Have you never heard of them?"

Horses… Ash and Domino repeated it beneath their breath. The six riders halted to a stop in front of the tent. The elder scooched over and was helped in.

"To the Governor's!"

* * *

The Governor's family also lived in a tent, just like everyone else. There was no special treatment.

In fact, he was waiting by the front already. He was a man in his mid-forties. His muscles bulged out. His lips were thin and eyebrows curved at a defiant angle.

He had the natural look of a leader.

When the old man got off though, his genetic disposition wavered off and ran in front of the carriage. The riders all got off their horses and bowed. The Governor waved and helped the old man out.

The two exchanged words, and his gaze switched on over to Ash and Domino. His structure was more dominating, but his eyes were not nearly as penetrating as the elder's.

Ash took a step forward and held out a hand to be shook. The Governor looked down at it with a questioningly glance.

There was an awkward silence, before the elder cleared his throat. "Is your hand okay, young man?"

"..."

* * *

After rapid exchanges of introduction, aided by translations, the duo was invited into the tent.

It was bigger than the others and was linked to more tents past the first. Already, there were tables set with food piling on top.

Only the old man, Ash, Domino, and Roulin entered. The others stayed out.

The food was plentiful… and very dull. There were, in essense, only three types.

Meat. Milk. Maize.

Each table had three giant plates. The corn piled to a foot high. The meat was well-cooked, which also stacked to as high as the corn. The milk was in a wooden bucket by the other plates. There were no utensils on the table.

The two teens' eyes twitched. Part of their body demanded them to rush to the food after the day's starvation. The other part, fueled by curiosity and skepticism, was chaining them back.

The Governor opened his hands and laughed. Next to the duo, Roulin laughed as well. The old man smirked and turned to the two. "The Governor said you two look thin. It's the way of us to welcome you to a feast on your first night here! Dig in!"

The two looked at each other unsurly and sat down after their hosts planted themselves down. Immediately after, they dug their hands into the meat and maize.

Ash's eyes twitched. He could barely bring himself to do this…

However, before he could follow suit, Domino stopped him. She waved her hands at the old man. "Excuse me! Elder?"

The old man, who were acting a little more civilized… picked his head up from the giant bucket. "Yes, young lady?"

The other two picked their heads up to look at her.

"Ummm… you said that the Governor," she sneaked a peak at him, who smiled back. "Has the ability to manipulate plants into anything?"

"Given enough density, yes." He replied.

"Can he make us… something? I have something really cool that will help with our feast."

The old man looked at her curiously and turned to the Governor. After a few words, the Governor nodded, and all three stared at her with a inquiring glance.

Domino dipped her finger in the milk and started sketching a shape into the table. Within a minute, she finished her drawing, which turned out more accurate than not. Ash immediately knew what she was drawing.

The Governor puckered his lips. After a while, he nodded and snapped his fingers. From the ground, strips of grass zoomed up and bounded themselves together in the shape that Domino drew.

A few seconds later, three wooden utensils dropped onto the table.

Domino smirked at the old man. "This is a spoon. This a fork. This a knife. You use them like this…"

* * *

 **A/N: And thus, their first night.**

 **This Movie is dragging on. The structure is not tightly packed, but I love writing this. A Movie's job is to pull the characters out of the original setting into something else. I think I'm going to go for a few more chapters than 4 on this one.**


	124. Cha 123: Ultra Beast 4

**Ultra Beast 4**

Seven years passed as quickly as sand dropping from a blowing wind.

Ash and Domino both aged. When they first came in, both had only entered puberty in their physical form. Now, they had all grown to become young adults.

Ash stood a solid two feet taller than before. His body grew in proportion. He was still the lanky, raven-haired trainer, but his eyes changed the most.

Eyes. They were the doors to the soul. It wasn't just a cliche.

Unlike seven years ago, there weren't unintentional shooting beams challenging the universe for its dominance. There weren't a desire for power, ostentatious for the world to see.

Instead, his eyes were like two swirls of majesty, pulling knowledge into its huge collection. Only from deep within would the will to be the very best be seen.

His hands were the second biggest change. Around his knuckles were a heavy layer of callus. The fingers were long and thin, capable of reaching into the tiniest crevices and manipulate any tools.

Domino and Juliet changed equally drastically. The blonde beauty's hair was still in their curly state, sitting neatly on her shoulders, but the rest of her body became more womanlike.

Same with Juliet. However, her blue hair now extended down her back to her waist. Their pairs of eyes- purple and golden- rivaled the shining stars of the sky.

The tribemen had long known that Domino was taken, but Juliet wasn't. Over the years, she had politely rejected the proposals and courtships of numerous men.

She had grown very close to the Governor, who looked to her as a daughter. At first, he also pushed for her to marry, but gave up once she passed eighteen without any meaning to do so.

The Plains tribesmen married at a very young age. By 16, most girls are taken. Around the town, Juliet was known as the Icy Hot.

That night when the trio arrived at the town and after Domino showed them how to make the utensils, the old man immediately recognized their talents.

After Juliet had awoken, the elder asked the trio whether they were willing to be his… apprentices. Before they could reject his offer, the Governor reacted in great shock and applauded for them.

By intuition or destiny, they agreed, though not knowing what he meant. After the dinner, the elder led them, tagged by the Governor, back to his tent, in which he explained their jobs.

Create. Simple. They seemed to possess great knowledge, the elder later said to the Governor, of foreign things.

And so, the three became the engineers of the new land… and they had plenty in store. After all, they came from a modern society.

And yes, after they discussed, they decided to stay. Of course they wanted to find Zorua and go home, but they need to start somewhere. They planned to use the Plains tribe as a base.

And so, seven years leaked through their hands. The longer they stayed, the strange familiarity seeped into them more. The tribesmen were nothing they had seen before, and they were beginning to treat it more and more like family. When they finished learning their language, it was the end of the second year.

By then, they had created new, magnificent things for the Plainsmen. From new weapons like spears to utility like binoculars, they also gained a new nickname: the Creators.

It was also the end of the year when the elder persuaded them to open a class to teach new kids skills. Thus, they gave meaning to the word artisan.

Roulin and his riders got married in the first and second year. By the fifth year, they had already sent their kids to the school. The Plainsmen matured quickly.

Their lives weren't bad at all. Respected by most, they weren't extremely happy either. Each day, Domino stood on the walls and stared into the west, where her beloved starter disappeared. Pikachu sat on her shoulder, following his own gaze.

During that time, Ash would sit in his tent, peering up at the stars with a neo-telescope. He had been trying to map out the new stars for the past years. Surprisingly, they didn't change… at all.

Of course stars moved very slowly, but each night sky was still in some slight way different from the next. However, the sky was the same for all seven years.

Juliet would sit by Ash quietly, examining his face. Deep down, a strand of an unidentified emotion flash through. Then, when he looked over at her, she would hand over an eraser, or take a handkerchief to wipe off the sweat off his brows.

Throughout the years, they had also learned the geography of the land. Like Juliet had first seen, the Plains did not extend on indefinitely. When they confirmed it with the Governor, he had too nodded to the notion.

There was the ocean, marsh, mountains, and volcanoes a large distance from them. It was such an expansive distance that there was no reason to cross it.

There were other tribes living there, the Governor said, but contact was at best minimal. There was no trade and no interactions. No one knew what the others were doing. There was no need to.

Ash had pointed his best binoculars at the distances, and he actually did see the mountains in the far distance, and the marsh, and the oceans. But with simple math, he determined that it would take over three months to ride over, and even longer on foot.

But soon… soon, they would have to pick a direction. He could see the growing desire in Domino's eyes. The west… that was the direction of the ocean.

However, before he could even set foot off, trouble had come to them first.

* * *

One night, fire sprung up all around the fort. The fire blared to the sky, and they started instantaneously all around the fort, like a giant rectangle, pushing inward from miles beyond.

The tribesmen had their ways of dealing with small fires- underwater rivers. However, the fire was bigger and spread quicker than anything they had seen before.

The Trio was the first to thought of a solution. It was the same solution used for wildfires back home.

All men were mobilized, each taking stored shovels. Quickly, they managed to dig a shallow, empty moat around the fort before the fires could spread to the point.

The fire, without any fuel, died out around the city. For ten miles outward, everything was turned to ash.

The next day, the Governor was furious. With surveys of the land, he determined that the fire all started at the same distance away, like it was measured. It wasn't very long until a tribesman stepped forward to say that he had seen, with binoculars, men in red standing outside of the ring of fire ten miles outward.

Men in red. The Governor knew exactly whom they were.

Volcanomen.

Worshipper of the volcano. No wonder, fire.

A meeting was called, and it was an unanimous vote to declare war. And so, the Plainsmen found an excuse to leave the Plains of their home for the south.

All Plainsmen were expected to learn how to ride the creatures they called horses. Most entered the ranks after their training. Women stayed back to take care of internal duties. The gender roles were very structured, but their respect was equal.

In fact, the entire government was made of women, while the military was of men. A strong military was even necessary before the declaration of war, since hunting was a main source of food, along from agriculture and ranching.

Almost two-thirds of the men mobilized to leave the fort for the south. Ash was planned to follow them so they could invent new utilities when demand called. Juliet stayed back, with the Governor yielding temporary executive to her.

Domino, on the other hand, was sent on a different task. The Governor said that on the massive ocean, there were unique people living on ships.

In fact, their entire lives were dedicated to the waters. Some had never stepped onto land for their lifespan. Yet, they had an ancient rivalry with the Volcanomen, who were legended to be the ones who forced the first generation onto the waters.

Domino, along with a small group of other riders, were sent their ways to propose an alliance to fight the Volcanomen, whom the Governor claimed to have started yet another era of plunder.

"They are the end of peace." He said.

Domino was not clear on the details of the deal. Instead, she focused on one fact solely.

Ocean. Westward. That was where Zorua disappeared.

She parted with them willingly. With her also went Pikachu, who separated from Ash for the first time in a very long period.

It was a new age.

* * *

Domino was an expert rider, even more skilled than the horsemen grew up on it. Judging by the stars, which she had learned to trust dearly, they had traveled nearly eight hundred miles before reaching the coast.

When the scenery changed from the infinite grass to a deep ocean, Domino felt a sudden wave of excitement. She had never been so happy to see water. Heck, she felt like an Aqua.

And now… they waited.

Yeah… they had not thought everything through.

There was no way for them to get onto the high seas, and they could only wait for the Oceanmen to come to them.

It was a long wait.

* * *

On Ash's side, a month brought them to the side of the Plains as well. In the way, there were surprisingly no obstacles.

Ash had to come up with the compass, substituting magnet with some sort of electrical charge fur-stick that were only temporarily active.

He was so glad of the lessons on electricity Dexter had given him…

The volcano appeared in the distance.

There would be a war. Ash was nothing but calm.

* * *

 **A/N: War of five tribes.**


	125. Attention!

**A/N: Hey, readers! This story is being rewritten as "Hell's Ambassador." Please take a look at the new book and support!**


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